Hobie hull replacement

Does Hobie sell base hulls without all the fittings? Eventually I'm going to have to replace my outback due to wear and tear and would like to know if it's possible to buy just a bare hull with all the holes so I can transfer all of the old fittings and screws from the old boat. If so, is there a general price/breakdown?

Thanks

This can be done by a dealer. They simply credit you for removed items such as seat, drive and paddle. When dealers purchase one from us as a hull-only... we do the same for them.

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Matt Miller
Former - Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Warranty and Technical Support
Hobie Cat USA
(Retired 11/7/2022)

It would be nice to buy a clean pallet and put everything exactly where you want it.

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... no "clean pallet" like no fittings at all is possible. Just short the drive, paddle and seat. Hatches and fittings will be in place. You can move the threaded fittings around to fit your needs, but the holes they thread into are molded into the hull.

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Matt Miller
Former - Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Warranty and Technical Support
Hobie Cat USA
(Retired 11/7/2022)

In 2007 I bought an adventure and turned it in for warranty (the notorious forward mirage well crack). Now my updated 2009 Adventure has the same crack. Can it also be turned in for warranty? I gave the serial number cut out from the 2007 kayak to the dealer. What is the criteria for the second warranty or is there one? By the way my wife has a 2007 revolution and it has held up wonderfully. Nothing else like a hobie mirage kayak out there. I just wish my kayaks would stop cracking. Maybe you could put in an outragous amount of polyethelene on the effected area. I definately wouldn't mind the extra weight.






Thanks

Contact your dealer... thats the place to start.

_________________
Matt Miller
Former - Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Warranty and Technical Support
Hobie Cat USA
(Retired 11/7/2022)

Hijacking this thread.

Has anyone who has had a replacement AI Hull have trouble attaching the Aka crossbars to the new hull? The holes in the crossbar do not line up with the brass molded holes for them.

On another note..... Just love the new drain plug in the stern and the much deeper cup holders and the Click N Go looks like the bees knees. Can't wait to try it out.

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2010 Hibiscus Adventure Island

Yes! Click n Go! A little hard to get used to, but it's the best upgrade the boat could have.

You have the new mast retainer clip as well?

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The Wind Is Your Friend...

Hi!
I just read the post from "Adventurer" and I have the same problem. I bought a Hobie Outback Fisherman in 2006, it developed a crack in 2008 and was replaced in 2009. Now my 2009 hull has developed a crack in the same place and leaks so badly I can't use it safely. After contacting my dealer, and Hobie as well, I was informed by Hobie that the warranty has expired and applies only to the original hull. I can buy a new one for a relatively small replacement fee but I really don't want to be doing that every year or so since it costs money and takes time away from fishing. I love my Hobie mirage drive boat and don't want to be forced to go away from it! I, too, wish it would just stop cracking.

Fyi... your original boat warranty was for 2 years. We extended special coverage at 100% for 4 years for drive well issues when reinforced with our kit. What is offered now is well beyond the purchased warranty and is a prorated system to take into account the use of the product over the 5 years past. i.e. a tire warranty is prorated from day one and determined by tread depth. Cars use odometers... we have to rely on annual periods of time.

_________________
Matt Miller
Former - Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Warranty and Technical Support
Hobie Cat USA
(Retired 11/7/2022)

It's amazing how some folks seem to join this forum just to push an out of warranty claim or pressure their dealer.

That said, hulls should not crack under "normal" use. Apparently some do. Hobie has the industry's best policy that I know of for handling them.

If you have an very old cracked hull and they charge a couple hundred for a new one, that's a steal by any standard. It probably just helps defray the cost of shipping, packaging and handling.

If you find yourself in this position, you can always go back to paddling.

But is that your best option?

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The Wind Is Your Friend...

Thanks Matt. I understand the pro-rating approach and I'll use it - this time. the pro-rated price is quite reasonable aside from the substantial delivery charge that must be tacked on. But remember that if this were a car there would be no pro-rating, it would fall under the lemon law no matter how many times you replaced it. If I understand some of the other posts correctly this defect does not appear in every hull. I will hope that this time I get one without the manufacturing defect, since replacing it every year in this manner will soon eclipse what it would cost me to buy a new boat entirely.

Nohuhu,
Well, I didn't join this forum to push an out-of-warranty claim, just to ask a question that there seems to be no other way to ask: How to handle a warranty on a hull BARELY ONE YEAR OLD. Technically, it's out of warranty because the warranty begins on the day you buy the FIRST hull and does NOT cover later (replacement) hulls. Oh, and one more thing: the minimal cost does not defray shipping and handling costs -- you have to pay those too.

By my calculations, if I have to pay the replacement fee and shipping and handling, then after doing it once a year for 5 years which is what I expect given prior experience with these hulls, I will have spent the same as if I bought a brand new hull. I will also have lost about 5 months of valuable fishing time and had to re-mount all of my fishing gear five times. But if the replacement hull I'm paying for this time fixes the problem then it will have been a very satisfactory deal. I have high hopes.

That said, I agree with you that going to a paddle-driven boat is not a better option. I was just hoping for some reassurance that the problem has been fixed and I can happily use my boat for years to come.

Mr. Fish, for you and Adventurer, it WAS your first and only post. You are not the first to do this, so please consider how this appears.

It was actually Adventurer who asked "how are replacement hulls warranteed?" I had wondered that myself. You joined to state your experience and opinion. You noted that you had already contacted both your dealer AND Hobie by then. You didn't care much for the answer they gave. Fair enough.

The pro-rated offer Hobie made was based on the ORIGINAL hull date. This makes sense. It's standard across most industries and extended warrantees. I just had an expensive Sears Gold Diehard Battery fail, 1 week AFTER the 100% replacement period. I got a only partial credit. It WILL happen again and the next time I will get less or nothing. I WILL be highly inconvenienced and get nothing from Sears for my time, or towing expenses or for missing my appointments.

But it has to be this way as some point. Otherwise, we would all be cracking our hulls in the 23rd month and never buy a new kayak again. Then Hobie would be the one underwater.

Thanks for letting us know. So how much are we talking about? What were they asking for replacement vs shipping cost? It would help us all to know this and do the math in our heads. "Fairness" is certainly subjective.

For example, many of us would have felt lucky to get a 100% replacement on that original 2006 outback hull. Where was it in the 2 year warranty period?


I do too. I really hate you see the newer hulls failing, and I would not want to be in your boat. It can really add up. But I bet your calculations are overly pessimistic. At least I hope so... for everyone's sake.

I hope you'll get many years of use out of this new hull. That way you can contribute to the forum with fishing tips and other ideas.

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The Wind Is Your Friend...

Tomorrow we"ll see what's up with the 2007 Adventure hull replacement, and then second adventure hull replacement from the first original warranty. I guess I'm the guinea pig after all. And then hopefully this issue will be a good refference to all concerned.

P.S. sorry to join the fourm under such a sensitive subject. One of Hobie's biggest fans here,
I'll tell everyone how it goes as soon as i find out.
Adventurer