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PostPosted: Wed Sep 02, 2015 12:21 pm 
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Joined: Wed Sep 02, 2015 11:31 am
Posts: 4
I have a 2010 Outback and only used handful of time and it is in almost BN condition. I have not used this kayak for the past few years and always stored in garage then I detected the crack in the front of mirage hole as I know from MANUFACTURING DEFFECT (this issue is a known from the OB those years - dealer agree this is defect as well).
Anyway, I got the reply that I have to pay almost $763 + tax + shipping for 2014 hull (if 2014 not avail then 2015 but have to get vantage seat for ~$450).

In my point of view, HOBIE DOES NOT STAND BEHIND THEIR DEFECTED PRODUCT (unless you are lucky caught the failure and claim within 2 years period).

I am now having a very different view of Hobie warranty.


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PostPosted: Thu Sep 03, 2015 9:00 am 
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Joined: Tue May 27, 2003 12:44 pm
Posts: 15027
Location: Oceanside, California
So, your boat is 5-6 years old and between 3-4 years out of its warranty period? Hobie Cat made a significant out-of-warranty adjustment to get you a replacement? What were you thinking that Hobie Cat should do?

As written... the warranty purchased with your boat does not obligate Hobie Cat to do anything for a boat beyond the two year warranty period. Hobie Cat has stepped up and extended warranty coverage for boats in a range that we felt should get additional coverage due to this unusual type of failure.

If you were to experience a failure of a car significantly out of warranty... it would not be covered. If you were to fail a tire... they adjust for tire usage by measuring the tread used. We can't measure use by anything but age, but unlike an auto manufacturer (or most any other manufacturer) we are making you significant adjustment on the replacement hull. You get a brand new boat (2014 model) after 6 years of use.

Quote:
HOBIE DOES NOT STAND BEHIND THEIR DEFECTED PRODUCT


I think this statement is quite obviously untrue based on the warranty adjustment offer you were given.

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


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PostPosted: Thu Sep 03, 2015 9:03 am 
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Joined: Wed Sep 02, 2015 11:31 am
Posts: 4
Car does stand behind their defect and RECALL and REPLACE the DEGECTED part for no cost regardless of 1 or 10 years out of warranty.

Added: I do not expect to get free stuff here but if I used this kayak enough then I should not be this much of disappointed but I only used this OB ~10x back then


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PostPosted: Thu Sep 03, 2015 10:12 am 
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Joined: Wed Jul 01, 2015 1:27 pm
Posts: 86
I understand your feelings. I just went through the same thing (see thread). I ended up paying just over $1000 to replace my 2009 hull with a 2014 hull. In the end I decided it was a reasonable conclusion because I did end up with a newer model of the boat.

I think from a boat owner's perspective, it is very frustrating because suddenly your expensive boat is either worthless or $1000 more expensive than the "next guy's" through no fault of your own. From Hobie's perspective, they have a very generous warranty program (both in-warranty and pro-rated). The pro-rated warranty I think is some acknowledgement on their part that the design (or manufacturing?) was not up to their standards, while at the same time saying you can't expect a boat to last for many years without problems. If you found the crack in the first two years I think they would have given you a free replacement. It is just added bad-luck you just hadn't used it for so long.

$1000 seems like a lot of money for a hull, but between the ~$200 shipping, the cost of the polyethylene, parts, labor, dealer time, taxes, it is probably around break-even for them. So it's not like they are trying to profit off the situation. Most companies would not even go this far.

I decided to pay the replacement cost because I knew I could then sell the boat for more than that to recover the cost if I wanted to (which I don't). Plus at least I got something positive out if it (newer model). Let's face it, boating is an expensive undertaking.


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PostPosted: Thu Sep 03, 2015 10:15 am 
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Joined: Wed Jul 01, 2015 1:27 pm
Posts: 86
One other thing: if you don't want to spend the money or are just unsure about it, while I was waiting for my hull replacement, I did a fairly easy patch job which held remarkably well for over 5 weeks (probably around 50 miles)...

I just filled the crack in with off-the-shelf silicon and covered it with Gorilla duck tape. It leaked a tiny amount but overall held very well. If I was an infrequent user of the boat, I may have just stuck with that.


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PostPosted: Thu Sep 03, 2015 2:39 pm 
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Joined: Wed Sep 02, 2015 11:31 am
Posts: 4
Thanks recycle~ At least I'm not alone in this situation and I do see Hobie point of view as well but it's painful. I just felt like I'm going to throw out $1000 for something that not my problem.

I believe Hobie can do better specially on these well known defect problems.


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PostPosted: Fri Sep 04, 2015 9:22 am 
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Joined: Fri Feb 05, 2010 6:46 am
Posts: 173
I had one of the older Hobie's that developed a leak in the mirage drive well. I bought it VERY much used... Lord know how many owners, storage conditions, etc. ... bought it with the leak. After a few times bailing it out, local shop gave me a half dozen plastic welding strips.... I heated the area up and fed 5 1/2 of those rods into the bad spot... used it two more years, sold it to a buddy whose prob had it a year and a half... never leaked again.


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