Ranger Boats Reviews

On 28 August I sent a letter to Mr Hooper the CEO of Ranger. This is now the 4th of September and I have not even received a call from customer service to see if my issues can be resolved. I asked Mr. Hooper for my money back on the 2020 VS1782WT Aluminum Ranger Boat. Basically I ended up with a LEMON in the VS1782WT. From the day I told the Salesman that I wanted the aluminum boat it has gone all wrong. I asked for a 9.9 Kicker Motor and a Minnkota ULTERRA Trolling Motor, An Oxygenator, a Stand Up Top and 4 Rod Holders. Shortly after purchasing the Ranger the salesman calls me and says he is out of Ulterra Trolling Motors and has searched the entire system and can not find one. He told me that if I could find one they would install it. I go on the internet and within 45 minutes I found three of them. I made sure it was the correct one and ordered it and had it sent to the dealer FRANKIE'S Bait and Marine in Chisago City MN. I should have realized at that point that this sale was not going well. How many people do you know who buy a new car and have to provide any add on's to the car because the dealer didn't have what he sold you? I was sold a Ulterra trolling motor and the dealer could not find one. I move on to the first time I put the boat in the water. After about 30 minutes the Pro 150 XS Mercury started to miss/sputter and there was the smell of gas in the driver seat, but we made it down river and when we got to the place that we were going to turn around as we could not get the boat to plane. We turned on the bilge pump and water pumped straight out for 4-5 minutes. When it stopped pumping we took off and got on plane. There had to be a leak somewhere. When we got back to the landing and loaded the boat on the trailer again we turned on the bilge pump and water shot out for another 3-5 minutes. That was after we had pulled the plug. I take the boat back to the dealer and tell them of all the problems. When I pick the boat up again they tell me that the motor has some kind of sensor in the fuel line and it was defective. They also found a small leak in the gas hose. They said that the live well was not sealed properly and that is where all the water had come from in the bottom of the boat. I take the boat out again and I keep turning on the bilge pump and water keeps pumping out each time I turn it on. There had to be another leak someplace. I had asked the first time out where my fire extinguisher was and the salesman told me he forgot to tell me that the boat did not come with one. So I have to go purchase a fire extinguisher. I also noticed that there was no Tilt/Trim gauge. The salesman told me that there was one on the boat that I was just not looking in the correct place When the stand up top came in I took the boat to the dealer to have it installed. I asked the salesman to show me where the tilt/trim gauge was. There was no tilt/trim gauge. I was supposed to be standard equipment on this boat. So they install a tilt/trim gauge and the stand up top. They had checked for leaks again and this time it was the fact one of the motor mounting bolts was leaking around the outside. They told me they sealed that and there should be no more leaks. Since being in the water on a number of occasions I continue to pump water out with the bilge pump. I am convinced it is still leaking. Oh I forgot. The 4 rod holders I was promised are no longer made by Ranger, and they don't plan on making anymore. The service manager is trying to find a replacement for the rod holders but so far he is having no luck finding it. Ranger has a special track for the rod holders so it is not like you can go purchase a rod holder that will work on the Ranger. Just one more nail in the coffin. You can see now, why I want my money back, and Ranger can have their boat back.

User's recommendation: Buy a Fiberglass Ranger not an Aluminum Ranger.