Dissapointing 2005 26M

[rjs11116]

At two years all the excellent theory and design can't make up for the POOR quality. If I had a chance to start over I wouldn't buya new Mac. Mine had transom damage that was poorly repaired by the factory or maybe the dealer Both say they didn't do it , it was delivered that way.

I could go on about many other problems,missing items ,lots of bad gelcoat,poorly installed dealer options . I would not recommend the dealer I bought from. If you do buy find the cheapest ,spending any more won't get a better boat. Once the dealer accepts the boat the factory considers it the dealer's problem not the factory's.

Find a dealer at arms legnth so you can't be ignored. My motor choice was the Honda 50 hp.Try something else.It appears to be built for the Mercury.

I was originally naming it Compromise;me boat ,she new kitchen.
MacLemon seems more appropriate, maybe paint the hull yellow to cover the thin gelcoat. The factory and dealer experience is frustrating.

When I first got the Mac bug I thought sail! power!how could it get any better. I read different sites on the net read about quality problems thought it was exaggeration the dealer assured me a top quality boat. Factory failed. Dealer failed.

OK you say nothing is perfect. Reasonable would be nice. Very dissapointing from the factory and the dealer. It would have been nice to have a boat to rave positively about but I didn't get that one. Think long and hard about the Quality before you buy!!!!!!!

Mod's edit: Adding OP's photo on 09-March.
Other photos on page 3 of this thread ~fc

SloppyTransomRepair ... Click here for other photos

[ssichler]

The Mac is built to a price which is low. If I had to do it over again I would consider spending $500 or so on a marine surveyor to go over the boat with a fine tooth comb and not cut the final check until everything once taken care of by the dealer. Since all warranty repairs are done through the dealer so you better be sure of your dealer.

[richandlori]

While no one can comment on your situation, it does go to the the number 1 issue! Do NOT TAKE DELIVERY of a boat that you THINK has issues or that has what you find to be quality defects, because once you take it...she is yours.

Sorry to hear about your bad experience and they do happen from time to time, if you have ever visited the Mac Factory you will actually be amazed that anything comes out without issues...no offence....but when you pay the cheapest labor rates you can, you get that level of care.

Once you get over the boat's issues...you will hopefully get the enjoyment that most of Mac Owners have...good luck.

[Dimitri-2000X-Tampa]

Why did you accept a brand new boat that had transom damage, didn't you have the option to reject it and wait for a different one?

[John McDonough]

Sorry to hear of your problem. It appears that the boat was defective when you bought it. Call the BBB. All the years I have been reading this web-site, most Mac owners seem satisfied.

I have owned 4 macgregors, 15` venture cat, 88 26D, 97 26X, 2000 26X. I never had a problem. Macgregors are probably the lowest priced boat availabe, until you started adding up extra`s..

I have a Honda 50. Its been on both my 26X. I run that motor full throttle Crossing the Great Lakes, sometimes for 2 hours straight. I never had a problem, but I am a maintenace nut.

I worked part-time on boats at the Marina. All brands, cheap and expensive have thier problems. A Catalina 32 only 3 years old and more blisters than any Macgregpr I have yet seen.

[Frank C]

Sorry to hear of your problem. It appears that the boat was defective when you bought it. Call the BBB. All the years I have been reading this web-site, most Mac owners seem satisfied.

John's correct. The vast majority of owners are satisfied with their Macs.
Sorry that yours is such a disappointment. Paul S was another dissatisfied owner, but he seems to have accomodated to his delivery issues.

I have owned 4 macgregors, 15` venture cat, 88 26D, 97 26X, 2000 26X. I never had a problem. Macgregors are probably the lowest priced boat availabe, until you started adding up extra`s

Exactly the point to Roger's philosophy. Nothing extra means the lowest possible price. Unless you choose to add extras, that price remains lowest. When an owner DOES choose to add extras, they are the extras HE chooses (not factory guesses). It's a time-tested success formula.

I worked part-time on boats at the Marina. All brands, cheap and expensive have thier problems. A Catalina 32 only 3 years old and more blisters than any Macgregpr I have yet seen.

All builders build the occasional lemon. It's truly regretable that you got stuck with one.

[Divecoz]

Wow I clicked on your name and read all your post. Sorry dude
I have a 2005 Mac and I defy you do find so much as a blemish in anything. (well ones not caused by me) I have a Merc 50 hp bf , what a great motor . My boat too, handles squirrelly.. . . . when I have panicked. And I did btw twice. But by the middle of the season all was fine . My boat sails great for as little as I know about what I am doing.
ROGER IF YOU OR ANYONE OVER THERE CARES AT ALL!!!! MAKE THIS THING RIGHT!

[Paul S]

Paul S was another dissatisfied owner, but he seems to have accomodated to his delivery issues.

To a degree.. Delivery condition, gelcoat flaws, uninstalled accessories, drunken monkey assembly methodology...whats not to like..LOL

Just got to come around to acceptance...it is what it is... still the best value out there...easily modifiable..easily trailered... It has it where it counts. I have accepted it..doesnt mean I forgot about it or feel better about it..just have to move forward.

After seeing the dealers 2 demo boats, our rejected first M, our boat, and other Ms since.. I still feel the quality can be sooooo much better than it is. But what can you do for the price you pay..there is NOTHING else that does what the Mac does within a reasonable price range. I do not think our boat was an isolated case...

Not to rehash a very old thread.. but either Macgregor has to raise their standards or I need to lower my expectations. Macgregor prices have gone up steadily since we got out boat. It sure does sound like the quality has not risen with the price unfortunately.

Again, still the best value for the money. Would I get another Mac? probably..only by default though..as there is nothing in the market, at a similar price point, trailerability, weight, draft, beam, etc as the Mac..

I think the original post in this thread is a bit harsh ..even I am not upset as that! I do believe the core boat is a good boat..well engineerd, well thought out, flexible, etc etc.. I just wish the quality control was far better under control..or at least caught at the dealer prep time to at least attempt to fix the flaws before it gets to the new owner..

Paul

[Paul S]

ROGER IF YOU OR ANYONE OVER THERE CARES AT ALL!!!! MAKE THIS THING RIGHT!

I called the factory many times to complain but got nowhere. Their ONLY response to me was 'talk with your dealer' . Their compasion sure does make you feel warm and fuzzy inside LOL

[deja_vu]

My boat was full of minor flaws, and while my dealer was happy to come out and fix them each time, eventually I gave up and reached Paul's mentioned acceptance. Here's a small list:

1. Anchor locker cover had black marks in the gel coat from manufacturing process--this was replaced
2. Galley had gouges in the countertop gelcoat, a new one was sent, it was worse than the first, dealer offered to get a third but I told him never mind. I'm just going to make a wood top at some point.
3. Captain's chair didn't close properly, dealer drove down and ground it down with me to proper size.
4. Many of the plugs that go over the access openings for deck hardware didn't have their tan gelcoat--dealer got some new ones and got some tan gelcoat for me as well.
5. The toilet wouldn't flush-dealer is bringing a new one this spring.
6. Carpets covered in the contact cement used to attach to hull-dealer came down to clean them up, but I got to BSing with him and we forgot...I didn't make him come back cause that was my fault, so some day I'll get around to cleaning it up.
7. They put a screw through the wiring in the light for the forward berth- I was in there wiring a fan so I rewired it myself.
8. The access panel for the wiring for the forward berth had gouges in it from someone slipping a power screwdriver-dealer got a new one for me.
9. Had to grind down some of the interior pieces where they overlap because they didn't fit together properly.

Initially I was really angry that I dropped so much money on the boat to have it come like this. But my dealer sold it to me for 17990 plus the options I bought, and there was no commisioning fee. On top of that he drives to my house whenever something is wrong. At somepoint, I just said to myself, while that is a lot of money, on a relative scale it's not that much for a brand new 2007 model boat.

That and I was just having too much fun with it the few times I got to take it out, and having just as much fun modding it when I couldn't take it out.

So now I just can't wait til I can take it out again. I guess the point is, even if the boat has a lot of problems, you can still have a lot of fun with it, just have to readjust the thinking a bit. I guess it's sad that you have to, but worth it in the end.

[delevi]

I think it all comes down to the dealer. My boat was flawless on delivery. I wouldn't accept any newly purchased product any other way, especially a high ticket item. Many small things broke later on due to poor quality and partly my lack of experience. Some were replaced by the dealer, and much I replaced myself with higher quality hardware, etc. My dealer goes to the Mac factory in person to pick up his boats. Perhaps this makes all the difference. I have a feeling that there is a handful of prefered dealers who get the good boats and maybe the others get the flawed ones. Just a crazy hunch. My dealer, along with BWY Todd & Mr Inmon know Roger personally and talk with him regularly. Not sure about Bill @ Boats4Sail but I have read nothing but positive comments from people who boat their boats and/or accessories from him.

Sorry to hear about your troubles.

[deja_vu]

Well I went and picked my own boat up to save on delivery costs, and didn't know enough to know what to look for to reject it at the factory. Also I had a long drive ahead of me and was in a rush.

Then instead of delivering it to my dealer to prep the boat, which was an option, I took straight to my house. I was just too excited to have the boat and wanted to start getting things installed right away like the engine, cause for some reason you gots to have one o' dem...

Anyway, I'm sure my dealer would have had all those things taken care of if I had just taken it straight to him, but still the fact is that it came from the factory like that. That's where the disappointment is. You'd think they'd have some sort of quality control, whether it's the dealer having to waste his time fixing the boat or the buyer, it's still work that should have been done right in the first place.

I just bought a new car a couple weeks ago, could you imagine if I had to go through all this stuff with it? All the dealer had to do to it was wash it and install a couple accessories.

I don't see why it should be any different just because it is a boat that is cheaper than the rest of what's available. Even though it's cheaper it's still a large chunk of money.

But I'm trying very had to stick with my acceptance of it is what it is, so I'm not going to go back down that track, you can see I'm already getting worked up. If I don't stop, I'm going to need therapy or something.

It's Good Enough, It's Smart Enough, and Doggone It, People Like it.

I'm happy I have the boat, my wife loves it and I have a small child that I'll be able to raise with some great memories because I didn't wait until he was too old to buy one. That's the important thing.

[Duane Dunn, Allegro]

Proof that you do get what you pay for and I'm very happy about that because I couldn't pay much.

MacGregors are, from materials, to design, to production at the lowest end of the boat manufacturing business. Take for example the only other small power cruiser in this size range I have found, the Bayliner 289. Certainly not a brand name known for high quality fit and finish. Very similar style of construction, although heavier built. Glued on carpeted side walls, dropped in plywood structures. Nothing fancy in both systems or fit and finish. List price $89,000+ before options. Priced as I would want it $104,000 and that's still a bare boat without many needed accessories.

Cruising Worlds 2007 boat of the year a Catalina 309, great little 30' sailboat, list $101,000 before options.

Now compare a brand new M, loaded with a 70hp motor and all the BWY accessories as shown at the boat show for $39,000 preped delivered by a top notch dealer.

Compare my used X bought for $19,000 including many options to the lowest priced used Bayliner 289 I've ever found at $45,000.

We pay very little for these boats compared to what every other manufacturer out there wants for their product. Anyone who expects there to NOT be a difference in the products is sipping some funny coolaide.

I'm very happy that MacGregor is willing to withstand all the many comments directed their way and still put out a servicable product at a anymans price. If I had to pay the norm for my boat I quite simply wouldn't have a boat at all.

I'm also very happy I went to the used market. Not only did I get more boat and accessories for my money, but I also didn't have any expectation that what I was buying would be pristine.

For me, spending time out on the boat on the water is only half the joy of owning one. Working on the boat, repairing it, enhancing it can be just as enjoyable as boating itself.

[baldbaby2000]

Our new 2005 was generally pretty good. Almost all of the sloppy work I can blame on the dealer. Half the time it was easier for me to fix it than go to the dealer. Next time if I get a new boat I'll probably do the options myself. There was a thin spot in the liner on one of the settees that I didn't notice; a manufacturing issue but not too big a deal so I didn't pursue it. I had motor trouble due to my altitude but the dealer was pretty good about that, even changing me to a different one and giving me a partial refund since it was a cheaper motor.

I did order a new daggerboard and the quality on that seems marginal. The daggerboard does seem to be a weak component.

BB

[paj637]

We in the Navy have a saying " You get what you inspect, Not what you expect!" With limited resources available, some unscrupulous dealers will deliver whatever they can get away with and give the rest of the reputable dealers a bad name. I bought a 26M knowing full well that I wasn't buying the Cadillac of trailerable sailboats. I had my 2006 26M delivered to my home the first of December and I was really pleased. This forum allowed me to be educated on the problems to look for and I discussed them with my dealer beforehand, explaining how I would inspect and what would be unacceptable when I took delivery. I only had a few very minor issues that we agreed to resolve with the motor installer. The dealer, Jim Allred with The Sailboat Centre, delivered on everything he promised and I would highly recommend him. He gave me an excellent price and is a wealth of knowledge. Yes, he does work out of his home (noted in previous threads) and is on the road alot delivering boats, but he has always returned my calls, usually within hours.