Newbie / boat purchase

[Will.i.am]

Greetings fellow sailors! I am buying a Beneteau 343 Oceanis Clipper from a brokerage, and the independent survey revealed that the boat had run aground at some point 10 years ago (the boat is from 2007), and it underwent a professional repair with no issues since. I don't know the extent of the damage now, and the boat is in otherwise good condition.

My next stage is to agree a fair discount (it was not stated in the initial ad) as undoubtably it would affect the valuation or future resale value. One of my sailing friends actually said he would walk away from the deal but I am interested to hear other thoughts from the community here.

Thanks in advance.

Will

[JPA Cate]

Sounds to me like they're trying to unload something with ongoing problems to you. Be extremely cautious.

Ann

[Shanachie]

Every boat runs aground at some point or another. That's why TowboatUS does big business.



The real question is, what was the damage? And what was done to the boat by way of repairs?


A dented keel, even a broken rudder, is not a fatal blow to a boat. If the keel was torn off, well, then you're talking something else.

[S/V Illusion]

Not enough info to make an intelligent judgment.

How did a surveyor know it was 10 years ago?

What was damaged/repaired?

How good was the repair(s)?

How could anyone quantify indeterminant past damage which has been repaired?

Why was this history concealed?

Absent this and more info, opinions are useless

[desodave]

You've had a survey and don't know the extent of the damage now ? And the professional repair 10 years ago ? The latter sounds like broker comments imo, but the former is really strange. Did your surveyor say the boat was in good shape or not? If the broker was trying to cover something up I'd be concerned but I'd go with the surveyor's opinion. Repair from a grounding is either well done or not. We sold our previous boat that had been grounded twice in charter 10 years previously ... full disclosure with records from repairs done by a very reputable boat yard. In fact the repairs had probably strengthened the hull. The new owners survey confirmed that the hull was in good shape and the sale proceeded.

[Will.i.am]

Thank you for the comments. I am awaiting further information from the surveyor but he mentioned the repair was well done and has made the hull stronger. I realise it's difficult to make informed comments without further info which I'm trying to find.

The owner has had the boat from new and looked after it very well.

[psk125]

Your money; you decide.

[Adelie]

If the keel is integral to the hull then a good repair should leave the keel almost as strong as or equal to new though probably slightly heavier.

If it’s a bolt on keel I would walk away. The hull repair is probably good, the bonding of the interior keel support grid to the hull is still suspect even with a professional repair. In many or most cases the interior grid is attached with glue/adhesive not with polyester or epoxy and damage to those joints is much harder to assess and repair.

This is thought to have played a role in the loss of Cheeki Rafiki.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheeki_Rafiki?wprov=sfti1

[Will.i.am]

Some additional info:
The repair was done in the compartments above the keel (lower front and lower long side, 130 hours work ca. $12k cost), there is also increased humidity area starboard side 10x10 cm (unfortunately no photos), the keel bolts are OK.

I appreciate the advice here with my first boat purchase.