I would appreciate any feedback from Catalina 310 owners (or like us owners awaiting delivery) on the lead time for delivery of 310s. We have just been informed by our dealer that our boat originally promised for August won't arrive until November. I am curious if this is par for the course or if something has gone wrong with our order. Our dealer advises that the boat started production in early June but won't leave the factory until mid October! This seems a long time to build a 310. Any advice or experiences in delivery time would be greatly appreciated as the sudden delay of 3 months has come as a shock. thanks Malcolm
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Not necessaily factory
Last boat show I went to, all I heard from dealers and builders was the long wait times for new boats. Jotb ecause they take so long to build, but because there is such a backlog of boats on order. The backlog probably hasn't changed that much... so my hunch is the dealer underestimated the time required for delivery and is now doing serious backpeddling. It might serve you well to call Catalina directly and get some clarification.
Last boat show I went to, all I heard from dealers and builders was the long wait times for new boats. Jotb ecause they take so long to build, but because there is such a backlog of boats on order. The backlog probably hasn't changed that much... so my hunch is the dealer underestimated the time required for delivery and is now doing serious backpeddling. It might serve you well to call Catalina directly and get some clarification.
Doesn't sound right
Maybe something has changed in the last year OR there is something special going on with this model OR someone if feeding you a line. Have you checked with Catalina to see where YOUR hull sits in production? When I called them a couple of years ago to see if my dealer was being honest with me, they were more than happy to tell me its status. Just so happens that the day I called my boat was coming off the line and was scheduled to ship the next day. When I toured the factory in Woodland Hills last year, I learned that most boats take a week or so to manufacture. This includes the hull and deck layup. They had about ten of the larger models in various stages of production; a couple more ready to ship. I find it hard to believe that your hull began production in June and will sit on their production floor until October.
Maybe something has changed in the last year OR there is something special going on with this model OR someone if feeding you a line. Have you checked with Catalina to see where YOUR hull sits in production? When I called them a couple of years ago to see if my dealer was being honest with me, they were more than happy to tell me its status. Just so happens that the day I called my boat was coming off the line and was scheduled to ship the next day. When I toured the factory in Woodland Hills last year, I learned that most boats take a week or so to manufacture. This includes the hull and deck layup. They had about ten of the larger models in various stages of production; a couple more ready to ship. I find it hard to believe that your hull began production in June and will sit on their production floor until October.
This one's a bit more unusual
In my experience, it's not unusual for the factory to be off by up to 3 or four weeks on boat completion dates, but once a boat is actually in production they can narrow it down to within a week. One problem with the C310 is that production was woved from California to the Florida plant sometime in the past few months. I've heard from someone that they have recently taken delivery of a C310 built in Florida, so they must be up and running. But time was lost in moving the molds and tooling from California. It is normal for a boat to be completed within 10 days of being started. Sorry to hear of the further delay, I know it's frustrating.
In my experience, it's not unusual for the factory to be off by up to 3 or four weeks on boat completion dates, but once a boat is actually in production they can narrow it down to within a week. One problem with the C310 is that production was woved from California to the Florida plant sometime in the past few months. I've heard from someone that they have recently taken delivery of a C310 built in Florida, so they must be up and running. But time was lost in moving the molds and tooling from California. It is normal for a boat to be completed within 10 days of being started. Sorry to hear of the further delay, I know it's frustrating.
310 Delay
When did you place your order? My dealer, and Catalina, have said this is the hottest boat going. They moved the production to Florida to increase the number of boats available. Then there is the cynical side, did you cut a good deal and now the dealer can make more money be selling this boat to other customers?? Hopefully this is not the case, but it does happen. I agree with everyone else, call Catalina.
When did you place your order? My dealer, and Catalina, have said this is the hottest boat going. They moved the production to Florida to increase the number of boats available. Then there is the cynical side, did you cut a good deal and now the dealer can make more money be selling this boat to other customers?? Hopefully this is not the case, but it does happen. I agree with everyone else, call Catalina.
Took 10 months to get mine
Malcom; My wife and I ordered our 310 in September 1999 in advance of the Annapolis Boat show that fall in order to "be gauranteed" we'd get the boat before April (when our slip opened at the marina). Well, we finally took delivery on our 310 the last week of June and that was only because my dealer pulled some strings and had us moved up from hull number 62 to hull number 51 (my 40th Birthday was June 30th and we needed a boat by then in order to complete my wife's planned celebration). As I understand it, hull 62 (my original hull) is not slated to deliver until the end of August. What I understand is that the 310 is in such demand that they had a huge backorder for the boat and when they moved production from Caliornia ot Florida everything got pushed back by several months. So, my guess is your dealer is on the level. Good luck in your wait. But trust me, it's worth it. Kurt
Malcom; My wife and I ordered our 310 in September 1999 in advance of the Annapolis Boat show that fall in order to "be gauranteed" we'd get the boat before April (when our slip opened at the marina). Well, we finally took delivery on our 310 the last week of June and that was only because my dealer pulled some strings and had us moved up from hull number 62 to hull number 51 (my 40th Birthday was June 30th and we needed a boat by then in order to complete my wife's planned celebration). As I understand it, hull 62 (my original hull) is not slated to deliver until the end of August. What I understand is that the 310 is in such demand that they had a huge backorder for the boat and when they moved production from Caliornia ot Florida everything got pushed back by several months. So, my guess is your dealer is on the level. Good luck in your wait. But trust me, it's worth it. Kurt
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