Unlike cars, boats don’t have registration numbers. So if you are buying a pre-owned, second-hand, used speed boat, power boat or motor boat from someone who isn’t the original owner, they may not know the age of the boat or the engine.

When I bought my first pre-owned speed boat, the seller told me it was about 20 years old. I later found out that every engine has a serial number that identifies its age, amongst other things. It turned out that the “20 year old” engine attached to the boat I bought was actually 30 years old!

Before buying a pre-owned speed boat, ask the seller for the serial number of the engine. The serial number will be located somewhere on the engine, possibly embossed on a plaque.

Every boat engine has a serial number

The year of manufacture might not be obvious from the serial number. Try entering the serial number in an internet search engine such as Google or enter a question such as How to find the age of a (make of engine) engine? Or try to find the manufacturer’s website and contact them by ‘phone or email and ask them.

Then you will know the age of the engine before you commit to buying.