Bass Fishing Forum - Westernbass.com

Just before Christmas I purchased a new Ranger ms186.. after 40 minutes my new motor blew up. MERC 200. Having great difficulty communicating with White River Marine, Ranger, Mercury marine, and even Bass Pro Shops. I really believe nobody cares about customers...Just saying haven't fished out of my new Ranger yet and was wondering if anyone could tell me what that feels like??? Does anyone have phone number for Johnnie Morris?? Russ Holpuch. Redding CA

Your problem is with Mercury not Ranger and if was 40 minutes old it is most certainly covered under warranty.
Have you returned it to the BassPro where you bought it and told them it's not running ?
It is frustrating you have spent a fortune for a new boat, and are having catastrophic problems.
Can not figure out why you would be getting a repair/replace run around.

Yup, that is a Mercury issue and any Merc dealer can help......

Why trash Ranger? The title should be edited to read MERCURY MOTOR problems....Or...Bass Pro / Mercury Dealer unresponsive (if that is the case). It is NOT the boat manufacturer's fault when the motor bolted on the transom fails.
Perhaps break-in procedure was not followed? Maybe it should read: "New Boat Owner Problems?" Hmmm??

Grande Verde Pesca wrote:Why trash Ranger? The title should be edited to read MERCURY MOTOR problems....Or...Bass Pro / Mercury Dealer unresponsive (if that is the case). It is NOT the boat manufacturer's fault when the motor bolted on the transom fails.
Perhaps break-in procedure was not followed? Maybe it should read: "New Boat Owner Problems?" Hmmm??

Exactly. And there is a Ranger/Mercury dealer in Redding ...... does not sound like we are getting the back story here.

Good luck getting ahold of Johnny Morris!!

Unless I bought my Ford truck from my local Ford dealer,
why should I get the best future service appointment consideration?
Local dealer support is very important in our country - as it should be.
You get to know those folks and they will go the extra mile for you!
And think about your second boat purchase from the local dealer,
they will take care of you!

Good point Larry. I've been dealing with Boatmasters for almost thirty years and even though I often don't see them for several years, they always treat me like their very best customer. To me this is the key to any business, big or small

I'm assuming, who ever diagnosed your blown motor was a Merc dealer. Why all these problems? A new motor is under warranty and Mercury is very good. And, Ranger should not be bashed, at least not yet. Let's give Johnny a chance to keep Ranger in the upper class of bass boats. If necessary, call Mercury support and they'll point you in the right direction. Good luck

Russ, you have a PM

Unfortunately it seems like customer service in generalhas gone down hill. No matter what product, business, restaurant etc... seems as though people don’t take pride in their product anymore.

Russ:
My name is Kent Brown and I am the Ranger Boats rep in CA. I am sorry you have had an issue with your new motor but I was at the dealer in Redding this week and there was a motor being delivered to replace the motor you had the issue with. I am sure they will have you back on the water soon and they also have your Bass Pro VIP card at the dealership for you when you pick your boat up. Make sure you ask Jason about it if you haven’t already.

Best of luck fishing in your new boat!
Kent Brown
White River Marine

That a Boy Kent!!

Dale Carney

I thought I would chime in on my experience: I purchased a VS1670 in 2018. It’s the 50th anniversary edition and while I’m very happy with the boat overall, there is one major gripe I have. One of the selling points for me was the “track system” that allowed for plug and play for things like rod holders and bait stations etc to attach to the track similar to Tracker’s versatrack. To my knowledge, Ranger never made any accessories to fit the track and if they did they aren’t available anywhere. I found a company called Railblaza that makes attachments, however I purchased the rod holders from them and the fit is less than ideal and requires serious adjusting to be useful. Just kind of a bummer when you pay a lot for a name specifically and then the specs don’t match what was advertised. Side note-the boat gave me problems the first year which resulted in being stranded more than once due to a wire shorting behind the shift box. It took 3 separate visits to my dealer Gone Fishin for them to witness and then pinpoint the problem. They would run the motor for a long time but it wouldn’t short until the mechanic got the idea to walk around on the boat while they tested it and sure enough it was the jostling that needed to occur for the short to happen. While that episode was lame, I don’t really hold it against anyone and it has been fixed and runs like a dream now. I do wish I had the cool plug and play accessories though. If anyone has suggestions please toss em out there. Thx.

kb wrote:Russ:
My name is Kent Brown and I am the Ranger Boats rep in CA. I am sorry you have had an issue with your new motor but I was at the dealer in Redding this week and there was a motor being delivered to replace the motor you had the issue with. I am sure they will have you back on the water soon and they also have your Bass Pro VIP card at the dealership for you when you pick your boat up. Make sure you ask Jason about it if you haven’t already.

Best of luck fishing in your new boat!
Kent Brown
White River Marine

Great job Kent!!!