Do you mean you are selling it? Or used ones like yours are going for $7K or so.. How long in a 285? 285 feet? THAT'S HUGE!

Sly, I believe the 285 was 18.5 feet with a dual console. Not 100% on that but I think that is the naming convention.

If I had your budget, there is no doubt that I would go used. If you do your homework and have time to sit down and really search the web, you can find some great deals for less than $15K.

For about the past two years I've been looking for anything under $10,000 and have found some real nice used boats. Its mainly me just dreaming right now though

That's me btw in the front of the boat in my picture. So any boat seems big!

If someone wants to buy it, it's for sale. I really need more space for my camera/scuba gear, but I can make due with what I have. The boat is 18'5"-18'10" depending upon where you look at specs.
Check out classic bass or bass boat central for boats for sale and to get an idea of what they go for.

17.5 ft boat/70 hp motor??? way...way underpowered.I run a 17 ft Nitro w/90 hp Johnson and it is 'BARELY' enough.

Guys, the 176 Stratos that is being discussed is actually a pretty small boat in comparison to others. I don't think it is quite as wide as your Nitro bassphish, and it looked pretty light looking at all the features on it. I was up at Cabela's looking at this boat on Saturday, and I think with a 75 Opti on the back it might do pretty good. It wont be running 50 mph, but I think in the 35-40 range would be about right considering the size. That is somewhat slow compared to some of the bigger rigs, but if it gets you there and puts you on fish, it can't be all that bad. I would be a little worried though with that boat, say fishing white bear, when the wind picks up that the waves might be splashing on the casting deck.

I have a 17.5 stratos bass boat and love it. I would agree that the max of 75hp seems underpowered unless they have come up with a way to make glass boats lighter. My boat is a 1995 with a 90 hp on it and it is underpowered. I have to ease into the gas to get it up on plane. The boat tops out at 32mph. The main thing I don't like about the boat being underpowered is the fact that when I have people and there gear in the boat its really takes some time getting up on plane.
The max hp for my boat is a 150.

As far a TM I would go with the cable drive. I have a 74lb on mine, people have told me that it is overkill, but I love it, especially on windy days.

White Bear Lake? Where's that? I am SO used to my Titanic and it's steady pace of 19MPH... and even on WBL I have no problems with patience etc... so 30+ would be amazing to me.

I have no idea why a 1995 Stratos could handle 150HP and a 2008 Stratos is only rated up to 75HP. Weird. Doesn't make sense.. but that's what the specs say. Maybe it's much lighter now days?

Anyone here that can give any feedback to a Yamaha 2 stroke oil injected motor? That's the ONLY motor you can get on the Stratos... either a 50hp or 70hp. Dang.. I would really like a 4 stroke.. but you can't.. unless you simply sell the Yamaha and buy a 4 stroke.. of course thats going to cost a lot more.

One reason I am fixated on this boat is my towing vehicle.. this is the lighest fiberglass bass boat available today... I drive a 6 cylinder rear wheeled drive Firebird with a 2000LB class A hitch.. and the boat is less than 2000Lbs fully loaded... I actually went to Cabela's to day and put the boat on and drove around and it was actually really good! I think it can be towed just fine with my car... for a couple years... and just local lakes.. we do have a van for trips etc..

I can NOT afford a new car... so it's either a car OR a boat. Not both. So as far as I can see this is the best thing in my current world.

I looked at those too, I'd at least look at the Triton Explorer before you buy. Next to each other the quality is very apparent.

Sly, I think like Griggs said, you should definitely look at the Triton Explorer too. But the 1995 Stratos that has been mentioned is a wider boat, and probably a lot heavier. I think the 176XT that you were looking at and the Explorer from Triton are kinda those entry-levl glass boats to get people into a glass boat at a reasonable price. Granted, they aren't going to be loaded to the gills like a $45,000 boat, but they only cost a 1/3 of them too. They are made pretty lightweight to accept smaller motor while still having reasonably good performance. If I was you, I would try to find a dealer that is willing to let you take it to the lake for a test ride. That is really going to tell you whether it will fit your needs or not. Have your H2O with you so you can tell what kind of speed you get, cause they wont have a GPS mounted on them unless it was special ordered that way.

Edit- Forgot to mention, on that boat you are going to want the 2 stroke. A 4 storke will get you there, but the 2 stroke will give better holeshot and probably top end, and with that boat you are going to want the best advantages you can get. I saw another boat at Cabela's that might work better for bringin the youngins out in as well. It was the 1760 DV with a 115 4 stroke Yammy on the back. I think it was priced right in the same range as the 176XT but had a bigger motor and a little deeper making it a bit safer for the little ones.