S238 or LSV22?

[BigRich 0]

I'm assuming this site will favor the S238, but interested if anyone has been on both and can offer some advise. I was originally looking at a Malibu 22LSV before discovering the S238. Both are brand new but the Malibu is 2019, but I think I can get a pretty nice deal on the Malibu. The Malibu maybe only 5 to 10k more than the S238. I really like the S238 but can't help but be intrigued by the Malibu. I'm assuming I can get better wave with the S238 and its a bit bigger boat that may ride a bit smoother (I'm on a big lake that can get windy and sometimes a lot of traffic). Malibu has maybe a better finish with some nice bells and whistles that aren't necessary but are nice to haves I guess. I guess the big thing is value. I'm not planning my next boat already, but where would I stand in couple years if I decided to upgrade.

Not planning to wakeboard or ski, just wakesurf and cruise around with family and friends.

[InfinitySurf 302]

I actually have not been on an S238 so I cannot compare there, I have heard many good things about the Supreme boats, no doubt on a boat that big you need a good deal of ballast.

I have a few friends I surf with on a regular basis and at beginning of 2019, 1 of them got the new 22LSV. Malibu changed their surfgate design in 2019 and I was actually surprised how good the wave was compared to all the previous Malibu surfgate boats I had been on, it was no longer a "pretty" looking yet soft wave lacking push when you ride it. This boat is not a rough water boat due to flatter bottom design.... but it put out a very nice surf wave with all the factory ballast and 2-4 of us on board. If you do a transfer, you better be holding onto the steering wheel for dear life, cause there is already a pretty decent amount of steering wheel pull coming from the deployed surfgate, when you transfer sides, the boat suddenly takes a different direction and the pull comes from opposite side (feels like a sudden 45 degree direction change). One thing to also consider is how much fuel Malibu drinks with the wedge and the surfgate engaged. Their boats are very nice and screens are user friendly

The fuel consumption on that boat was not quite as bad as my friend who recently bought a 2020 M240 Malibu with the supercharged engine. Last weekend we filled up in the morning and went out....you can almost watch the fuel level go down in that boat as people surf and in 5hrs we had to go back to marina to fuel up again since guage had gone from 100% down to 11%. It was kindof shocking to a guy like me with an SV244 who averages 5GPH and can spend 2 FULL days on the water surfing without needing fuel.

My advise would be to do a thorough demo of both boats, put them thru their paces and also make sure you surf behind them both. They will both have pros/cons.