LHG Marine

I wanted a custom made Bimini top for my classic 1979 23′ Seacraft Sceptre boat. I knew about LHG marine when it was called «Smittys». They were good back in the day but I had no experience with LHG Marine. I called and spoke with Unai. He was helpful and professional and the price they quoted was fair. When I arrived to drop the boat off Unai showed me the materials and the shop. I also decided to add on a front Isinglass window to connect the Bimini to my existing windshield. I emailed pictures to Unai of a Bimini top on a boat like mine for reference and the job was started. Unfortunately I did not give them enough detail about the design of the canvas and installation on my boat and when the job was done it was not the way I had hoped it would turn out. When I let Unai know of my disappointment he assured me they would make it right. This time I drew out detailed information about the design and placement of the top and the front windshield. LHG made the changes I wanted and the top came out exactly the way I wanted it. Now I am very happy with the final results! It was completed in less than a week and the materials and quality is top notch. In retrospect I should have provided more information to LHG before to starting the job to assure it would be what I expected. I would suggest to anyone planning to purchase custom canvas for your boat to make a detailed drawing or diagram of the design and placement of you top before starting the job. This will assure that the job comes out just the way you expect and there are no surprises. I will happily recommend LHG Marine to my friends and hope they treat all their customers as well as I was treated!

TOHATSU DEALER FROM HELL
LHG MARINE might well take exception to my characterization of them as a Tohatsu Dealer from hell. LHG Marine might explain that they don’t sell a lot of Tohatsu Outboard motors, in fact my motor was apparently their first Tohatsu sale. LHG Marine might say that I am the customer from hell, and no doubt they consider me an uppitty customer. LHG Marine VP SAMER HIJJAWI indicated he was mad, because I called Tohatsu after the installation of my small 50 HP motor was delayed twice by LHG Marine after it had been paid for in full. When Mr Hijawi gave me a new starting date but not a finishing date for this small job, I called Tohatsu and asked them to communicate on my behalf. The problems, and certainly LHG Marine may have another take on this, have to do with the delay in installing the engine and a disagreement on what height the engine was to be installed at. That is a he said she said matter.
To be objective I will include a quote from a letter LHG Marine emailed to me under the signature of LHG Marine Sales Manager «EDDY» Eddy is a man of many hats. He is also the Tohatsu Mechanic. The subject of the quote is taking the boat for a spin to confirm that the propeller is cavitating, because the engine was mounted to high.
«We definitely can take the boat for a test run to determine if the engine is cavitating or not as well to determine the best propeller size. As discussed already the labor rate for this would be $ 155.00 per hour. Unfortunately I can’t provide you with an accurate estimate of the total since we don’t have a flat rate for this type of application. Sea trials and water test are performed with two persons on board (technician and helper) and on weather permitting situation as we need optimum water condition for a safe environment. Tohatsu doesn’t include this water test on the price of the engine, engines with water test package are more expensive since they pay the dealer to perform this test.»
LHG proposed to charge me for 2 technicians at $ 155 an hour each on a 13 foot boat. I feel like LHG Marine is «throwing the book» at me.
Perhaps selling Tohatsu Outboards is only a distracting sideline for LHG Marine. LHG Marine appears to be the factory owned or controlled outlet for a boat manufacturer Release Boats. I would think that scenario would make it very difficult for LHG Marine to get dealerships for any other brands of fiberglass boats, because of their association with Release boats. Release apparently is able to sell Yamaha motors as an OEM.
I wanted to have a relationship with the dealer to service my engine, but in view of the circumstances this is not quite a comfortable situation. Tohatsu makes a fine motor but because the brand is not so well known in the US, there are not many Tohatsu dealers in most areas.
In my opinion, if you are considering dealing with LHG Marine, caveat emptor might be good to keep in mind.