I have owned my new Ranger RT178 for a few months now.  I am no stranger to boats having owned dozens over the years.  I am so impressed with this little boat that I thought I would add my own comments to those that have already been made. 

 

My Ranger RT178 has a Mercury 75 four stroke.  This motor is so quiet at idle that I have to look to see if it's running.   Top speed loaded with two passengers is about 42 mph with the standard 17 pitch Merc aluminum prop.  It planes out fast and trims with 1/3 of the boat in the water.  It's no speed demon, but I find it more than adequate.   What's amazing to me is the ride.  I've owned and fished in aluminum boats before and they tend to rattle and slam in any chop.  Not this boat.  It has an excellent ride for it's size and construction.  Would I take it out on Lake Okeechobee in 4 foot waves?  No, I would be home watching TV.  For everyday bass fishing, the ride is great.  The boat is very stable.  My wife and I are both in our seventies and we have no problem moving around in this boat.

 

The quality of this boat is much better than all the other aluminum bass boats we looked at.  There is nothing wrong with lesser boats, but you get what you pay for in this boat.  The seats are the same as the big Ranger seats.  They are top quality and very comfortable.  This boat has lots of storage with four compartments plus a full length lockable rod box with tubes.  The carpet is what you would expect in a Ranger.  All the hardware is top quality as well.  An Aluminum boat hull does not look like a fiberglass boat hull.   You can tell it's aluminum as you can see some of the panels down the side.  My boat is painted white with red and black graphics and I think it looks great.  The shape of the RT178 is much sleeker than the other boats in it's class, especially the console which is fairly racy looking.  

 

I upgraded the trolling motor on my boat to a 24 volt Minn Kota.  I don't consider a 12 volt trolling motor to be adequate in hydrilla. I also have a triple battery charger in my boat.  My boat has two Lowrance combination Sonar and GPS units, one in the console and one on the trolling motor.  Personally,  I wouldn't own anything but Lowrance electronics.  I have tried others and always come back.

 

The Ranger trailer loads and tows great.  The only complaint I have is Ranger shortened the swing away tongue 9" recently and I find it too short.   This puts the boat too close to the tow vehicle in tight turns.  I use a hitch extender on my Explorer to fix this issue. 

 

I find the 17' length to be adequate for the type of bass fishing I do.  I have owned 20-22 foot bass boats before and they are can be hard to maneuver in tight canals.  For big water tournament fishing, they are a necessity.  For someone currently like me, the smaller boats are fine.  They run well with smaller motors, don't require 100 pound thrust trolling motors, and use less fuel.  I tow my little Ranger with a new Ford Explorer with a 4 cylinder turbo and it tows like it's not back there.  I can even back my boat up a steep driveway with ease. 

 

Fully rigged, my entire boat, trailer, 24 volt trolling motor, extra seat, extended eight year motor warranty and all electronics listed around $28K.  With fiberglass bass boats starting in the 50's,  it's a decent value for the quality received.  I can't find anything negative to say about my little Ranger.  So far, it does everything I want it to do in style.  It's a boat you can be proud of at the ramp without mortgaging your house to buy it. 

 

 

Nice write up Phil. Thanks for sharing. 

I pretty much have the same rig, except mine is 2015.  I have a minnkota bow mount, 2 lowrance electronics on mine, and It sounds like mine is even the same color too. I have the polymer-vinyl interior instead of carpet and I have a stern mount 12 foot talon.

 

I am shocked that you can get 42 mph out of yours with an aluminum prop on the 75 hp 4-storke mercury.  And quite honestly, I'm slightly upset because I can only get about 33 mph out of mine with an aluminum prop.  Yours is a 17 pitch 3-blade aluminum prop?

11 hours ago, gimruis said:

I am shocked that you can get 42 mph out of yours with an aluminum prop on the 75 hp 4-storke mercury.  And quite honestly, I'm slightly upset because I can only get about 33 mph out of mine with an aluminum prop.  Yours is a 17 pitch 3-blade aluminum prop?

 

I am still breaking in my 75 Mercury four stroke, so I haven't been able to run wide open for long.  Last weekend with my wife and all my tackle with me, I opened it up to check the top end speed.   With the boat trimmed in flat water, my max RPM topped out somewhere around 5300.  Both the GPS and the speedometer showed 42 mph.  When I got home, I looked at the prop that came with the boat.  It's a standard Mercury three blade aluminum prop stamped 17.  From what I have seen so far, with a better prop and a light load it may reach 45 mph. If you want me to check the height of the motor or anything else, let me know.

 

Are you trimming your boat high enough?  I have had high performance bass boats before and this boat acts like it has a pad.  There is a big difference in speed with more of the boat out of the water.

 

 

I own a tracker 175 tx rigged almost identically except with a 50 instead of the 75. I only got 6k in it, but still get boat envy every time I see one of those aluminum rangers. 
 

I know functionality wise, the fish don’t care but gosh those are nice boats. 

12 hours ago, gimruis said:

 

I am shocked that you can get 42 mph out of yours with an aluminum prop on the 75 hp 4-storke mercury.  And quite honestly, I'm slightly upset because I can only get about 33 mph out of mine with an aluminum prop.  Yours is a 17 pitch 3-blade aluminum prop?

Something ain’t right. Same size tracker boat with a 50 hp Mercury and I can hit low 30’s with just me in it. 

1 hour ago, NoShoes said:

Something ain’t right. Same size tracker boat with a 50 hp Mercury and I can hit low 30’s with just me in it. 

I do have a talon mounted that weighs 40 pounds and creates drag. I use a 21 pitch 4 blade aluminum prop. I tried a 19 pitch 3 blade aluminum prop in June and it actually went slower and took 10 seconds to get on plane.

 

I'm glad you love your RT.  I have a 2016 RT188 with the 115 4-stroke.  With upgraded electronics and a 24V Ultrex I just can't imagine ever getting rid of it for a different boat.  I suppose if I find myself with piles of extra money I might, but I can't find a single thing to complain about with my boat.  It suits me perfectly.  Congrats on your solid buy.  

Nice write up. Even with my troubles using my "new 2005 17'" crestliner (it sat in the garage for 15 years with the cover on) I'm pleased with it and really happy I only have 15K into it new and fixes.

I couldn't do that amount of money now.