I specifically stated to repair my outboard without superseding the value as I was going to sell it online as I got the motor on the back of a boat I bought and didn't need it. The man behind the counter acknowledged my request. I was a little surprised at the high price, but wasn't concerned, because he was the motor proffesional, and that just meant my motor was worth more then I thought. WRONG ! It was listed for two years for the exact repair price and I ended up going down on the price several times. It finally sold for a loss.. Lost over $200. I would have been money ahead to give it away for free un-repaired. I trusted you dang it ! read more

I could count on one hand how often I have written a negative review on Yelp. Owner Dale is rude and unprofessional. I was told by him, "Get the hell out of my shop you're costing me money by talking." Perhaps we all have bad days, but don't take it out on others. I would give this shop a zero. read more

My boat was broken, and the steering column was stuck. I have a Northwood, sixteen foot fishing boat. I went into the shop to drop it for a presumed estimate, on 10/26. On 10/27, I received a phone call back from Dale, who is also the owner. Dale said that he had started the work already, and was completed. He told me that he was done, and that I owe him a $1007.05. I was speechless, and did not expect that high price and only presumed it would just be a price quote. I inquired, why the price was so high, and told him I would come in to see the workmanship and what repairs had been made. I was already irritated that he did not give me a quote for the work that needed to be done, as well as confirm with me that he would begin the work. When I went into the shop, I asked him to explain in detail what was the itemized items for the bill. Dale stated that the part cost around $100, and that labor took him 6 hours. I was still appalled that it took that long for a simple fix, and that he didn't run it by me first before beginning repairs. I tried to bargain with him, that I would pay all cash up front if it was possible to lower the costs. I initially offered $500.00 due to the fact I did not believe that it took that much time in labor hours to repair. Dale refused saying he wouldn't take that, but added $100.00 In the end, we agreed and I ended up paying $600.00 At this point, I was frustrated and just wanted to take my boat home. I would not return to Ballard Marine due to my unpleasant experience here. I did not get a initial price quote, work confirmation to start the work, what type of work that needed to be done, as well as the fact that I feel like an exaggerated labor hours it took to complete the work. Yes, it did only take him a day to complete the work, however I would still not return due to the fact that I had to go through all of this, and feel like this situation was treated unfairly and wish other potential customers will take this into consideration before taking their service here. read more

Ballard Marine Service - Boat Repair Near Me - Seattle, Washington

I've been buying parts from Ballard marine for five years or so and they have consistently gotten me the correct factory parts and offered very helpful advice for free. I see some reviewers complaining about price. Boats aren't cheap and personally I'd rather have the parts and work be right instead of cheap! Shout out to Dale. He is on his game. read more

We needed a new lower unit installed on our outboard and a tuneup done on the engine. I had previously called and spoken to a very helpful employee who told me that they would do the work, gave me a rough estimate of costs over the phone, and told me to bring the boat in the following week. A week passes and I take the afternoon off to bring the boat down to the shop. I walked in and met someone who turned out to be the owner. He came out and looked at the engine and the boat and said that he wouldn't work on it because "it's not worth my time because I'll only be bolting on parts and won't sell you anything". He then walked back inside without offering any other information an ignoring me. When I told him that I had already spoken to another employee there and described the work the boat needed he said that "a lot of the people who work here are stupid". He's a real class act that one. Do not bring your business here. When I called around to find another shop to work with, they all had stories about this guy and his shop. None of them were good. We ended up happily spending $700 at another shop who was happy to take our money. read more

Had a Mercury 8 horse that crapped out on us less than a year after purchase (from West Marine). Took it to Ballard Marine Service and they had it up and running in two days, saying that we hadn't run it hard enough (?). We paid just under $400 for the service. It worked brilliantly for two excursions, and now two weeks later we're sitting here with a dead motor again. Im going to take it in tomorrow and we'll see if they can make it right and bump this review up from a two to something respectable. UPDATE: Brought it in this morning and got a call this afternoon. Apparently it was just flooded badly, which I'm not even sure how we did, given that we just tried to start it like normal, but I'm quickly believing that Mercury outboards require the same amount of finicky care as an inbred race horse. However, Mercury's problems are not Ballard Marine Services' fault, and to their credit they didn't charge us anything for the service and got back to us so quickly, esp. with opening day being in two days. I *hope* I don't have to go back to Ballard Marine Service, but if and when the engine acts up, I'll be taking it here. read more

I have had my boat in many times. Once, they tried to charge for doing something wrong. However, when I pointed it out, I was treated fairly. Overall a good shop, and much better than the dishonest cheaters, waypoint marine. read more

Had a great experience with BMS this week. Had a sea water pump start leaking on my 260 Sundancer as were preparing to leave for the San Juans. I called Ballard Marine based on a recommendation from some friends and explained my situation to Dale, the owner. He had the part in stock and was able to get to the job done in short order and on the day he said it would be done. The new pump is leak free and we completed our voyage with no issues. Note: A tricky project with the sea water hose that feeds into the pump below the water line and we were not going to pull the boat out of the water to get it done. The BMS labor rate per hour is a bit steep but I had confidence in knowing that the job would be done correctly and on time. It was. Hard to put a dollar value on that. Thanks Dale read more

These guys are criminals. I brought my outboard motor in twice - a small 5 hp motor that needed some simple repairs. They tried to charge me $950 to fix it. Outrageous. I brought it to another mechanic who only charged me $100. Do not use these guys!! read more

Over the years I have used Ballard Marine. Like many of the other Marine Mechanics, these guys have pretty much a captive audience. Have a boat moored on the canal or the lake, you are stuck with one of these guys. I saw some of the other reviews about how they rip people off - I don't think they do that but they always charge list price for their parts and they overestimate the labor. Once I had an issue with one my engines and he charged me $600.00 to diagnose a relay problem. I called him on it and he said they were slow in the winter and needed money. On the other hand, when you need a part, he most likely has it and he and his techs are competent which make them better than the other guys out there. read more

I have been taking my 19.5 foot ski boat to Dale for 10 years. It sits in the sound on a buoy for four months a year and thus has salt related issues. Dale and his team have kept me running. Their service has been quick and fairly price. Let me give you an example. My boat got off the buoy and was beached, breaking the skeg off the out drive. Dale was able to repair the out drive and check out the gears in short order. Back on the water, I had an electrical problem that was not related to the out drive. Dale fixed it in a day and I was back toeing kids on inner tubes. A week later the boat stopped due to a failed oil pump gauge. Dale fixed this in one day at no charge. When I arrived to pick up the boat we talked about how tough it is on ski boats to be left out in the sound for extended periods. He asked if he could keep the boat for another day and go through it completely and test it under stress in the canal. I agreed. The next evening I picked up the boat. Dale and his team had gone through the boat from stem to stern testing connections and replacing faulty ones, checking cables, hoses and mechanics. I know this took a good deal of time and asked how much this would cost. He said there was no cost. While the problems with our old boat were not related to the beaching, he wanted to be certain we were safe and enjoying our boat. Also, his recommendation of a new prop type (other was bent beyond repair), resulted in an increase of 4 miles per hour and no loss in digging out. I have a number of friends that also go to Ballard Marine and find that Dale and his group communicate well and are friendly and honest. read more

Last Summer I needed a solenoid for my 86 40 hp johnson quick. Dude brought the box up, it has a label with info like suggested list- $36.99, date they got it- 8/27/09 dealer info, etc... i still have it. I'm thinking alright, they're gonna get me for a bit here, I know online these list for $19.99 but I need it now, they have it in stock So he rings it up at $65.99. Wow, pulling numbers out of the sky. He said it was because of fluctuations, I thought I heard someone chuckle in the back room. The piece of junk solenoid is dead and these rip off artists are still in business. And I need a solenoid. Go anywhere else. read more

I have Dale and his crew due the normal maintenance on my 60 HP Merc (2016). I was across Puget Sound when the motor didn't start and I called Dale, and explained my situation and he walked me through a few things I should do to start the engine. I tightened down my battery terminals at his suggestion (I had recently connected my electric downrigger to the battery) and it fixed the problem and the motor started right up. I know, probably something that any decent boater would do eventually, but Dale got me from slightly panicked to a beautiful day on the water, in 3 minutes. They aren't the cheapest place in the world, but I appreciate their service and Dale also has great suggestions for boat add-on (in my case adding a digital tach and control unit) when I inquired about how I could get better throttle resolution for trolling. read more

I needed to have someone look at the Johnson 40 on my very old boat I use for crabbing. When I read the Yelp reviews for Ballard Marine I called a marine engine company that I know does not touch outboards and asked for a recommendation ... they said, "Ballard Marine", so I gave them a shot anyway! Dale, Neil, Sue and everyone were great. They got the boat in, serviced the engine, ordered and installed a part it needed, all within a week at the busiest time of the year. Then when the engine wouldn't start (likely because I'd flooded the engine) they had me bring it straight in and checked it out at no charge! I'll be going there whenever need an outboard serviced! read more

I simply can't speak highly enough of Dale and Sue and the others at Ballard Marine. I've been going there for many years and have always been confident that I was getting the most honest advice and best workmanship. Highest recommendation. read more

I would not recommend this company. I have an outboard that is in the water at a marina. The engine was not getting any juice to turn over. I arranged for the owner Dale to go over to the marina, ask for the key from the marina, and check it out. He sent his guy over, who forgot to ask for the key. Despite not being able to start the engine with the key, he then told me it was my battery (despite the voltage meter showing full voltage). He charged me $125 for the call. I changed the battery out and it still was not getting juice to the engine to turn over. I called the Dale and finally spoke to him after leaving 2 messages that he did not bother to return. I asked him to go out again, since it was obviously to the battery, and that the $125 should be credited, since the advice to change the battery was incorrect. He said he did not like his business and was way too busy and basically to f off. He was very rude and unprofessional, not to mention not thorough in the least. I would give this company an F for competency, F for customer service, and F for value (for trying to charge me twice for a service call when they got it wrong on the first call and basically did nothing but cost me $80 for a battery i did not need). read more

I just have to log in here to weigh in. I'm honestly surprised with the negative reviews. I run the Seattle Sailing Club, and we work with Dale and his team frequently. The highest endorsement I can give is to say that we switched our fleet to Mercury outboards from another make because this was the service shop we wanted to work with. They're the best in the area, in my opinion. read more

Dale and his team have been extremely professional working with me over the years. Trustworthy, honest, reliable. Sorry to hear that another person did not feel that they received the same consistent level of high quality service that I have received. Great advice, proactive and cost effective have been consistent trademarks of their service. Greatly appreciated. I highly recommend them read more

Dale, Sue and Neil are AWESOME ! I don't take my boat to anyone else, its a 1999 Trophy with twin 225 outboards and they've never run better. They are responsive to anything I might have to call them for, they are thorough in their work, and always ready with a smile and a story. The shelves are well stocked and the prices are fair and the work is top notch. read more

Do you know how many yeahoo's work in the Marine industry? In my experience, too many. Dale at Ballard Marine is a breath of fresh air comparatively. We were both on the same page when I went in to talk inflatables and a matching motor. And his prices were just what I expected -- not mail order pricing -- things are marked up so that he can make a few bucks now, and still be in business tomorrow so that I can talk with an actual human when I have a question or a problem. Nice! read more