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View Full Version : need help identifying boat ? Champ XVIII



hemihydro
04-05-2005, 08:26 AM
I am looking at a boat that looks like a Donzi , it is black and white and has the drivers seat on the left side and a wrap around bench seat , it does not have a motor and I think the drive is a volvo ? The only markings I can find on this boat are the side emblems that say Champ VXIII , it is about 18' long . The fiberglass engine hatch is missing too . Was this boat made by Donzi ??
Any help would be great !!!
Thanks , Mike
email : michaelt@westmarine.com

olredalert
04-05-2005, 10:10 AM
-------Champ was a Miami boat builder. They built a couple of different small boats that somewhat resembled DONZIs, but had nothing in common. The hulls were not direct copies. The degree of V was less. Often they were metal-flake in a sort of vain attempt to attract buyers. The few that are left would be attention getters as they were a part of the south Florida boat scene back in the day.
-------I have a friend in Coral Gables that has a very low hour six-cyl/Volvo combo Champ in metal-flake just sitting in his garage. He is quite honest about the fact that he felt he just couldnt afford a DONZI. Im sure that many Champ owners felt that way as they were laying down thier hard earned money on the day of purchase..............Bill S

hemihydro
04-05-2005, 12:48 PM
Bill , do you think that he could send me some pictures of his so I could see one that is actually together . I can email him about his boat if you have his email address.
You can email me at michaelt@westmarine.com
Thanks for the help . Mike

ALLAN BROWN
04-06-2005, 07:53 AM
The Champ was built by Charlie Gagliano in North Miami. It was one of the wierder "pops" in the long history of boat copying. Charlie took a 17' Vega hull (Designed and built by Harry Schoell when he was a kid) and put it in his warehouse for a couple of years. Without a deck, the hull got wider and wider, and finally looked like a pumpkin seed. They left it 'as-is' and built a Donzi-looking deck on it. The result was the Champ.

BUIZILLA
04-06-2005, 07:59 AM
The engine hatch is very unique and captive to that deck, what happened to it?? your going to play hell finding/making a new hatch if it's missing... my next door neighbor in Miami Shores (Teddy Swing) had one and I always thought that thing was pretty cool... his had a 4 cyl Volvo and was a slug, but it looked oh_so_neat at the time.

JH

hemihydro
04-06-2005, 08:27 AM
If any one has pictures , an old brochure , anything that I can use to help me .
Please let me know .
Thanks , Mike

hemihydro
04-06-2005, 08:44 AM
Does anyone know what years these boats were built ??
Thanks , Mike

BUIZILLA
04-06-2005, 09:18 AM
The one my neighbor had was built in '67, I think.... I remember going to the factory in Opalocka when it came out of the mold. His was navy blue, white deck, white interior, navy stripe. His dad had a navy blue with white guts brand new '67 Caddy conv, and he wanted to boat to match it. I also vaguely remember a big engine yellow one with a jet drive?? 3 or 4 red one's.. They didn't make very many of them... they tried to make a really cool looking 22, but not sure how many of those were built, maybe less than 20 of the 18's and maybe 4-6 of the 22's. Once again, my buildout numbers are foggy. At one point, I think they even made some tri-hulls??

Jim

olredalert
04-06-2005, 09:46 AM
-------Joel Rosen of Motion Performance fame (now a resident of Ft. Lauderdale) had a Champ with an L88 and jet drive. Rumor had it that the boat was rapid. One of the guys on the Yenko website posted a pic of it about a year ago. And....it was metal-flake!!..............Bill S

DonziDave
04-06-2005, 09:35 PM
Mike - I use to own a Champ with a Holman Moody 302 and Volvo drive. They did several with their engine/drive setups. They also sold some direct from their shop here in Charlotte. I really enjoyed mine...it was a well built fun boat. The missing engine hatch could be a problem. The Champ had a "camel hump" hatch and the aft seat back arched up in the middle to mimic the curve of the hatch. I live on Lake Wylie and if you would like me to come look at the boat with you send me an email with your contact info and I will give you a call.

Dave Hollifield
hdonzi18@aol.com

hemihydro
04-07-2005, 03:20 PM
Dave ,
That sounds great , I will do that . I am hoping someone can help me with some good pictures or Sales lititure for the champ boat .

hemihydro
04-12-2005, 04:23 PM
Surely someone out there has a picture or sales brochure for the Camp XVIII
Boats . I just need something to go by as I rebuild this boat .
Thanks , Mike

Arie S
04-20-2005, 09:37 PM
I have a Champ XVII I think it is a 68 It had a Ford V8 intercepter in it with a volvo 250 Outdrive. It is all apart waiting for me to make up my mind whether to fix it or junk it. Some pictures

Arie S
04-20-2005, 09:42 PM
Some more Pictures

hemihydro
05-04-2005, 05:12 PM
Arie , Do you have the hatch that covers the engine compartment ?
or the emblems that say Champ that go on the sides of the boat ?
If you decide to trash it , let me know first .
Thanks , Mike

Craig S
05-05-2005, 12:43 PM
-------Joel Rosen of Motion Performance fame (now a resident of Ft. Lauderdale) had a Champ with an L88 and jet drive. Rumor had it that the boat was rapid. One of the guys on the Yenko website posted a pic of it about a year ago. And....it was metal-flake!!..............Bill S

Wasn't it featured in a "Hi Performance CARS" magazine at the time?
Craig

hemihydro
05-12-2005, 04:10 PM
Craig ,

I tried finding that one listed on YENKO , do you have a direct link on it ??

I even emailed joel robinson at motion performance and got no response .

Thanks , Mike

olredalert
05-13-2005, 10:41 PM
Mike,

-----I cant seem to find that pic on the Yenko sight now either. Will keep on looking......Bill S

marcdups
05-16-2005, 08:16 PM
There is one in my neck of the woods, will try and take some pics yomorrow and post, cool looking boat, somewhat like a Donzi but with a flat deck and wrap around seating, will try and get hold of owner and post some pics

hemihydro
05-18-2005, 05:08 PM
That would be great , I may be interested in purchacing if for sale , if not pictures would be awesome , I see you are in Myrtle Beach , I am located in Charlotte , NC

Thanks , Mike

marcdups
05-18-2005, 06:05 PM
Mike, will do my best to get some pics and info for ya, gimme a day or two.

BUIZILLA
05-18-2005, 07:07 PM
Marc, is the engine hatch on it?

JH

marcdups
05-18-2005, 08:08 PM
Yep, it is a humped hatch, kinda of wild looking, wondering why u wanna know, LOL

BUIZILLA
05-18-2005, 09:39 PM
:garfield: ;)

hemihydro
05-25-2005, 03:04 PM
Marcdups ,

Just checking to see if you had a chance to get a few photos of the Champ boat and any details .

Thanks , Mike

hemihydro
06-06-2005, 04:44 PM
Marcdups ,

Just checking to see if you had a chance to get a few photos of the Champ boat and any details .

Thanks , Mike

Well , I am still looking for more pictures info or anything about the Champ Boat .
Thanks for any additional info .
Mike