ksanders
Moderator Emeritus
I can't speak for California but the Manatee is not a popular boat model up here (PNW). In the 14 years I've been involved with diesel cruising I have seen exactly two of them. One lives in our marina and never seems to go anywhere and the other was on the guest dock for a few days a number of years ago.
Why the Manatee is not popular in our waters could be, I'm sure, the subject of another never-ending thread. SFO Bay could be a different story, however, I don't know.
I like the manatees. Lots of room for a 36' boat, although my looking is admittedly all via photos.
I think they would make a great boat for the inside passage. Calm waters for the most part. They probably just didn't market them well in the PACNW. The Bayliners, Tollys, and Uniflites were all local built boats with a strong presence in this area.