need help making a decision on what boat to get.

Hey, how is everyone? Im new to the forum and looking for help on deciding which boat to go with.this will be my first boat. i have fished out of a 14ft flat bottom,18ft bass tracker pro,and a 18ft stratos fiberglass.what i am most likely going to go for is an older bass tracker pro 16 or pro 17 i guess it is considered a modified v. the most i would have on my boat would be three adults and most of the time just by myself. i fish on the warrior river in alabama .would i be better off with the 17ft with say a 50horse or a 16 with a 40 horse?also i would like to be able to go 30-35 mph and would like a gas sipping rig. my fishing is mainly catfish and bream. thanks in advance for the advice.

With 3 adults, go with the biggest you can afford.

A tiller model boat will give you more fishing room in the boat. I have a G3 V167T. This boat sips fuel as I have a Yamaha F40LA on the back. I am a bit on the larger size @230lbs. Fish with a guy that is easy another 230. With the two of us, all our gear ect, we still are able to plan out and do 30 mph. There is enough room in the boat to comfortably fish with three adults in my boat.

Look around for the type/size of boat you want, then worry about brand. A older Tracker Super Guide will not break the bank (just as an example). I would avoid anything with a Force motor (Tracker used allot of them in the 90's).