I've had my Quest for about 2.5 months now and am completely happy with it. After several weeks of research and testing, I chose it for the following:
Marquis reputation, engineering and warranty.
Simplicity of the design. Single jet pump, no circ. pump, large filter area. I'm a mechanical engineer and that stuff is important to me.
The size of the tub just fit better than the larger tubs I tested. Not gonna name names, but one of the tubs that is very popular on this forum was the most uncomfortable thing I've ever been in. With strong jets, the seats have to be shaped right or you will struggle to stay in them, and I don't mean just lounge seats. Also, 95% of the time only 1 or 2 people use the spa so I could not justify spending thousands more for a larger tub.
The HK40 jets are awesome, as are the others. The only seat/jet that I don't use much is power swirl. It is rather weak, but it is also on a much higher seat position, so I think it was designed as the kiddie seat. I'll bet it will be nice in the summer though when it is hot outside and I lower the water temp. Mendocino, your a Marquis dealer, right? Is my assessment of this right, or do you think there might be something wrong with the jet?
I liked the dealer. Two dealers (that rep 2 of the MAJOR manufacturers) were simply awful. About the only info I could coax out of them was "that one is $7K, that one is $10K, etc."
About the price, that sounds like a good deal. I paid a little more than that with cover lifter, LED light and a year supply of SpaFrog cartridges.
Hope this helps.
txwillie