src
New Member
- Feb 13, 2012
- 843
- Boat Info
- 2000 310 Sundancer
1997 175BR
- Engines
- 310: Twin 454 Mercruiser w/Bravo III
175: Mercruiser 3.0
Lord save me, the hunt continues. AND THE HUNT ENDS (I hope)
Last year we decided to move up the boating scale, adding a cruiser to our "fleet". We finally settled on the 28-29 foot range, and almost bought a '99 Monterey 296. Then stuff happened and we had to put things on hold.
It's off hold now. I love my wife, and she is just as enthusiastic about getting the boat as I am, and we have the same priorities for the boat. But I'm fighting against "it". As in "I know it when I see it", and "that's not it". I've bounced every reasonable make/model/size combination off of her trying to find "it". Sometimes she will look at two boats of the same make/model/year/features, and say "this one is close", but the other one "is not even close". But no specific reasons why.
I'm beginning to wonder what a bullet would taste like.
So today I took her to a broker yard so we can look at a number of boats in the size range, and she could get a feel for them. Guess what she liked. She liked the Bayliner 305. Can I get salt for that bullet? Maybe ketchup?
We did look at Sea Rays, but most of them were out of our price range, and neither of us is a fan of the 290 layout. But after the Bayliner incident, I figured it was time for a hail-mary pass. I looked around some more, expanded the price criteria a bit, and found several 2000 310's that looked promising. I sent her the info, and waited for the "that's not it".
"I like it"
The heavens parted, the angels wept, and a bullet was spared a short but messy trip through my cranium.
So, we are now officially looking for a 2000 era 310 ('99-'02, if I remember the model breakouts properly). I've started reading the 310 thread, but there's a LOT to chew through. We would prefer outdrives, as I intend to dry-rack the boat when not in use, and like the performance/economy gains.
What should I be looking out for? What are the pitfalls of the 310's of this era? How prevalent are the head-gasket/water ingestion issues in the 5.7's of that era (most likely what we will end up with). Any relevant advice would be most welcome.
Thanks!
Last year we decided to move up the boating scale, adding a cruiser to our "fleet". We finally settled on the 28-29 foot range, and almost bought a '99 Monterey 296. Then stuff happened and we had to put things on hold.
It's off hold now. I love my wife, and she is just as enthusiastic about getting the boat as I am, and we have the same priorities for the boat. But I'm fighting against "it". As in "I know it when I see it", and "that's not it". I've bounced every reasonable make/model/size combination off of her trying to find "it". Sometimes she will look at two boats of the same make/model/year/features, and say "this one is close", but the other one "is not even close". But no specific reasons why.
I'm beginning to wonder what a bullet would taste like.
So today I took her to a broker yard so we can look at a number of boats in the size range, and she could get a feel for them. Guess what she liked. She liked the Bayliner 305. Can I get salt for that bullet? Maybe ketchup?
We did look at Sea Rays, but most of them were out of our price range, and neither of us is a fan of the 290 layout. But after the Bayliner incident, I figured it was time for a hail-mary pass. I looked around some more, expanded the price criteria a bit, and found several 2000 310's that looked promising. I sent her the info, and waited for the "that's not it".
"I like it"
The heavens parted, the angels wept, and a bullet was spared a short but messy trip through my cranium.
So, we are now officially looking for a 2000 era 310 ('99-'02, if I remember the model breakouts properly). I've started reading the 310 thread, but there's a LOT to chew through. We would prefer outdrives, as I intend to dry-rack the boat when not in use, and like the performance/economy gains.
What should I be looking out for? What are the pitfalls of the 310's of this era? How prevalent are the head-gasket/water ingestion issues in the 5.7's of that era (most likely what we will end up with). Any relevant advice would be most welcome.
Thanks!
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