To all 38 Sundancer Owners - General Questions

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WannaBoat

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Jun 7, 2012
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So after lurking for several years, I am getting close to putting in an offer on a 38 Sundancer. Upon acceptance I will be going through full survey process, etc. But being my first boat larger than tournament ski boats and an 18' Baja, this is a new area for me.

So here are my VERY general questions to you 38 owners (past and present):
1) Any serious regrets?
2) Any serious issues?
3) Any things that just frustrate you about it?
4) Anything to be on the lookout for?

Boat is gas (8.1s), Colored hull, seems to have been well maintained-

Thank you!
 
Congratulations on your new Sea Ray. Over the years, Sea Ray made multiple versions of a 38' boat. It may be beneficial to state what year your boat was built. That said, the mention of 8.1s narrows it down to an early 2000s 380 or a late 2000s 38 which are two different boats.

There are dedicated threads on the forum for each model version. Check the Sport Yachts subforum to locate those threads.
 
I picked up one back in April and SeaGreg after that (I'm sure he will chime in). Love it so far.

1) Any serious regrets? No
2) Any serious issues? No
3) Any things that just frustrate you about it? Not really but the angle door on the toilet entry from the salon can be annoying for long legged people - suggest you sit on the toilet with the door closed to see if this is a problem for you.
4) Anything to be on the lookout for? Not really specific to this model - but identify when the manifolds on the 8.1's were replaced.

I think its a great boat size for a couple or with one young child if your sleeping on it. If you have a bigger family with teenagers then I would go a bigger boat for more space, comfort and storage for overnighters/extended stays. Naturally diesels would be nice but seem rare in the 38 or are at a solid premium (at least here in Australia), for which I would rather spend on a bigger boat more commonly fitted with diesels if I were that way inclined. Again it depends on your intended use (distance wise) and whether the cost/benefit stacks up with diesels vs gas vs availability in the 38.

Although the manifolds and a cool fuel module have been changed (as picked up during the survey), the 8.1's with approx 440 hours (at the time of purchase) have been faultless so far. Most people can't believe it's 9 years old when they see her which is a testament to the Sea Ray quality / style, and the previous owners.
 
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Looks like I waited too long to put in an offer- One was accepted last night (8 hours after I viewed the vessel).
I guess I will continue to be a boatless lurker-
 
Keep looking I'm sure you'll find what you're looking for. BTW the 380 Sundancer is a completely different boat than the 38. If you're interested in a beautiful pristine 380 I may know of one. ;)
 
I've been looking at 2002-2004 380 Sundancers. They are great boats. I don't think you could go wrong with one, but make sure you get whatever you are serious about surveyed.
Keep in mind that a Surveyor will nit pick, which may be a good thing, but you are more concerned with major issues, or anything that might indicate that the boat wasn't maintained properly. Any used boat will have minor things, but unless they are things that point to abuse or poor maintenance, I wouldn't worry about that stuff.
 
I have a 2002 380 Sundancer that I bought last year with only 200 hours on the 8.1's. As mentioned before, check out the age of the manifolds and risers. They need to be replaced within an approximately 5 year period. During survey, my manifolds were identified as needing replacement which was done. My risers were stainless steel which were OK. I also have a 2003 480 Sedan Bridge so my 380 is now for sale. John
 
As to your question on manuals, Sea Ray builds the hull deck and other fiberglass parts and they assemble everything into a finished boat. sea Ray does not build engines, air conditioners, generators, hardware, etc. They do provide each new boat owner with an "owners packet" that contains owners manuals for each purchased component on the boat including, among a whole raft of other stuff, the engines, transmissions and generator. The owners packet on my boat fills 2 briefcases, so there is enough information for anyone with a computer or a dealer nearby to run down everything you need for parts or to repair it. There will be an owner's manual for the boat in general, but you will find some of the information in it kind of general.

Sea Ray does not publish repair manuals for the boat. Most engine makers, generator builders, and transmission makers do publish repair manuals, but depending upon who the component maker is, the manuals can get pretty pricey. Sea Ray also provides online access to parts lists for almost all boats back several years, but there are some missing ones in the 80's & 90's. You can tell a lot about what is there and where it is located from the parts lists, but the part numbers are an internal number for Sea Ray only useful if you order or need a part from your local dealer.

As far as manuals for a Sea Ray go, any contract you write for a Sea Ray should include a provision that the seller deliver the owner's packet for the boat to the buyer at or before closing.

Good luck with your search.......and broaden the search a little and you will find some 39DA's and 40 DA's that will suit you for less money than a newer 38DA. The 38 is a "warmed over 360DA on the new measurement scale whereas the 39 and 40 while a year or 2 older, are really 40 ft boats.
 
Sorry you lost out on the boat. I know the feeling, we had a few near misses before we bought our 2003 SR 360, which is similar to the 38 DA as Frank pointed out. We had the 360 for 5 years before trading up to a 2004 SR 420 about 6 weeks ago (I know, no pics posted therefore it didn't happen, yadda yadda). We really enjoyed the 360 but moved up for 3 basic reasons: wanted 2 private staterooms for family & friends, 2 heads and Diesel engines. Since you are still looking I would really encourage you to go slightly larger and slightly older to get a boat with diesels in the same price range - after having the 8.1s I really think the feel and fuel economy of diesels makes a huge difference to us. Hopefully over the holidays I will have time to update my profile and post some pics. Good luck with your search!
 
I've been window shopping similar models and found that I'm not a fan of the center transom walk through on the 380. Also most of the 380/390 seem to be gas so stepping up to a 420 with diesels would make more sense since 390's with diesels seem to come at a premium.
 
La Maddalena said:
We had the 360 for 5 years before trading up to a 2004 SR 420 about 6 weeks ago (I know, no pics posted therefore it didn't happen, yadda yadda). Hopefully over the holidays I will have time to update my profile and post some pics.
Click to expand...

Larry, Congrats on the new boat, enjoy her, looking forward to the pictures
 
I can't locate the thread specific it the 38 Sundancer (2008). Anyone have the link? Thanks?
 
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