Why did my 300 lose so much value?

Mike,
I am guessing that you have read all of Dominic and my posts about our 410 and 420 purchases over the last year or so. I can't stress enough how critical it is to run that big heavy Meridian with gas power, loaded as you will use it, before you write a check. That big girl is just not going to come on plane, and stay on plane in a head sea with wind and current on the bow, and run like your 300 does...or a bigger DA with diesel torque. I've run underpowered boats and it is just not pleasant (read relaxing) at the helm...plus the idea of turning those big blocks at 4,000 RPM or more hour after hour is just not attractive to me...but we all have our own preferences, wants and desires when it comes to boats.
If your boating needs are changing and you are going to run less and entertain more, then the gas Meridian probably makes sense....but I'd bargain awful hard given what will be a really difficult resale situation.

best of luck with whatever you choose to do..

regards
Skip
 
Lame duck?

After comparing the 300 and 310 side by side, for my taste the 310 came up fowl. (pun intended) :wink: In my view it seems as though the designers tried to include too many accoutrements within the 310 and in turn sacrificed some cabin roominess and lost significant open space with the reverse aft facing ruble seat and large bar with grill. Although it is a very attractive looking boat with some improvements in the galley, we chose the 300 because of a more open layout plan.

I have purchased two new boats and two used. The only one that broke even at resale was a 215EC that I managed to pick up at a repo lot without a water test, but did manage to get a surveyor to check it out.

Michael, I have to agree with Bridog and not just because he is another 300 owner. In my area your boat would list at the dealer’s lot for between 90-100K. Even some 280’s of the 02’ vintage are asking around 80-85K. If you could somehow make your deal on the new boat and wait until spring to sell yours, it may be possible to realize considerably more for the 300, but then this would be somewhat of a gamble.
 
One additional thing to consider when you calculate the price delta is tha cost of hauling, winterizing, storing, and commissioning. This represented a cost of almost $5k to me, so rather than wait till spring in the "hope" of getting $85k, I accepted an offer of $80k and all those costs are someone elses problem. I can tell you first hand that 90-100k is just not realistic. Sure, you'll see plenty listed at that number but they are getting no action. My boat had 210 hours and was by all accounts pristine, but none of that matters if the phone doesn't ring and no one comes to see it.
 
jrirvine1 said:
Lame duck?

After comparing the 300 and 310 side by side...
Click to expand...
I'm pretty sure he was referring to the probability that with a newly released 290 and 310, Sea Ray will likely be dropping the 300 from the lineup soon. My guess is that's also why the 300 was not included in the latest promotion.
But I agree that neither the 290 or 310 can be considered direct replacements and share your preference for the less cluttered 300. That's very likely to be my next boat - especially with these dropping prices. :wink:
 
I rode on that new 290da that SR put out. Ouch :smt021 I don't see the 310 being much better, but heck what do I know. :smt017

But seriously once the season starts coming around and those boats sit for a while or get gobbled up by unsuspecting new boat buyers and get dumped a year later...then the truth will be in the pudding as they say. :grin:
 
We all know the 290 was intended to replace the 280. Sales revenue quickly changed Sea Ray's mind when demand for the 280 didn't diminish and sales of the 290 didn't take off. If the same thing happens with the 310, then the 300 could be around for quite awhile. Then there is the matter of the 240 Sundeck and the 260 Sundeck. Both boats are identical in length so why have two? Only Sea Ray can answer that question, but it sure looks to me like some of these newer designs are not being accepted too well and they are reluctant to kill off well accepted designs unless they can see the new model clearly has more appeal than the older model.
 
The 300DA is the lame duck......and the new 310 is a dymamite looking boat both in the water and on a rack. The reason the 310 is packed with "accoutrement's" in because that is what owners of just purchased boats in the same category told Sea Ray they wanted. They don't just add stuff to a boat because its fun.....they do market research and you bbuyers of that type boat told them you wanted all that stuff. It blows my mind that buyers of a 31' boat demand all the same systems and features that come on a 45-55' model.......and then they complain because they cannot get to everything to service it.

I cannot speak for the company nor do I know what is happening everywhere in the country, but the 300 is probably not included in the current promotions for 2 reasons......1. the inventory nation wide is about gone and 2. based on the 290 vs 280 backlash last year, they know the market will initially be resistant to new features, new look and certainly the new price for the 310, so the 300's will fly out of the show rooms in the spring.
 
fwebster said:
The 300DA is the lame duck......and the new 310 is a dymamite looking boat both in the water and on a rack. The reason the 310 is packed with "accoutrement's" in because that is what owners of just purchased boats in the same category told Sea Ray they wanted. They don't just add stuff to a boat because its fun.....they do market research and you bbuyers of that type boat told them you wanted all that stuff.
Click to expand...
................................... Owners wanted a rumble seat and funny looking umbrella? Well then, if that's the case where is the blender that Rinker has had for several years now? FC3 really loved that feature :wink: By the way Frank...you don't think the 300DA is "a dynamite looking boat"?
 
Though I have no access to inside information, I must disagree with Frank W. I know how large corporations work. There are people or teams of people on payroll whose sole responsibility is to effect change, to design something different to create envy or exclusivity. I cannot possibly believe that anyone with an ounce of boating savvy would have dreamed up the pitiful changes included in the 290 design. Searay is looking to get more buyers, not necessarily repeat buyers. This is an important point. The educated boater will always gravitate to an older, classic, logical design (like Frank and a few others here) as opposed to a new radical look. The new buyer, most times, hasn't a clue about function or servicability. More times than not he is the same guy that buys the newest cell phone each year or has to drive the latest version BMW. When car companies decide to make wholesale design changes, they do it without looking back. I expect boat manufacturers to do the same. I think we are overestimating the importance of our input in their decision making.
 
Bridog,

Until recently I owned a 300DA. Loved it. Would I ever consider a 310? Never. Is it a dynamite looking boat? I'll answer this way; I just got back from the NY boat show, must have been 200-300 folks in the Searay area NO ONE was looking at the 300. 10-15 minute wait to even get close to the 310.
 
Searay’s attempt to include the “wish list†of boaters in their new models sounds like good business practice, but it is most likely self defeating in application. Good design is typically achieved from a delicate balancing of both form and function. It is tempting to over-design either aspect while sacrificing the other. Some of these new designs may be adopting the function follows form point of view by trying to include too many features. The function of the overall new boat designs may be suffering due to emphasis on the all inclusive new form that may or may not be accepted by the masses.

I don’t mean to offend anyone that has one of the newer designs, as they are quite stunningly beautiful. My comments should be taken only as one observation or option from one Searay owner and nothing more.
 
Bridog asked: " By the way Frank...you don't think the 300DA is "a dynamite looking boat"?

Well, that is about like your wife asking if her butt looks big in this dress........there isn't a real good answer, and you are taking this a direction I never intended. I think all Sea Rays look good, but there are just some new designs that are ho-hum when you see them, and then there are a very few that grab you right away and the esthetics all just seem to work.........the new 31DA is one of them.
 
Well of course the 300 is a dynamite looking boat and anyone who can't see that is clearly blind :grin:

But Searay and makers like them have to design new and different looking boats every few years. These are style boats and the best way to make a boat look out-of-style is to build a new boat with a new style. Then people will upgrade, yes to get the extra size, but also to get a newer style boat with new features.

If boat makers waited for customers to wear out their boats before they sold them a new one, they would go broke. The new boats have to look different than the old ones. The old ones then look dated. They don't have to look better, just different.

When I walk down my dock, I see previous generation 310 and 330, they are older looking than the current 300, 320 and 340, in some cases they're the same model year. Now as the current generation fades, the new 290, 310 will make them look dated.
 
fwebster said:
Well, that is about like your wife asking if her butt looks big in this dress........there isn't a real good answer
Click to expand...

Frank Frank Frank.... We need to get you out a bit more :wink: There is actually only one answer to this question and it's a good one.

Honey...are you serious? You look stunning in that dress.
 
Ive been thinking my next boat will be a 2002 280DA but I know this guy who is looking to upsize and has a 300DA now. I heard he was offered $73K if he uses his current boat on trade and he may be able to get his next boat for even less if he does not have a trade. I wonder how much it would cost to get it transported to Wisconsin?
 
Presentation said:
Ive been thinking my next boat will be a 2002 280DA but I know this guy who is looking to upsize and has a 300DA now. I heard he was offered $73K if he uses his current boat on trade and he may be able to get his next boat for even less if he does not have a trade. I wonder how much it would cost to get it transported to Wisconsin?
Click to expand...

:smt017 You’re joking??
 
PMvdb395DA said:
:smt017 You’re joking??
Click to expand...

Actually, I’m not sure. I have looked and looked and decided a good / used 280DA with twin 4.3/alpha’s is the boat for us. There are LOTS of them in lower Michigan at very good prices. Then I came across this very message string and keep thinking that a little more $........anyways….I have printed this out and am online looking at 300DA’s right now.

I don’t even know if Michael even still has it nor do I know if he would sell it to me for $73K nor do I know how much it would cost to ship it to Wisconsin. A slip neighbor bought an east coast boat and got a heck of a deal by contacting Cruisers and being flexible on the date. Cruisers (the brand) are made in Northern Wisconsin and he arranged for his boat to be the back-haul for a delivery they were making. I think he said $500. An amazingly low price to ship a cruiser ½ way across the country.

After looking at the 300DA for bit I find some things I like better like the mid cabin and mid cabin entry, the head, the galley set up, more storage, the helm and the larger V birth. The #1 thing I don’t like is the cockpit layout. I wish they had a port lounge like the 280DA.
 
Doug,

I still have it. You would have to get a shipping quote first which you could easily do online. I have no idea what it would cost but boats ship all over the country all the time.

I wouldn't sell it for the same price for the trade unless I knew I could get a better deal on the new boat without a trade. There is a sales tax advantage and convenience factor of trading in. Also I need the cash for the new boat so I would have to sell the old one before I bought the new one.

You can email me if you want to discuss it or want some more info on the 300. It has a lot of options.
 
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