Sea Ray is it worth the price?

[mcronin]

I am currently looking at two different 23' Sea Ray's in my area.

1997 230 BR 7.4L V8 price is $14,900 (300 hours)
1999 BR Select 7.4L V8 price is $17,900 (500 hours...had some exhaust manifold work done in 08)

Both appear to be in good condition. The one extra on the 99 has trim tabs.

I have yet to negotiate price with either seller.

From the reading I have done Sea Ray has a very good reputation. It also seems to keep its value. The problem I am having. these boats are 10 and 12 years old respectively. Would I be better off going with something a few years newer (for instance a Maxum)? Even if a Maxum isn't quality wise as good the engine is still MerCruiser. Should this really be a big concern? Meaning if the engine was well maintained I would be better off buying a Sea Ray that is a little older rather then buying a lesser quality newer boat?

Any thoughts on this matter would be appreciated. Or, if anyone has had positive or negative experiences with similar Sea Ray's let me know.

 

[Chris1956]

Re: Sea Ray is it worth the price?

Is SR worth the price? Hard question. If you compare SeaRays with other boats of the same size/style and year you should see differences in creature comfort and appointments. Things like better seats, carpet, more railings, better cleats and other hardware etc. You may get a larger power package as well i.e 4.3LX/Alpha, versus a 3.0L/Alpha.

if you like these things, then it may be the correct choice for you. IMHO, the hull will be about the same construction quality that other boats of the same size/vintage, due to liability reasons. No one would intentionally construct a hull that could be considered underbuilt, in a court of law.

I had an '88 SR 19' BR. The powertrain was excellent (4.3LX/Alpha) and the interior was very nice, when it was new. The hull design was very good, but suffered from lack of consistant quality construction. I actually had to fix a crack in the hull. I suspect the foam supporting the hull was lacking, defective or got compressed. in additon, the floor was well fiberglassed on about 1/2 of it's surface, and the rest was some poly resin w/o chop strand, which failed in a few years. I replaced it and had no issue after that.

The wiring, gauges and controls were excellent. In all I gave that boat some hard use, and if the construction quality had been consistant, I believe it would have held up very well.

 

[Thad]

Re: Sea Ray is it worth the price?

Is SR worth the price? Hard question. If you compare SeaRays with other boats of the same size/style and year you should see differences in creature comfort and appointments. Things like better seats, carpet, more railings, better cleats and other hardware etc. You may get a larger power package as well i.e 4.3LX/Alpha, versus a 3.0L/Alpha.


The hull construction and materials are exactly the same as Maxum, Bayliner, Trophy, and a host of other brands. They also all come with Mercruisers. The reason for this is they are all owned by Brunswick Corp. (Yes, the bowling giant)
The "lower end" boats are no longer lower end quality. Like Chris1956 said, the differences are in the interior. Vinyl quality, gauge package, engine size as a standard. This keeps overhead down and the vessel more afordable to the masses. Look around, don't get hung up on a name unless you plan on selling soon.
When I looked for our new boat, style, power, and the extra bells and whistles WERE what I looked for. So, go ahead and look at something newer and browse other makes...there are a lot of good boats out there to be had. You could even look at the dealers for hold over model year boats, they really want those things off of their floor. That's what we did and we saved around $10,000 vs. the current yrs. models.

Just my $.02 worth.

 

[mcronin]

Re: Sea Ray is it worth the price?

Thank you for the responses. I currently own an 89 Arriva which was a Brunswick brand. The Arriva is still running and the exterior has held up great. But, the interior is shot and floor is getting soft. The interior was made of inferior material which has been an issue over the years.

The reason I was thinking Sea Ray is the better quality of interior materials and the better design. The current boat I have is very difficult to work on the engine because of the sun deck and the limited access. I would like to avoid that in anything I buy. Sea Ray appears to allow access to the lower part of the engine.

What I have noticed is everyone has different opinions as to what is and what isn't a good boat. I notice a lot of people knock the perceived lower end Brunswick boats (Maxum, Bayliner). Possibly the quality of the interior on these boats has vastly improved in 20 years.

Besides Sea Ray which other brands are known for quality construction for interiors?

 

[Thad]

Re: Sea Ray is it worth the price?

People who have been around a while remember the poor quality of these boats. Screws put wherever, wires waded up, thin fiberglass, etc. People new to the boating world hear the rhetoric and outdated opinions and follow and they just go with it.
Some people have money to burn and want to say anything less than what they have is junk. This does not apply to everyone though.
It realy boils down to what you like and want.
Look at Crownline, I say that because my next boat will be the 240EX.

Back to your initial question, I think the prices are a bit high.
Don't be in a rush and look around.