2008 Sundancer 340 vs 350

Stefan57

New Member
Jul 10, 2021
4
29585
Boat Info
350 Sundancer 2008, Raymarine C120 GPS
Engines
(2) MerCruiser 8.1S Horizon V-Drives
I am new in the boating world and looking into SR Sundancer series. 2 boats catch my eyes 2007/2008 SD 340 and 350. The boats have identical engines (2) Mercruiser 8.1 Horizon, V-drives, A/C and generator etc. Also the hull length is very similar 37.5 ft. However the 350 looks bigger to me and carries also 2500 lbs of weight. My activities are: Couple cruising in the Southest and ICW. Any advice which way to go?
 
What are the operating hours on each? What’s the price they are asking?
 
SD 340: 500hrs, 149k$
SD 350: 250hrs, 157k$
Thanks for your feedback.

For my untrained eye, I would definitely go for the 350. More features, 1/2 the hours, only 8K more. Asking price seems fair to me,
But I would offer 145K if I was happy with what I saw.

I would try to find out why the 350 has so few hours, because 250 hrs sounds suspicious. Too good to be true. You have to be careful that there is no underlying issue, which might explain why the boat has been used so little. When going into a purchase like this, you have to have a healthy dose of skepticism. Otherwise you get burned. And you don’t want to get burned on the purchase of a boat.

If possible, I would try to look at both. You can see with the naked eye if there are water leaks, you can see if there are weird smells. You can look at the color of the oil in the engine, which should be bronze/maple and should not be milky. You can look at the condition of the upholstery, etc. check for chips, repairs, and cracks. Look for the conditions of the wires and look for corrosion in the battery cables. I would expect the 350 to be like new, since it has been used so little. So if you see a lot of wear, the owner has likely somehow manipulated the hours. People are honest in general, but there are so many dirtbags out there that you have to be careful. Before making an offer, I would definitely get a marine survey and do a sea trial in the presence of the surveyor. Based on the issues uncovered in the survey, if any, i would make an offer. Hope this helps. Good Luck
 
For my untrained eye, I would definitely go for the 350. More features, 1/2 the hours, only 8K more. Asking price seems fair to me,
But I would offer 145K if I was happy with what I saw.

I would try to find out why the 350 has so few hours, because 250 hrs sounds suspicious. Too good to be true. You have to be careful that there is no underlying issue, which might explain why the boat has been used so little. When going into a purchase like this, you have to have a healthy dose of skepticism. Otherwise you get burned. And you don’t want to get burned on the purchase of a boat.

If possible, I would try to look at both. You can see with the naked eye if there are water leaks, you can see if there are weird smells. You can look at the color of the oil in the engine, which should be bronze/maple and should not be milky. You can look at the condition of the upholstery, etc. check for chips, repairs, and cracks. Look for the conditions of the wires and look for corrosion in the battery cables. I would expect the 350 to be like new, since it has been used so little. So if you see a lot of wear, the owner has likely somehow manipulated the hours. People are honest in general, but there are so many dirtbags out there that you have to be careful. Before making an offer, I would definitely get a marine survey and do a sea trial in the presence of the surveyor. Based on the issues uncovered in the survey, if any, i would make an offer. Hope this helps. Good Luck
 
Thanks for your input. We will certainty do survey, engine inspection and sea trial. I am leaning towards the 350, if the results come back OK.
 
I think you go with the one you feel suits you the best, and see how the surveys and sea trial go. There are unicorns out there. We bought a 2008 340 DA last September. Like the 350 you mention, it had similarly low hours on the engines, and only 19(!) hours on the generator. It was a one family boat, lived it's entire life on a fresh water lake in central VA and 3/4 of it's life was on a lift. I was a bit concerned about the low usage, but it came through thorough engine inspections well and so far other than routine yearly maintenance and new spark plugs it's been doing fine.

I have started slowly upgrading the electronics from the original 2008 era equipment to a Garmin chart plotter networked over NMEA 2000 to the smartcraft, as well as a new Fusion stereo but those things are personal preferences and not strictly related to whether it was a sound vessel or not.

My point here is to pick the one that suits you the best, take the time and money to make sure it's sound and as represented and see what happens. I'm surprised the 340 asking price is that high. I thought we probably overpaid a little last year for ours.
 

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