420 SD vs Tiara 4300 Sovran - help me decide.

sb in gp

Active Member
Oct 10, 2006
858
Grosse Pointe, MI
Boat Info
2016 Tiara 50 Coupe
Engines
Volvo D11 IPS
It's been a while since I posted here. I'd appreciate advice/opinions from the great CSR crowd.

I'm looking to upgrade from my 320 to something a little bigger. Here are my primary needs:

Would like to have more cabin room for longer range cruising in the Great Lakes (3-10 days overnight). The 320 is a great boat but with 4 sleeping aboard my wife has stumbled to the head in the dark for the last time.

Kids are teenagers now, so if we're going to travel, we'll likely be taking friends. Would also like to travel with another couple down the road, so separate quarters is a must.

I've narrowed my search down to two boats:

2005 420 SD with about 700 hours (Cummins 480)
2006 Tiara 4300 Sovran with about 300 hours (Volvo IPS 500)

Both are loaded, and in great shape.

Space / Sleeping quarters: The 420 has quite a bit more room, due to the bridge. I think the 420 can sleep 6 comfortably, and the Tiara sleeps 4 comfortably.

Price: The Tiara is about $50K more - I could afford it, but not sure I want to go that far into debt.

Resale value: I see the Tiara having better resale value, plus it is a year newer

Maintenance: Weekly maintenance is less on the Tiara without all the isinglass and canvas. Maintaining the IPS pods will add costs, not sure how much.

Performance: I think the Tiara is a better handling boat by far, the bridge boat is going to be tippy, and the IPS system is hard to match. Is the tipping feel a big issue coming from a Sundancer? The 420 has bow and stern thrusters so dock maneuvering should not be an issue. Does anyone think the Tiara is going to be underpowered with the 500's?

Sorry to be so long winded. Any advice would be appreciated.
 
I am going through the exact same process. Here are my thoughts on our situation and maybe you can get something out of it. I had a 300 Sundancer that we ended up mostly using for day boating (hanging out on the hook all day - but returning to the slip and going home at the end of the day). My wife ended up not liking the underground cave feeling and she preferred not to sleep on it because of that. She wants the open condo/apartment feeling of a bridge boat. So it ended up being my man-cave and a big toilet area for her for our day outings. We just moved to coastal South Carolina and our boating style will switch to destination boating to stay on the boat for up to a week (maybe two weeks) at friend's locations in cities between 30 and 200 miles away. I love Tiara's and would own one over a comparable Sea Ray all things being equal, but price was out of the question for me and its still an underground finished basement. So the spouse would have nixed it. So we are working on finding a 400DB (the 420DB is out of my price range).

So for us, the style of the boat was most important along with price, obviously. Make sure you are OK with the underground living if you go with the Tiara.

Hope that helps.
 
Here are my primary needs:
Would like to have more cabin room for longer range cruising in the Great Lakes (3-10 days overnight).
Would also like to travel with another couple down the road, so separate quarters is a must.
2005 420 SD with about 700 hours (Cummins 480)
2006 Tiara 4300 Sovran with about 300 hours (Volvo IPS 500)
These are two different animals. Based on your main criteria, the 420DB (not SD), ie. 420 Sedan Bridge, is the hands down winner. The additional space is enormous compared with the Tiara.
The Tiara is a great boat and not underpowered. The glass cockpit is less maintenance in terms of isinglass, but more in terms of IPS. It is a more efficient propulsion package.
The Sea Ray is a solid boat with a bullet proof and low maintenance propulsion package. It wins on the space.
The depreciation is a wash as both have slid down the steepest part of the curve.
Save the $50,000 and put it toward new Strataglass on the Sea Ray.
 
The 420DB isn't a "tippy" boat by any stretch of the imagination. They are solid and well proportioned and are infact, one of the more predictable small bridge boats around. The feeling you get is quite common for a DA owner moving up to a DB....takes about a day to get over it. However, the ride is completely different on a DB. Since you are about 8 ft higher than on a comparable DA, you get some added moment to any wave action. A strong beam sea tends to amplify the motion, but I still find it manageable. My background is pretty diverse.....I run boats for the local dealer and run a 54 Hat and a 55 Viking for friends so I spend quite a bit of time on bridge boats. A boat is a boat to me. I own a DA and prefer them for ease of maintenance and operation but the ride really doesn't matter to me.
 
The 2006 version of IPS is prone to a few known issues. Volvo has updated the material used on the seals and the old drives are prone to water intrusion, make sure the drives have been updated.
The 43 Sovran is a great boat, however its not as seaworthy as the open series due to the wide beam (14'"9). This is our 2nd boat with IPS and we would never go back to conventional drives.
 
I would second all of the positive notes on the 420DB. We recently purchased a 420DB for all of the reasons given. We have been on board a 400DB a number of times and we really liked the design and space of the sedan bridge. Our 2005 420 has the step up dining table which has a better view than the 400. Also having two heads with showers is really nice. Moving up from sail boats I was concerned about movement, but the 420 seems stable and the hull design is one of the best in this size class as stated by seasoned power boaters.
 
I had a similar dilemma between 43 sovran and 420 Sundancer. Decided on sundancer because of engines and drives. I really like having shafts over pods and the 65K savings was nice too
 
Thanks Kevin. Both look like great boats. It does not look like the first boat has 2 cabins, and the second has no swim platform. I think shipping either of these from FL to MI is going to be costly because they'll have to take the bridge off.

I also prefer how the 420 DB has seating area on the bridge so that you can drive with your guests nearby.

Scott
 
There are a few 43 Convertible Tiaras in the Great Lakes, one actually that is completely updated and beautiful. Take another look
 
Ok, let me ask the question again with a twist:

I have found a 2006 Tiara 4300 Sovran and a 2005 Sea Ray 420 Sedan Bridge and negotiated to the same price. The Tiara is in salt, and the Sea Ray is all freshwater. Thoughts?

Thanks,

Scott
 
The 420DB is one pretty boat! Fresh water wins as well.
 
Ok, let me ask the question again with a twist:

I have found a 2006 Tiara 4300 Sovran and a 2005 Sea Ray 420 Sedan Bridge and negotiated to the same price. The Tiara is in salt, and the Sea Ray is all freshwater. Thoughts?

Thanks,

Scott

Scott,

I know nothing about the Tiara's as it's not our style. However, IMO it will offer much better performance than 420DB. Other than that you're really comparing apples and oranges. After upgrading from DA to DB I don't see myself in anything that doesn't have a bridge.

Having your kids growing up and having additional company simply translates in to more real estate needs, that what you'll be getting with 420DB. So, before drawing the line I think you need to ask yourself a question, what's more important to get from point A to point B faster using less fuel or have comfortable ride (perhaps slower) and have maximum room (on different levels) during the cruise and when you reach your destination?

If you have more specific questions about 420DB, feel free to ask here or PM me.

Good luck with your decision.
 
If the 4300 Sovran is in the mix a 42 Open should be considered as well. Straight inboards,lots of room, choice of layouts, and great sea keeping qualities would make it worthy of a look.
 
Ok, let me ask the question again with a twist:

I have found a 2006 Tiara 4300 Sovran and a 2005 Sea Ray 420 Sedan Bridge and negotiated to the same price. The Tiara is in salt, and the Sea Ray is all freshwater. Thoughts?

Thanks,

Scott

Scott, From your OP it seems you started this search because you need more space. With that is mind I would go with the most space. The fact that the 420 is a fresh water boat would in my mind would move a potential toss-up decision in favor of the sedan bridge.

Best of luck, Art
 
Thanks everyone. Good stuff.

A couple of comments:

I've looked at a 42 Open, and it seems you give up a lot of interior space to accommodate the huge deck. It is a fantastic boat, built like a tank, but we want to sleep another couple and sometimes 6 people or more aboard. I don't see the 42 Open working for that.

I view the Tiara 4300 as having just enough room for us, with little extra. The 420DB has at least 20% more space, and I love the "living room" feel of the salon being above the water and having great light. I dislike the basement feel of normal cruisers when you're below deck.

I view the Tiara as a better boat overall, as far a fit/finish and quality of components. I think the Tiara will have better resale value and will be more desirable to the next buyer when I'm through with it. Resale value is offset by the salt. I think the Tiara will handle rough water a little better.

At the end of the day, both boats would work as far as space, looks, handling and performance. Both are in great shape. The biggest things on my mind right now are:

Resale value
Salt
Shipping hassles (FL to MI) - cost ($10K+), and having to remove pods and arch components to ship
Ongoing costs of maintaining IPS system (I've heard $1500 - $2000 per year)
Better handling with IPS (Would be nice to have a boat my wife could dock with the joystick - 420 DB has bow and stern thrusters though)
Less plastic/canvas to maintain on the Tiara (Tiara has hardtop with glass windshield)

So I've literally flipped back and forth on a daily basis. If I'm missing anything, please chime in. Thanks for being my therapists and listening to my ramblings. I'll let you know how it turns out. Decision needs to be made in next 10 days or so.

Scott
 
Have you actually been on the 43 you are negotiating on? If not that could really throw a wrench in the mix. There's items on salt boats that if even just cosmetic I couldn't live with unless there was someone like me who me who owned it. Corrosion and rust on things would drive me absolutely crazy.
 
The 42 Open comes with a plan C that adds a guest stateroom with two big bunk beds in it.....very comfortable for two adults and makes 6 overnight reasonably comfortable. Was popular with families with teenage children. When you own an Open series Tiara you spend lots of time on the bridge deck. Many of these boats have helm a/c that keep the helms at 68-72 degrees in hot weather. We live upstairs and go below to get out of the bright sunlight. You will know what works for your situation. I've driven the Sovran series and own an Open. Both are excellent sea boats with nod going to the Opens. Agree with the comment on IPS system maintenance costs. Don't feel the trade off off of docking ease and mpg is worth giving up the straight drives' simplicity.
 

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