Opinions on a 480 Motoryacht

[All's Well]

I've been looking hard for a good 460 - 550 DA. Most interested in a '03-05 500DA ... BUT ... I went and took a look at a 480 Motoryacht yesterday.

I had not liked the styling of the Motoryacht design before but this one is on the lake that I would put it on so it would save me the haul cost of around 15k.

I've know lots of folks with bridge boats and Aft Cabins but none with a Motoryacht so I'd like to hear opinions of those that have had or spent time on them.

Thanks

 

[HUMPH]

I have a friend with one and it has soooooooo much room for that sized boat. It depends on what you like to do, if it is just cruising and entertaining, the 480MY is wonderful. If you like to kick around, fish, etc the DB is a better bet. I could live on a 480MY no problem...

 

[All's Well]

I have a friend with one and it has soooooooo much room for that sized boat. It depends on what you like to do, if it is just cruising and entertaining, the 480MY is wonderful. If you like to kick around, fish, etc the DB is a better bet. I could live on a 480MY no problem...

You're right and good point.

As a lake boat there is limited cruising opportunity. There is a ton of room as Sea Ray has made tje most use of almost 2 levels inside this boat.

I like the idea of the QSM-11's as well vs the 3196's in the older 540DA's.

Thanks for the feedback

 

[douglee25]

Personally I'm not a fan of the styling. It looks like a big tennis shoe? I am more of a fan of the traditional convertible style ie 480 DB. With that said, the MY does have quite a bit of room if that's what you need most.

Doug

 

[Alex F]

When I was in the process of upgrading from 320DA I looked at many different models including MYs. When looking closely there were few things that drove me away:

1. The style. It's all personal preference but it doesn't cut it for me and all features the vessel offers didn't justify the compromise.
2. As you know, the biggest thing about larger DAs is the huge cockpit u-shape seating that provides nice entertainment area, which everyone loves. Oh well, from what I see MYs have non of the cockpit seating. You get tons of room everywhere, but it's mostly inside.
3. Comparing to DBs (420/44 or even 36/390) the way I looked at it is that instead of loosing the nice cockpit entertainment area you actually get 2 different ones. 1 - Is the cockpit (behind the sliding doors), which is great for enjoying the outdoors. 2 - is the BRIDGE, it offers u-shape seating area with 360 degree views that are stunning at the elevated level.

I think when all things are equal you should expect similar performance from MY and DB vessel.

Hope this helps a little.

 

[fwebster]

I delivered a 480MY for our dealer a few years ago. This was a 55 mile trip from Panama City to Destin in the Gulf and then 15 miles up the ICW to a resort where they were having an in-water boat show. I couldn't get off that boat quick enough. The first 40 miles were in the Gulf of Mexico with a 15 kt wind from the south and 2-3 ft beam seas. The MY wallowed and rolled in the seas the whole way and there was no combination of speeds, attitude trim etc. to moderate it. The last 5 miles or so I tacked south into the seas then turned 90 degrees and ran in a following sea back to the Destin pass. I think the combination of being top heavy and having a steep entry makes for a boat that isn't a very good sea boat, but it will probably serve you well on a lake. I go into Destin frequently in either a 54 Hatt or a 53 Viking and I thought the QSM's in the 480MY were a little sluggish for that much boat. Where I was used to powering thru the 4-8 ft seas in the pass, I had to just hang on and slug it out in the MY.

By contrast, the pervious day I ran a 540DA with 3406 Cats on the same trip under essentially the same conditions. I stayed at 30 kts the whole trip and entered the Destin pass at water ski speeds.

 

[wetpaint]

I had a friend with the 39 Motor Yacht and he loved it for the way he used it. He spent 80% of the time at the dock used as a summer home and took the boat out for a few long weekends a summer. He loved it for the way he used it with his family. KNOW HOW YOU WILL USE THE BOAT!!!!

 

[All's Well]

Excellent points ... Thanks

I don't want to use it as a dock boat and that was one of my concerns, there isn't any area near the water to be part of the action at raft ups and the like. I do like the DA's from the standpoint of most of the seating area is aft where the action is when rafted etc.

Frank, excellent advice on it's sea keeping ability as I've not been on one under way. I haven't seen any of the 540DA's currently on the market with the 3406's and I am not fond of the 3196's reputation.

Doug, I agree with the shoe comment, it has the same appearance to me.

Thanks for the comments ... I think that I'm more of a Dancer user at this point.

 

[dpmulvey]

Thanks for the comments Frank. Not that I can afford a 480 or a 390, but I for one like the boat and it was on my post lottery winning short list.

I am not a big fan of the style but the use of available space is amazing. At 6'4" it's one of the few boats I can stand in to include a 50' Viking a fellow is selling at my marina. What I really like is the lack of canvas to deal with every outing!

 

[rcknecht]

After reading Frank's comments, I have to scratch the sneaker boat of my dream boat list... But after Frank's comments the price on the sneaker boats just dropped $20K... I wonder is the old style 42AC handle the same way???

 

[HUMPH]

After reading Frank's comments, I have to scratch the sneaker boat of my dream boat list... But after Frank's comments the price on the sneaker boats just dropped $20K... I wonder is the old style 42AC handle the same way???

Worse I believe... Not made for Blue Water.

 

[HUMPH]

Thanks for the comments ... I think that I'm more of a Dancer user at this point.

Which is why we went with a Dancer again. We really loved the 400DB but the cockpit area with plenty of entertaining room without climbing the stairs was huge.

 

[StevenDavid]

I had 3196's in my 1998 54DA. They were replaced under warranty in Feb of 2003 and for the next 8 years they were bullet proof. I just sold that boat and the engines are still perfect. Changed the oil every 125 hours, did SOS samples at each change, new Racors every 100 hours. From my ownership experience I would not hesitate to own a 3196 boat if the engines were 2003 or newer AND the owner had SOS records. The boat I just bought is a 2003 60SSS with 1050 MANS. They have a reputation as being reliable but VERY expensive to maintain. Thus far I have not found that to be the case. Other than oil changes at every 150 hours, fresh fuel filters, etc. they run great, albeit alot louder than the CAT 3196's. Their reputation is much akin to Mercedes, parts are expensive, and to keep them running great does require scheduled valve adjustments each 400 hours, and heat exchangor cleaning, etc. Something you should do with any high performance diesel anyway. All in all, what I've experienced is that you should talk personally to people who own the boats and engines you are thinking about, and have used them in the conditions under which you'll use yours. I no longer pay much attention to "what a friend of a friend said". Wish you much enjoyment with whatever model you buy.

Excellent points ... Thanks

I don't want to use it as a dock boat and that was one of my concerns, there isn't any area near the water to be part of the action at raft ups and the like. I do like the DA's from the standpoint of most of the seating area is aft where the action is when rafted etc.

Frank, excellent advice on it's sea keeping ability as I've not been on one under way. I haven't seen any of the 540DA's currently on the market with the 3406's and I am not fond of the 3196's reputation.

Doug, I agree with the shoe comment, it has the same appearance to me.

Thanks for the comments ... I think that I'm more of a Dancer user at this point.

 

[All's Well]

I had 3196's in my 1998 54DA. They were replaced under warranty in Feb of 2003 and for the next 8 years they were bullet proof. I just sold that boat and the engines are still perfect. Changed the oil every 125 hours, did SOS samples at each change, new Racors every 100 hours. From my ownership experience I would not hesitate to own a 3196 boat if the engines were 2003 or newer AND the owner had SOS records. The boat I just bought is a 2003 60SSS with 1050 MANS. They have a reputation as being reliable but VERY expensive to maintain. Thus far I have not found that to be the case. Other than oil changes at every 150 hours, fresh fuel filters, etc. they run great, albeit alot louder than the CAT 3196's. Their reputation is much akin to Mercedes, parts are expensive, and to keep them running great does require scheduled valve adjustments each 400 hours, and heat exchangor cleaning, etc. Something you should do with any high performance diesel anyway. All in all, what I've experienced is that you should talk personally to people who own the boats and engines you are thinking about, and have used them in the conditions under which you'll use yours. I no longer pay much attention to "what a friend of a friend said". Wish you much enjoyment with whatever model you buy.

I'm sure that with particular maintenance the 3196's have a much better chance. Many of the 540 & 550DA's that I've seen have had such based on the overall condition of the boat. I've had 2 surveyed and the motors checked out good according to the CAT folks but I can't imagine that their service history was as good as you describe yours to be. It's like most things, the 90+% of folks that have good experiences remain silent, the 5% that have a bad experience spread their frustration loudly.

 

[copb8tx]

I see your location is Houston so summer heat is a consideration. We have 2 390/40MY's on our dock here in North Texas and both say the cockpits get VERY warm because of the enclosed windshied and the cockpit AC can't come close to keeping up. I have cockpit AC on my DA but it only cools my knees when on so I always take the windshield eisenglass down during the summer. I can't imagine what it would be like not being able to open the front up for the breeze.