Sedan Bridge 40 vs. 48

mquiet

mquiet

Well-Known Member
Aug 4, 2009
1,500
North carolina
Boat Info
1999 480 Sedan Bridge
Engines
Caterpillar 3196
I tried to do a quick search to see if this comparison has ever come up. My wife and I are thinking of upgrading from our 340DA to either the 40 or 48 Sedan Bridge. Both would have the Cummings engines. I am excluding maintenance differences unless it is thought that there is a big difference that is out there and I am unaware. We boat in NC so it would be used year round. I also don't want to use purchase price as the reason to buy one versus the other. I know there is a difference, but usually purchasing is the cheap part. Thanks and I am looking forward to the input.:huh:
 
I have owned both. Spend the extra 150-200k and get the 480db. There is a recent thread on this subject. The 400 is a decent boat but no comparison to the 480. My likes -hard top, thruster, 3rd stateroom, bridge a/c, dinghy lift, performance and handling and stud engines.
 
mquiet said:
I tried to do a quick search to see if this comparison has ever come up. My wife and I are thinking of upgrading from our 340DA to either the 40 or 48 Sedan Bridge. Both would have the Cummings engines. I am excluding maintenance differences unless it is thought that there is a big difference that is out there and I am unaware. We boat in NC so it would be used year round. I also don't want to use purchase price as the reason to buy one versus the other. I know there is a difference, but usually purchasing is the cheap part. Thanks and I am looking forward to the input.:huh:
Click to expand...

Both very good boats. Depends on how you use the boat, how many passengers, etc. the big thing that you will find and see on this site is that you should buy as big as possible to avoid multiple purchases. I would look towards the 480DB. My next boat is a 560DB but not for a couple of years.
 
Thanks big D and Ken. We have two kids but really only one that always goes with us. She likes to bring friends. Boat is floating condo with trip throughout the year. 340 is great boat but I would love more space as we have spent 4-7 days on her at a time.
 
"I wish I got the smaller one". Said no one, ever. Or maybe someone very, very rarely.

I have a good friend with a 400 and it is a fine boat, but he would flip to a 480 in a heartbeat. As stated before... bigger engines, enclosed bridge with A/C (which is HUGE IMO) third stateroom (and the second stateroom on the 480 is way batter than the second stateroom on the 400). Most 480s have hydraulic platforms. My buddy has one on his 400, but that is rare. That platform is utterly clutch if you have a PWC or dinghy. The list goes on. If you can afford the initial differential and the maintenance, it's a no brainer.

And the 480 is a much, much better looking boat (says the guy with the Sneaker).
 
I totally agree with Tim. As you can see this yourself, it pretty much all comes down to three things.

1. Your financial situation.
2. How you're planning to use the boat.
3. Does the cost difference justifies the difference you're getting with the larger boat?

By analyzing the ownership of each boat we can see that in both cases the owners hold on to their boats for a long time. However, IMO 480DB owners hold on tho their boats for much longer. We see number of cases where a 400DB owner is eventually looking at 480DB and makes the move. Even though both are great boats, but most people people would agree that 480DB would easily make the top 5 of the best boats SR ever made. Having the opportunity to pickup a 10y/o 480DB gives you a LOT of boat for the money.

In short comparison cost wise, I look at the difference as follows:

- Purchase cost of 480DB is about x2 of 400DB
- Maintenance, operational and other costs of 480DB is roughly 30% more than 400DB.
- Performance wise it's apples and oranges. While 400DB will give you comfortable 20-21kts (if you push her hard you can cruise at about 24kts when she's light) cruise with a basic RIB (no more than 300-400LBs) on the swim platform, 480DB is a beast that will carry any water toy you wish (center consol or a jetski) and can give you range between 13kts to 28kts. All you need to do is to determine how fast you want to get from point A to point B and how much fuel you want to burn. The AVG MPG doesn't change much, but GPH of course goes up.
- Water toys, this is something not to overlook. With 400DB you're limited to no more than (as I mentioned above) a RIB with 15HP totaling 300-400Lbs max. The boat is stern heavy to begin with and due to the fact that SR placed 100gal FW tank (that's about 800LBs) all the way in the stern doesn't help at all. With 480DB this problem doesn't exist. The boat can handle any decent size (11'-13') water toy under 1000LBs and you'll see very little difference in performance. From what we see 480DB is very economical boat for the size.

It's a bit tough call for a family of 4 as you can see yourselves fitting in to 400DB just fine. But, there are many variables to look at in the decision making process.

Lastly, if you can swing it, definitely go for 480DB. But, the last thing you want is to push yourself in a "corner" and end up in a situation where you can't afford to run the boat. You might be surprised, but I've seeing it on number of occasions with much larger yachts.

Good luck with your decision.
 
We were looking at 400 or approx. a 40 foot Sundancer, then I started looking a little deeper found that our 450 was our boat and have not regretted it for a second.......Bigger is better if $$ is not a concern. You will not be 2nd guessing your purchase ever.
 
Meridians are the best selling sedan bridges in North America . Virtually every meridian owner started as a sea ray owner.
Meridians are made in the same plant as sea rays with all the same components.
The 441 is 47 ft with a 14'3" beam. The sea ray 450 sedan is almost identical. Check out boatest.com for performance.
the differences are the deadrise (Meridian 441 has an eleven and the 450 about 15 to 18), the interior room and bridge room (meridian has MUCH more) and cost. Meridians are less expensive.
if you boat offshore, the larger deadrise will probably give a better ride. If not, a boater will find the extra room very pleasing.
since knot quiet was looking at boats between 40 and 480, it only makes sense to check out the 441 or even the meridian 541.
On the meridian yacht owners forum there are a lot of sea ray owners that are members.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Forum statistics

Threads
113,266
Messages
1,429,669
Members
61,143
Latest member
seanmoconnor10
Back
Top