What happened to Sea Ray

Although you folks are likely referring to the larger and higher end boats, this talk of high MSRP's (comparatively speaking to other manufacturers) has me scratching my head in that I've purchased three new Sea Ray's in the last four years* - and never paid anything close to retail. 2010 185 4.3 TKS, 2012 190 4.3 MPI and now my 2013 230. In the case of the 190, I special ordered it (loaded to the gills, so to speak) and I'd say the 230 is pretty "blinged-up". I've financed through my credit union and USAA, which was easy and at a low rate.

*Think I've grown into the boat that'll meet my needs for quite a while, and hope to not be in the market for a new one for a long time!
 
Agreed, MSRP is just a guideline when it comes to boats (or cars, or RV's, etc). My boat MSRP'd somewhere in the mid $80k's, but I got it for closer to $60k. The issue is that actual selling prices vary wildly from dealer to dealer, so the only apples-to-apples comparison you can really do is MSRP.

I cant imagine that anyone pays close to MSRP for any boat, but if you have a SR with a MSRP of $100k and a comparable quality/options boat of the same size with a MSRP of $70k, which one do you think you'll be able to sell a typical middle class family easier?
 
I do see your point, and (certainly!) agree with it. My 230 had an MSRP of about $96K, and I paid $65K - and that included the factory swivel racks, and they didn't charge me for the delivery to Northern California (from LA) and return of my 190 back to Los Angeles. Gotta say, I'm very pleased with "the deal".
 
Tonka Boater said:
There are a lot of middle class people up here that own a home plus a nice little cabin on a lake. You can get cabins for well under $200k but I also know many middle class people who opted for a used cruiser for a $100+k instead of a cabin. They think of the boat as their cabin on the water.

Generally speaking I would agree that most middle-class people cannot afford the $100k boat. But that's not always the case.
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I agree but I have to say from a personal perscpective. no debt other than a modest mortgage (bought the house 16 years ago on the water), 1 modest car payment (i drive a 12 year old diesel truck) and a 5 year old. Now starts private school and we've been pre-paying college. We make way above the median average (and I mean waaay above) for FL and it would be tight to justifying a $100k boat. I think middle class is much different depending on where you live.
 
Don't underestimate brand power, however. We work with a number of clients that, quite frankly, consistently leverage their brand and reputation into maintaining higher prices.

Market price is whatever the market is willing to pay for something. That will be a multitude of factors, including but not limited to brand prestige, construction, quality, and of course, cost.

Sea Ray, like so many of my clients, has a brand that retains value (want a comparison - look at Bayliner and their brand value). Even though they are both under the same umbrella of ownership, think about who's being marketed (in the Alfred Sloan/GM vision of "a car for every purse and purpose"). Brunswick wants you to move from Bayliner or Whaler, or Harris to Trophy (previously), or Sea Ray, and then up to Meridian if you want.

I would ask, how many of you considered brand/reputation when purchasing your SR? I'll admit, I did!
 
Joe5.0 said:
Agreed, MSRP is just a guideline when it comes to boats (or cars, or RV's, etc). My boat MSRP'd somewhere in the mid $80k's, but I got it for closer to $60k. The issue is that actual selling prices vary wildly from dealer to dealer, so the only apples-to-apples comparison you can really do is MSRP.

I cant imagine that anyone pays close to MSRP for any boat, but if you have a SR with a MSRP of $100k and a comparable quality/options boat of the same size with a MSRP of $70k, which one do you think you'll be able to sell a typical middle class family easier?
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Love the pic of your boat and the name on the side!

The MSRPs I compared earlier in this thread were all from a certain radius in my region. I tried to keep the comparisons as close as possible, but obviously every dealer is different.

I bought both of my boats from what is probably one of the most expensive SR dealers, but they have always bent over backwards when I have a problem.

In my experience boats go out the door about 20-30% under MSRP. Sometimes you can even get them to throw in things like first year's winterization/maintenance, a grill, flag pole, etc just to make the deal go through.

It's also a good idea for a first time buyer to go to a show where multiple brands are represented and to have a budget in mind of what they can afford to both buy and maintain. This way they can compare features and determine what they can and can't live without and what fits into their budget. This is how people shop for cars! Why should boats be any different.
 
Tonka Boater called right into my hand! We often talk about our boat as our second home, or cabin on the water. We love that it can be in Monterey, or Half Moon Bay, or in its slip 20 minutes from home. Can we afford it? Well, I am still married to my first wife. Neither of my daughters went to Yale or Harvard. My wife is driving a 10 year old BMW X3, and I am driving a 1999 Tahoe. We have a modest 3bedroom/2bath home in suburbia which we share with my retired father and two huge Rottweiler/shepherd dogs. We could use a new garage door and the house is ready for paint. When my grand kids are grown, I am sure they will remember the boat trips, and look back fondly on the overnights at Angel Island, and the trips to Monterey or Santa Cruz. I doubt any of us would be building important life memories of a new garage door or a vehicle upgrade. Boating is my shot at a life less ordinary. For myself and my family. So, could we afford not to have a boat? In the immortal words of Sterling Hayden "which will it be then? Bankruptcy of purse, or bankruptcy of Life". Sure we could make do with a canoe, but I am 55 years old and a kitchen/bathroom/place to take a nap is very nice. We bought a used boat so it is not tied to the bank. We own our slip, so the monthly rent is less. I am an ASE Master Tech, so I can do much of the maintenance myself. I chose a Sea Ray because there are a ton of them out there, they have a good reputation, and there are nice forums like this where somebody has already done the project you are planning for the weekend:grin: See my 'Boat did great, saw a whale' post under WEST Coast. Tell me what that kind of trip is worth. Not sure what kind of income is required to afford a new 38 foot Power Boat, but for what its worth that's how a GM Line Mechanic (now in Fiber Optic Sales)and a Waitress came to own a used one, and justify its cost. iof we had the duckets, I would be happy to explain to you why we chose the new Sea Ray:smt024
 
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This is all I have to add to this thread:
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2000SR380 said:
Tonka Boater called right into my hand! We often talk about our boat as our second home, or cabin on the water. We love that it can be in Monterey, or Half Moon Bay, or in its slip 20 minutes from home. Can we afford it? Well, I am still married to my first wife. Neither of my daughters went to Yale or Harvard. My wife is driving a 10 year old BMW X3, and I am driving a 1999 Tahoe. We have a modest 3bedroom/2bath home in suburbia which we share with my retired father and two huge Rottweiler/shepherd dogs. We could use a new garage door and the house is ready for paint. When my grand kids are grown, I am sure they will remember the boat trips, and look back fondly on the overnights at Angel Island, and the trips to Monterey or Santa Cruz. I doubt any of us would be building important life memories of a new garage door or a vehicle upgrade. Boating is my shot at a life less ordinary. For myself and my family. So, could we afford not to have a boat? In the immortal words of Sterling Hayden "which will it be then? Bankruptcy of purse, or bankruptcy of Life". Sure we could make do with a canoe, but I am 55 years old and a kitchen/bathroom/place to take a nap is very nice. We bought a used boat so it is not tied to the bank. We own our slip, so the monthly rent is less. I am an ASE Master Tech, so I can do much of the maintenance myself. I chose a Sea Ray because there are a ton of them out there, they have a good reputation, and there are nice forums like this where somebody has already done the project you are planning for the weekend:grin: See my 'Boat did great, saw a whale' post under WEST Coast. Tell me what that kind of trip is worth. Not sure what kind of income is required to afford a new 38 foot Power Boat, but for what its worth that's how a GM Line Mechanic (now in Fiber Optic Sales)and a Waitress came to own a used one, and justify its cost. iof we had the duckets, I would be happy to explain to you why we chose the new Sea Ray:smt024
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Now this is a spot on post! Well said! Happy boating!

Mark
 
2000SR380 said it so well! I think I will will go find him next time I am in CA. I used an awesome broker who found me a pristine 2001 Sundancer 290. I paid a terrific Surveyor to go over the boat with a fine tooth comb - he found some things that the seller fixed as part of the deal. Then I cashed out a little of my retirement fund and paid cash for the boat. So my main costs now are a slip (very affordable) and fuel (ugh!!!). I doubt I could afford a new one, but have been thrilled with this one as it has everything I need. And my wife loves it too - very important!

To be honest, I was originally looking at a Maxum 340 that was obviously bigger and a bit newer, but once my broker showed me the Sundancer, I immediately fell in love with it. The Maxum had a lot of features, but just didn't have any character and seemed to be cheaply built in comparison to the SeaRay.

So now I too have a flush toilet, a kitchen, a place to take a nap, a margarita machine that hums happily along on demand, and the ability to move my "cabin-on-the-lake" anywhere the boat floats and the ICW can take me. The SeaRay Life is good and with some creative strategies - very affordable.
 
Our situation is very similar to 2000SR380, the boat is too keep our family together and build memories, and stress relief


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We considered a SR when looking for a live-aboard that could easily cruise the west coast and the inside passage. Most SR in the 50ft range was either a sundancer (we call them basement boats, no insult intended) or if it were a sedan bridge, it just didn't have the features we wanted AT A PRICE WE COULD AFFORD. The prices were in many cases triple. We started to look at the style boat we have now. There is a misnomer that Taiwanese boats are not built very well or have the quality. At least with the boat I have, this is not true. The craftsmanship of the teak and the overall boat design is excellent. Are there some issue yes, but that was even true with my Sea Ray. We ended up in the end to go with a boat that fit our needs and get the best bang for our buck! Sea Ray simply doesn’t make a boat similar to what we have at a price we could afford.
 
AKBASSKING :0) Our Sail Boat for the last 7-8 years was a Slocum 43 which was also built in Taiwan. Fully a different kind of boat. The Design was Stan Huntingford, and the teak and finish was beautiful. We loved that boat and she saw us through some incredible weather off PT. Sur and Pt. Conception. She was very sturdy, and well put together, and we tested that premise on multiple occasions. I have no aversion to Taiwan built boats, but (as is true with any manufacturer) you do need to know what to look for and expect. For our move to the 'dark side' we looked at some fly bridge models, but I figured if we could not sail, at least I would be 'fast'. The 'basement boats' are pushing a lot less boat with the same engines, which equates to better economy and faster speeds at a given RPM. Also, since we do like cruising the Pacific Coast, I liked the reduced windage and lower COG. I agree the fly bridge /aft cabin models would be far superior as a liveaboard. Also, when the wind is up, and the sea gets choppy, a fly bridge has better visibility. We looked hard at a REGAL 3880, and considered some Trawler and TUG type designs, but when we found our Sea Ray 380DA we knew right away it was the boat for us. My point is, go with the boat that chooses you. Regardless of brand. Life is too short to wish you were on a different boat. It is eight months since we moved to the 'dark side', and I have zero buyer remorse. The 380DA has exceeded my expectations. I feel at home at the helm, like it was made for me custom. I love the lines, and she makes me feel happy when I see her at the dock or on the hook. I can not get over our five and a half hour trip to Monterey!
 
2000SR380 said:
AKBASSKING :0) Our Sail Boat for the last 7-8 years was a Slocum 43 which was also built in Taiwan. Fully a different kind of boat. The Design was Stan Huntingford, and the teak and finish was beautiful. We loved that boat and she saw us through some incredible weather off PT. Sur and Pt. Conception. She was very sturdy, and well put together, and we tested that premise on multiple occasions. I have no aversion to Taiwan built boats, but (as is true with any manufacturer) you do need to know what to look for and expect. For our move to the 'dark side' we looked at some fly bridge models, but I figured if we could not sail, at least I would be 'fast'. The 'basement boats' are pushing a lot less boat with the same engines, which equates to better economy and faster speeds at a given RPM. Also, since we do like cruising the Pacific Coast, I liked the reduced windage and lower COG. I agree the fly bridge /aft cabin models would be far superior as a liveaboard. Also, when the wind is up, and the sea gets choppy, a fly bridge has better visibility. We looked hard at a REGAL 3880, and considered some Trawler and TUG type designs, but when we found our Sea Ray 380DA we knew right away it was the boat for us. My point is, go with the boat that chooses you. Regardless of brand. Life is too short to wish you were on a different boat. It is eight months since we moved to the 'dark side', and I have zero buyer remorse. The 380DA has exceeded my expectations. I feel at home at the helm, like it was made for me custom. I love the lines, and she makes me feel happy when I see her at the dock or on the hook. I can not get over our five and a half hour trip to Monterey!
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Amen!:thumbsup:
 
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