Why did you buy a Sea Ray and what other boats did you consider?

[James Bond]

Hi

We're looking at buying our first trailer boat, we've decided on a stern drive bowrider about 5.5m long.

We've looked at -

- Bayliner
- Four Winns
- Sea Ray
- Monterey
- Rae Line

We were just interested in what led people to buy a Sea Ray and whether they considered other boats?

Thanks for sharing!

JB

 

[Presentation]

I started by looking at all brands.

Several things lead me to the Sea Ray brand.

One thing that pointed me to the Sea Ray brand was going to boat shows and talking to other boat brands representatives. I’d ask them “Of the boat brands that are at this show, where does your brand fit in?” Time after time they would say “We are about equal to Sea Ray with (insert the other brands here) are below the two of us.

I’d go to the next brand and get the same answer. It was always Sea Ray and their brand.

It reminded me of the old commercial “It’s just as good as a Xerox.”

Eventually I was only looking for one brand and one specific model and had a list of must have options. I did have a wide area to look, meaning I considered boats in other states.

In the end I purchased a boat that was only a few miles away.

 

[katricol]

In the lineup of production boats Sea Rays quality was evident to me. Also if you look at 10+ year old boats that helps. I am on my second Sea Ray and I am real pleased with my boat. Ric

 

[fwebster]

Given your location, this may be meaningless to you, but I would also consider the quality of the dealer network and factory support.

Sea Ray boats are sold thru franchised dealers who must service their customers. Some other brands are sold thru broker/dealers and the buyer is on his own for service and must get a local boat yard approved by the engine or boat manufacturer to service his boat. I have never heard of Sea Ray refusing to help a customer who developed structural problems with a boat no matter the status of his warranty or how old it is, as long as the boat has not been abused, suffered physical damage or been neglected. Not many other brands can say that.

 

[Rono007]

I haven't had a boat in 20+ years, so when it was time to look last year we considered ALL brands.

As we started shopping I noticed a few things. When comparing other boats and Sea Rays of the same year and size, Sea Rays ALWAYS 1) looked better, 2) were in better shape, 3) and had a higher resale value. Also, the owners (we were looking to buy a used boat) were very proud of the Sea Ray's and kept them very clean. If I mentioned I looked at a Sea Ray to one of my friends who currently own a boat, they would sing high praises regarding Sea Ray and their quality - not so much on the other brands.

I then started shopping for a Sea Ray exclusively, and once I found one close to my budget (we went over to get a Sea Ray), we made the purchase.

Not a regret yet.

Good luck with your search.

 

[skolbe]

I have looked at other brands each time. Everything from Regal, Cruisers, Rinker, Formula Four Winns, Crownline and others. But each time - I fell back to Sea Ray. The value & quality in my mind seem to be there and the dealer was much better equipped to handle warranty work in my area. When I look at 1995 - 330 Sundancers (There are 2) in my marina compared to other 1995 brands - the boats always look more timeless and tend to be in better shape.

 

[sbw1]

SRs are pretty common in this market so I figured resale would be easier than with some others. Price was consideration as well. They were very affordable compared to some of the brands I wanted but could not afford at the time.

 

[KayKook]

Jeez commander, you are sure making the rounds of the US based boating message boards. Good way to get info.

I thought you were pretty well decided on buying the Four Winns H180 ? Based on similar fit and finish to the 185 Sport, with the difference being MUCH higher price on the SR down under.

 

[Firerooster]

Pretty much the same answer as many of the others here. Looked at a lot of different, brands, styles, models and ages. Nothing compares to the Searay in any class.

 

[rcknecht]

I have owned 5 sea rays... The first Sea Ray bought was because it was the only dearler open... Then we became friends with a guy at our church who owned a sea ray dealership... Then he sold out to MM... With us, in begining it was all about service and dealer support... Now, I have come to appreciate those small difference in quality... I would consider a Meridian... I like aft cabins, like the 99-early 2000's 37, 38, 44 ACs... I don't no like the more recent Sea Ray tennis shoe ACs... I like the Meridian 459... But that is just a dream now...

 

[dpmulvey]

This probably does not apply in today's economy, however, when I started shopping, I looked in the paper to see what was for sale in the used market. I shyed away from the brands that had a LOT of a particular model for sale. I figured if everybody was getting rid of them, there had to be a reason. There were not a lot of 330's for sale when I bought Saint Max.

Not the most logical thought process, but it works for me!

 

[James Bond]

Jeez commander, you are sure making the rounds of the US based boating message boards. Good way to get info.

I thought you were pretty well decided on buying the Four Winns H180 ? Based on similar fit and finish to the 185 Sport, with the difference being MUCH higher price on the SR down under.

Ha ha well spotted!

The FW H180 is about AU$38000. The SR175 is about AU$34000, but its a smaller boat, with not such a good spec. Then there's the H180LE which is the H180 with a heap of stuff stripped out and a lower price. Then there's the SR185, which may just be too long for my garage.

Then there's all the other makes......

JB

 

[JindySR]

Then there's the SR185, which may just be too long for my garage.

Then there's all the other makes......

JB

you can always get a bigger garage .....:lol:

I had no particular allegience to any brand when I bought my SR but it is a good honest boat. My neighbour has a crownline 180 and some fittings are better and then some features on mine are better. Work out what is really important for you and then make the decision. I ended up with a spreadsheet of different boats, features etc before making up my mind.

If you want the definitive measurement on a 185 PM me and I'll help you out. Mine just fits in the garage with the 2 cars.

 

[JediJD]

When we were shopping for our last bowrider/deckboat, I thought Crownline and Bryant were better made...but I was very worried about the ability of their companies to weather the coming financial storm. We had owned several down market boats and I was tired of those. I thought Brunswick/Sea Ray would make it and they made a very nice boat that seemed (even now albeit comparatively) to be able to manage to hold some resale. I grumbled about paying the premium for Sea Ray, but subsequently became a believer and maintained that attitude when we cycled up.

 

[mmcguire2002]

I've owned a Monterey and a Sea Ray. I don't have a single bad thing to say about that Monterey. I got what I paid for and it was sea worthy in some fairly rough conditions. I can't say that the Sea Ray is better built, as much as it is higher end. The Monterey was like a Honda/Acura. Built well, handled well and was a nice boat. The Sea Ray is more like a BMW. Built well, handles well and is much more luxurious.

Resell was much better on the Sea Ray and probably will still be long term. In this market, everything seems to be a steal.

 

[katricol]

So you are going to buy a boat (ANY boat) because it fits in your garage? ayfnkm? This is not something I understand. I'm not commenting anymore on this.

 

[James Bond]

So you are going to buy a boat (ANY boat) because it fits in your garage? ayfnkm? This is not something I understand. I'm not commenting anymore on this.

Nope. Not any boat. There are a number of boats that will fit in my garage. I don't really have any choice but to store the boat in the garage so if it doesn't fit I can't have it.

So far -

Will fit with no modification to the boat -

- Four Winns H180LE
- Crownline 185
- SeaRay 175
- Rae Line 180
- Bayliner 185

Will fit with swim platform removed -

- Four Winns H180
- SeaRay 185 (probably)

So I'm not short of boats that will fit in the garage... just need to decide on which one.

JB

 

[Pietro]

After some experiences, mine and friends, with Italian boats, I decided I wanted an American one. I first saw the 390EC at the Genoa boatshow in 1989. It was love at first sight. I compared with everything else in its class and could not find any other boat that inspired the same feeling of spaciousness and overall quality.
After a few years, in 1993, I managed to buy one in NJ and bring it over here. I still own it and the experience has been a good one. Every time I compared my SR to other boat I was not able to find something that made me say the other one was a better boat. Whenever I leaned on some other boat’s rail it flexed more that mine. My gelcoat surely looks brighter than a two year old Italian bubble boat and the styling still stands out as a practical-clean-lines-classic!
Now I decided to restore it mainly for “sentimental” reasons…but that means that if not, I would have bought another SR with no doubt about it!

 

[brad56]

I looked around for a long time and decided to spend a little more for the Sea Ray as the build quality is higher than the rest, we are really happy with ours. If you can go for the 185 with a V6 as the extra power over the 4 is worth it!

 

[TexasA&M]

So you are going to buy a boat (ANY boat) because it fits in your garage? ayfnkm? This is not something I understand. I'm not commenting anymore on this.

One requirement that I had when shopping for my boat was that it absolutely had to fit in the garage. I couldn't afford (nor did I want) a separate boat storage.

I ended up going with Sea Ray because of fit and finish, as well as price. The base model 185 included most of features that other manufacturers considered options (or didn't offer at all). A comparably equipped Corwnline was quite a bit pricier than the Sea Ray. Since I was already leaning toward Sea Ray, it made the decision easy.