300 Sundancer opinions

J

JeffR

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What's everyone's opinion on the 300 Dancers - 2002-2005 range? I don't mean this as an insult to Sea Ray owners at all, but I'll say upfront that I've always been somewhat of an "anti-Sea Ray" guy. There were just too many of them around us for my liking. HOWEVER, we were on a 300 over the weekend - not out running, but just boarded one - and now have some interest in them for our next boat.

We'd consider the 300DA, Regal 3260 (I know, not a true comparison to the 300), Formula 31PC, and like the looks of the Four Winns 318, but that's a little too new for our budget, and we've not been on one yet.

I know this is a Sea Ray forum, but I'd really appreciate some solid feedback. Please, none of the blind, "Buy the Sea Ray" comments:) without supporting reasons. If you feel that way I'd like to know why, but I'd also like to hear the bad with the good if there is any. Any "watch outs"? Any changes to watch for throughout the years? Any prefered power packages - a lot of 5.0 options out there, but I'd sure like the 350 Mags!!

I look forward to the feedback.
 
Jeff,
Theres a reason there so popular. I had a 2002 300 dancer . I loved the boat. As our kids grew we needed a larger boat so we upgraded to the 34. My only issue was i felt the boat was under powered. I had the genset so the boat sagged in the stern . I had the 5.7's I dont know what the other engine options were But the 5.7 with the genset and more then 4 people on board the boat took some time to get out of its own way.

Still loved the boat . Not to say the others u looked at wouldnt be the same under same conditions. Ive never been a formula fan... just something about the boats I dont like .. its not just one thing . Good luck

Rob
 
JeffR,

I have a 2006 300 DA and have put 110 hours on it in 4 months. The 5.0's seem perfectly adequate to me even considering it's not a light boat (genset, A/C, windless, etc, etc.). Cruises with 4 people at 26 knots using about 9.5 GPH per engine (stern drives). Very roomy for 2 to 4 folks on long weekends. I have taken it to Key West from Sarasota comfortably and dry in 3-5 foot seas. Despite the narrower beam it actually has more room in the mid-berth than the 320 DA. We enjoy the boat but I would not say it has been free of issues. A/C had to be replaced, blew an exhaust gasket on one engine, Smart Gauges that aren't too smart, the assorted loose, falling off hardware that many tell me is unavoidable on new boats. UGH. Still it's been an overall enjoyable aquisition. Biggest drawback to us is the layout of the cockpit. No seating on port side and very straight back seats. Big pluses are superior room in the engine compartment, nice console layout, roomy cabin for a 34 footer.

Good luck.
 
I owned three of them from 26' to 37',each new. While I enjoyed them all, I don't miss having one now. They all leaked and leaks are expensive to fix and cause you problems if you don't fix them. Someone mentioned hardward failures. We had those too. Doors that fell off hanging lockers because the hinges were not through bolted. The hulls are designed more for space and modern looks than sea kindleness in rough weather. Lack of storage was a real issue on our 37. Depending on the model, SRs are nice for the money. The 2000-2001 37 express is a very nice boat with traditional styling that will not look dated in 10 years. That is an important consideration for me. There should be no structural issues with a new or even three year old boat. It's a myth to say that all new boats have problems. Other than leaks we had very few initial problems.
 
I had a 2004 300 Dancer with a gen. and the 6.2 engines with Bravo III drives. It was proped corectly for WOT but was slow to get on plane. I now run a new Silverton that gets on plane in half the time it took the SeaPig. The quality was ok, the glass was very nice but some sort of even basic quality inspection at some point between production and delivery to the customer would have caught a dozen items. Can't really believe it was delivered in the condition it was. I have owned 19 boats including aluminum fishing rigs, go fasts including Formula, Checkmate and Baja, five brand new SeaPigs, even a Mark Twain and a Zodiac. The 300 was overall a real yawn for me. Was glad to sell it but got a real old fashioned spanking on the depreciation.
 
Hey everybody...thanks for the honest feedback, that's exactly what I'm looking for. I really need to get on one in the water and see how it feels.

Any more specifics anybody has is much appreciated.

Thanks again,
Jeff
 
Remsberg - what specifically were the issues with the Smartcraft gauges? I would like to have them if we go with a Sea Ray (I thought). Do you think the issues you had in general were new boat problems, or Sea Ray problems?

sbw1 - can you be more specific regarding the leaks? What kind of leaks did you have...i.e. through hulls, ports, windshield, etc? Is this typical/common of Sea Rays?

Brian - you refer to them as SeaPigs, but also state you had 5 brand new ones...there must have been something you liked? Can you elaborate on why the 300 was a yawn?

Thanks for the responses!
 
I own a 320 Dancer. My Dock neighbor has a 300 with 6.2's. That boat flies with a bunch of people on it. I was quite impressed. A deeper V hull will be a little slower to get on plane. Not sure what the big downsides are with 300. No island bed was one for me, plus no port side seat in the cockpit. But these are personal things. But the boat is pretty solid.

You don't have to apologize for liking a Sea Ray. They have been a leader in express cruisers for a long time. There are a lot of good boats out there.
 
JeffR,

I bought the 300 to replace a 280 that was only two years old. I wanted twins and a generator. With all the options it was getting near $150k and I just knew my wife would want something bigger in a couple years so I would likely take a good spanking on the depreciation. The other Searays did not depreciate nearly as much, as a percentage of purchase price.

I really did not care for the seating as it was all in a row on the starboard side with nothing on the port. We kind of wanted a 320 but there was not enough leg room in the aft cabin on a 320 but is on a 300 for two people at 6' plus. Changing the spark plugs was really difficult with the motors only inches apart. Not having a way over the windshield was a monumental pain. The cat walk is small and very difficult when all the canvas is up. My wife got tired of that real quick.

I took a 700 mile trip with it in '05 and only got 1.2 mpg cruising at 3,300 rpm. I know several boats in the 30-34 foot range that do better. My Silverton has 8.1s and weighs exactly twice as much, it will get .9 mpg on the same trip this summer with a lot more wind resistance and at a cruising speed of 25 mph. My brand new Silverton has at least three times the room and lots more options for only 30% more money than I paid for my 300.
 
JeffR,

I had (have) one Smartcraft gauge that had the trim indication bouncing all over the place in semi-rough water (2-3 ft seas). The problem with that is while the gauge is showing trim changes you are not seeing other more critical gauge information. The Smartcraft gauges are designed, as I understand them, to show data when it changes thus over-riding displying other data. The marina has worked on it (adjusting sending unit) but so far no good.

Also despite both gauges being set up for my fuel tank capacity one has begun showing much more fuel consumed than the other despite running very close on the two engine rpm's. I run the genset some (draws fuel from starboard tank) but not enough to cause that variance. Since there is no true fuel gauge (one that reads via a float mechanisim) you must rely on the Smartcraft gauge and it's "calculations" based on capacity / flow rate to know what your onboard fuel is. I hope to havethe gauges and / or sending units replaced to see if that is the answer.

Maybe a Mercruiser issue but since it's happening on a Sea Ray boat it is a Sea Ray problem and I'm relying on the dealer to resolve it with whomever they deem appropriate while it is a warranty issue.

Hope this is of some help.

BestRegards
 
I had a 2002 300 with 5.0's and Bravo 3's and a generator. It was fine with just a few people on board but underpowered with a full load. If you test drive one, bring a bunch of friends. There were times I could not get on plane. You also need to be moving fairly fast to stay on plane.

I took a big hit on depretiation when I traded it in. They don't hold thier value well.
 
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