Midnight Express 37 Open, the Custom Speed Console in Its Most Usable Size

The 37 Open is the Midnight Express most owners can actually use

Search for a Midnight Express for sale and the 43 Open dominates the results, but the 37 Open is the more practical boat for a lot of owners. It is big enough to cross to the Bahamas on a good day and small enough to keep on a lift or run short-handed to a sandbar. Midnight's own pitch is that it can fish, cruise, restaurant hop, sandbar or cross an ocean.

The model has deep roots. Power & Motoryacht tested a Midnight Express 37 Full Cabin in the March 2007 issue, with the same 37-foot 2-inch length, 11-foot 6-inch beam and 365-gallon fuel capacity that the current 37 Open lists. The Glaser family, Eric and his younger brother Harris with their late father Bert, bought Midnight Express from founder Tom Mason in 2006, so the 37 has been part of their tenure from the start. The builder has since moved from Fort Lauderdale to Hollywood and then to Miami.

Two steps, 22 degrees and the switch to infusion

The hull was designed by John Cosker of Mystic Powerboats, whom Speed on the Water listed in 2012 as the designer of the Midnight Express 37 and of a then-new 43-footer. Midnight pairs the stepped bottom with its proprietary integrated spray reduction (ISR) system. The 37 runs a 22-degree deadrise, and in the 2007 test Eric Glaser credited two aerating steps across its long running surface for the boat's speed and efficiency.

Construction has evolved. In 2007 the 37 used a glass-encapsulated Mantex foam-core stringer system, Nida-Core in the hull sides, decks and cockpit sole, a hull-to-deck joint bonded with Plexus and fiberglass, and a five-inch-thick transom reinforced with aluminum bar stock and 16 layers of glass so it could carry four big outboards. In 2013 Midnight began converting every model to resin infusion, and the 37 was the last mold to make the change, finishing in early 2014. Eric Glaser described infusion as lighter and stronger than vacuum bagging because the laminate takes only the resin it needs.

That timing matters to used buyers. A 37 built in 2014 or later is an infused hull, while earlier boats are conventionally laminated. Both have strong reputations, but infused boats are lighter for the same structure, which shows up in speed and fuel economy.

What triples and quads deliver

Midnight says the 37 Open cruises easily at 40 mph or more while returning better than 1.5 miles per gallon, and reaches 80 to 90 mph or more depending on power. Those claims are for current builds with big Mercury Racing outboards; the builder publishes no full speed and fuel table. At 40 mph and 1.5 mpg the boat would burn roughly 27 gallons per hour, which on 365 gallons suggests a cruising range of several hundred miles with a sensible reserve.

Independent numbers come from the older boat. Capt. Bill Pike of Power & Motoryacht drove the 2007 37 Full Cabin on triple 275 hp Mercury Verados into four- to six-foot seas with some eight-footers off Hillsboro Inlet, on a day when an 80-foot motoryacht trial had been canceled for weather. He recorded a solid, dry 60.2 mph at wide open throttle and praised the boat's tracking and confidence in big water. That is the kind of seakeeping a racing-bred hull should deliver, and it is the strongest argument for this boat over lighter speed consoles.

Recent inventory shows how buyers configure them: a 2020 boat on triple Mercury 400R four-strokes, a 2022 boat on triple 450Rs, and a 2025 boat on triple Mercury Racing 400R V10s with heavy-duty gearcases. Maryland owner David Carey's 37 Open, profiled by Speed on the Water in 2021, ran quad Mercury Racing 450Rs and was the first with two rows of helm bolsters.

Configuring the deck, from summer kitchen to Seakeeper

No two 37 Opens are identical. The console houses a lounge forward, and the helm can be a single or double bolster row, with a rear-facing seat or a summer kitchen behind it. Aft and forward seating can be fixed or removable. Options include a side-entry dive door, T-top or arch top, and a full stand-up head with shower inside the console.

Recent builds show the popular choices: painted hullsides and decks, cross-stitched upholstery, foam decking, an aft U-lounge with storage, a stylized forward U-seat around an electric table that drops to make a sun pad, a windlass with 300 feet of line, a bow thruster and a Seakeeper 3 gyro. A dual-row helm usually means an extended hardtop.

Fishing remains possible. The 2007 boat carried 20- and 40-gallon livewells, a fishbox, gunwale rod holders and optional outriggers. Most current owners lean toward entertaining, so check the actual layout before assuming a given hull is rigged for offshore fishing.

37 Open versus the 37 Cabin

The 37 Cabin, sold as the Full Cabin in the 2007 test, puts an express-style cabin on the same hull. Midnight describes 22 linear feet of cabin sleeping up to four, a full galley and, in a 2009 example, 90 gallons of water versus 65 on the Open. The 2007 test boat carried a cooktop, refrigerator, microwave, electric head, water heater, 10,000-Btu air conditioning and a 5 kW Kohler generator.

The trade-off is simple. The Cabin is a weekender with real overnight capability and more weight; the Open is a lighter, faster day boat with a console head. For Bahamas trips with a hotel or a mothership, the Open is the better tool. For couples who want to anchor out, a Cabin, often repowered, can be a strong used value.

Running costs on a 37-foot speed console

Plan on roughly $30,000 to $65,000 a year for insurance, which is higher for 80-mph boats, dockage or a lift, engine service on three or four big outboards, bottom paint, Seakeeper and electronics care, and fuel. Mercury Racing engines need dealers comfortable with them, so check the local service network before committing to a quad 450R build.

Insurers will want to see the operator's experience with high-performance boats, particularly for quad-engine boats capable of 90 mph. Budget for a safety course if you are stepping up from a slower console.

Reading a used 37 listing

Midnight lists both factory trade-ins and brokerage boats on its own site, which makes it a useful first stop. Recent inventory has ranged from a repowered 2009 37 Cabin on triple 400 Verados to 2020, 2022 and 2025 37 Opens on Mercury Racing power.

Value turns on engines and hours, the year of construction (infused or not), paint condition and options such as the Seakeeper and dual-row helm. Custom paint is expensive to repair, and a boat that has been run hard offshore deserves a close look at the hull bottom, steps and transom.