Sea Ray 380 Sundancer (1999 to 2004) Review and Buying Guide

Sea Ray 380 Sundancer for sale: what the 1999 to 2004 boat is

When you find a Sea Ray 380 Sundancer for sale, you are looking at a boat from a six-year run: J.D. Power lists the model from 1999 through 2004, and Sea Ray's product pages from those years filed it under Sport Yachts rather than Sport Cruisers. That classification was earned. Sea Ray's 1999 spec page lists 38 feet of hull, 40 feet 8 inches with the swim platform (42 feet on the 2000 and later sheets), a 13-foot beam and 18,300 pounds dry.

BoatTest's archived summary makes the point that matters most for buyers: at 40 feet 8 inches overall the 380 is a big step up from the 340 Sundancer, with more room at the helm and below. Sea Ray described a deep-V hull and sleeping accommodations for six, which in practice means two couples in proper berths plus two more on the convertible salon sofa.

Not the 380 Sun Sport, and not the 40 Sundancer

Two other Sea Rays muddy searches for this boat. In the mid-1990s Sea Ray's website listed a 380 Sun Sport, a narrower 38-foot-5 sterndrive sport boat with an 11-foot beam and 11,700 pounds dry weight. And from 2006 to 2009 J.D. Power lists a 40 Sundancer, a later and different design. Neither shares the 380 Sundancer's layout, and neither should be priced against it.

Sea Ray followed the 380 with a 390 Sundancer, listed by J.D. Power for 2004 and 2005, and then the 38 Sundancer from 2006. A 2004 model year is the last one you should expect to see wearing the 380 Sundancer name.

Thirty-eight feet of hull, forty-two at the dock

The 380's 19.5-degree transom deadrise sits between the flatter 17-degree hulls of some smaller Sundancers of the period and the sharper offshore boats. It gives a reasonable ride in a short chop without excessive roll at anchor. Draft is listed at 32 inches with inboards on the 1999 sheet and 40 inches on the 2002 sheet, which likely reflects running gear and measurement changes; plan for the larger number.

Tankage is 275 gallons of fuel, 70 gallons of water and a holding tank listed at 40 gallons in 1999 (28 gallons when fitted with the gray water system) and 42 gallons from 2002. Budget a slip that fits 42 feet; the swim platform counts at most marinas.

Inside: forward stateroom, electric mid-cabin bed and a real shower

Sea Ray's 2002 equipment list describes the layout well. Forward is a stateroom with a full-size bed and innerspring mattress, a sliding pocket door, hanging lockers port and starboard and a mirrored rope-locker bulkhead. The salon has a crescent-shaped Ultraleather sofa that converts to a bed, a movable hi-lo dinette table and a 13-inch TV with VCR (another was fitted in the forward stateroom).

The galley carries an upright dual-voltage refrigerator and freezer, a microwave, a coffeemaker and a recessed two-burner stove under a Corian cover. Aft, under the helm deck, the mid-stateroom is a conversation pit with an electrically operated slide-out bed, a privacy curtain and its own hanging locker. The single head uses a VacuFlush toilet and, unusually for the period, a separate shower stall with a seat and bifold acrylic door; the 1999 page notes a private entrance from the forward stateroom as well.

The cockpit follows Sundancer form: a U-shaped seat with sun pad and table, a portside wet bar with icemaker, an electrically operated engine hatch, a companion bench and an adjustable helm seat with a flip-up bolster. Sea Ray also offered a Monaco Edition for 2002 with blue-and-white gel coat, navy canvas and an engraved nameplate.

Engines year by year: 7.4L, 8.1S Horizon and Caterpillar

Sea Ray changed the engine lineup several times. The 1999 boat came standard with twin 7.4L MPI MerCruiser V-drives at 310 hp each, with 380 hp 7.4L MPI Horizon engines and Caterpillar 3116TA diesels at 292 or 340 hp on the option list. Sea Ray's 2000 overview cites twin 454 Magnum MPI Horizon engines. By 2002 the standard package was twin 8.1S Horizon V-drives at 370 hp each, with twin Caterpillar 3126TA diesels at 340 hp as the alternative.

The 8.1S Horizon is the gas engine we would choose: closed cooling, strong torque for an 18,300-pound boat and a big parts network. The Caterpillar diesels add range, resale appeal and longevity if they have been maintained, and they cost more to service. BoatTest's archived listing for the 380 was built around twin 340 hp Caterpillar 3116TA diesels.

Sea Ray's archived pages for the 380 give no speed figures and we found no instrumented magazine test, so this guide leaves cruise and top speeds blank. Insist on a sea trial with fuel aboard and confirm both engines reach their rated wide-open-throttle rpm.

Standard equipment that still matters

By 2002 the 380 came standard with gear that many buyers pay extra for on smaller boats: a 7.0 kW Westerbeke gas generator, zone-controlled reverse-cycle air conditioning (19,000 BTU), dual 30-amp shore power, a Beam central vacuum, a Raymarine GPS, VHF and ST-60 instrument package, hydraulic steering with a tilt wheel, a remote spotlight and an oil changer on diesel boats. A 7.6 kW diesel generator was optional.

That matters now because a 20-year-old boat with original equipment is a boat with a list of tired systems. Check what has been replaced: a newer generator, updated electronics and refreshed air conditioning are worth thousands of dollars each.

Pricing a 380 Sundancer in 2026

J.D. Power's average retail values run from the high $50,000s for a 1999 to roughly $82,000 to $93,000 for a 2004, but strong boats ask more. We would expect gas boats to ask from about $55,000 to $110,000 depending on year and condition, with Caterpillar diesel boats reaching about $130,000 when the engines have documented service.

Plan on $13,000 to $22,000 a year to own one, excluding fuel and financing. Twin big-block gas engines burn a lot of fuel at planing speeds; the diesels are thriftier but carry higher service bills.

Survey notes for a 20-plus-year-old V-drive Sundancer

Powerboat Reports ran a long piece in October 2002 on complaints about wet balsa core in the bottoms of Sea Rays from 40 to 55 feet built from 1995 to 2002, according to marine surveyor David Pascoe. The 380 is a 38-foot hull, but it is close enough in era and size that we would ask the surveyor to sound and moisture-check the bottom and transom carefully, and to report on the core in the decks and cockpit sole.