Sea Ray Boats for Sale

Background

C.N. Ray started Sea Ray in 1959 after buying the assets of Carr-Craft, a small fiberglass boatbuilder in Detroit, and began production in Oxford, Michigan. Today most Sea Rays are built in Vonore, Tennessee, with a second plant at Merritt Island, Florida.

Brunswick bought Sea Ray's parent, Ray Industries, in 1986 for $350 million. Sea Ray has been a Mercury boat ever since: MerCruiser sterndrives for most of its history, and more Mercury outboards and Verados in recent years.

The current lines

• SPX: the entry bowriders. The SPX 190 is 19'7", and the SPX 190 Outboard is 21'10" including the engine bracket.
• SDX: larger deck-style day boats.
• SLX: the premium sport boats, from the 25'9" SLX 260 to the 42'2" SLX 400 Outboard. The SLX 260 comes with either a MerCruiser 6.2L Bravo Three sterndrive or a Mercury 300 Verado.
• Sundancer: the cabin cruisers. The name dates back to the 1970s and covers boats from about 26 to 40-plus feet.

Older names are just as common used: the 175 and 185 Sport, the 220 Sundeck, the 240 Sundeck and the 280 Sundancer.

Used prices

BoatVerdict tracked 56 used SPX 190s from 2015 to 2025 and found a median asking price of $36,000, with the middle half between $30,500 and $41,000. 2020 and 2021 boats were asking around $35,000, and 2022s about $40,000. Older Sea Rays are much cheaper. On the same site the 220 Sundeck had a median ask of about $20,000, the 205 Sport $16,000, and the 1990s and 2000s 175 Bowrider about $5,500. Sundancers range from under $20,000 for an older 260 to well into six figures for recent outboard models.

Checking a used Sea Ray

Sterndrive or outboard. Most used Sea Rays are MerCruiser sterndrives. Budget for bellows and gimbal work about every five years, and for exhaust manifolds and risers every six to eight years in freshwater, or more often in salt. BoatVerdict prices risers at $2,500 to $4,000. Ask for receipts. The SPX 190 Outboard, available since 2017, avoids most of that, and buyers pay more for it.

Hull bottom. Trailer-kept boats can show stress cracks along the bunk lines and chines. Look at the hull where it sat on the trailer.

Gelcoat and decks. Sea Ray's finish is a big part of the price. Oxidized, chalky gelcoat can often be buffed out. Spider cracks around cleats and rails, or soft spots in the deck, point to water in the core.

Cruiser systems. On a Sundancer, test everything: generator, air conditioning, the head and holding tank, water heater, shore power and windlass. A survey is worth paying for on any cabin boat. Ask for the engine hours on both sides if it's a twin.

Upholstery and flooring. Snap-in carpet and vinyl are easy to replace but expensive, and they show how the boat was stored.

Saltwater. About two-thirds of the SPX 190s BoatVerdict saw were in coastal states. Check sterndrive and outboard parts for corrosion and pitting, and ask about the flushing routine.

Federal recalls touch Sea Ray too, including two 2020 campaigns. Have a dealer run the hull ID.