Sun Tracker Boats for Sale

Who builds them

Sun Tracker started in 1983 as the pontoon arm of Johnny Morris's Tracker business, five years after he launched the Bass Tracker as the first nationally advertised boat, motor and trailer package. The first model was the Bass Buggy, a small fishing pontoon, and it is still in the lineup. Today Sun Tracker sits inside White River Marine Group, the boat-building division of Bass Pro Shops, alongside Tracker, Nitro, Tahoe, Regency, Mako, Ranger and Triton. Most Sun Tracker pontoons come out of the plants in Bolivar, Missouri, where production started in 1988.

That ownership matters to a used buyer for a practical reason. Almost every Sun Tracker left the factory as a package with a Mercury outboard and often a matching trailer, sold through Bass Pro Shops and Cabela's boating centers. Parts, rigging and Mercury service are easy to find in most of the country.

The model lines

The names have stayed fairly consistent for years, which makes shopping older boats easier.

• Bass Buggy. The entry boat. The current 16 XL Select is 18'5" overall and ships with a Mercury 20 ELPT, and the 18 DLX is 20' with a 40 ELPT. Light enough to tow behind a mid-size SUV.
• Fishin' Barge. A fishing layout with livewells and fishing seats at both ends, plus lounge seating. The 20 DLX is 21'11" with a Mercury 60 ELPT as the base engine; the 22 DLX is 24'2" with a 90.
• SportFish. Same hull lengths as the Fishin' Barge but split between fishing and cruising. The 2026 SportFish 20 DLX had a 115 hp maximum and a 32-gallon tank, and Sun Tracker listed 21 to 28 mph with the optional 90.
• Party Barge. The cruising and family boat, from the 18'5" Party Barge 16 DLX up to the 26'2" Party Barge 24 XP3 tritoon, which is rated for 250 hp and 12 people.

"DLX" is the standard two-tube boat. "XP3" means a third center tube and a bigger engine, usually a Mercury 115 or 150, and it is the one to look at if you plan to pull a tuber or run big water. "RF" on a Party Barge means rear fish, a small fishing station at the stern.

What used ones sell for

Sun Trackers hold value reasonably well because the new price is low to begin with. For the 2027 model year, Sun Tracker's own no-haggle base prices start at $19,795 for a Bass Buggy 16 XL Select and $32,995 for a Fishin' Barge 20 DLX.

The Party Barge 20 DLX is the most common used Sun Tracker, so it makes a decent benchmark. J.D. Power lists a 2022 Party Barge 20 DLX at $17,680 low retail and $20,220 average retail, and a 2023 at $21,140 low and $24,180 average. BoatVerdict, which tracks asking prices rather than sale prices, found a median ask of $24,500 across 19 listings for model years 2013 to 2024, with the middle half between $19,000 and $28,500. At the bottom end, one Indiana dealer had a 2014 Party Barge 20 DLX with 561 engine hours listed at $14,850 in late 2026.

Treat these as a starting range. Engine size moves price more than anything else on a pontoon: the same deck with a 60 hp and a 115 hp can be several thousand dollars apart. Asking prices also run higher in spring than in October.

Checking a used Sun Tracker

Pontoons are simple boats, which is part of the appeal, but they hide problems in a few predictable places. Plan on getting on your back with a flashlight.

Tubes. Walk the full length of each tube. Small dents are cosmetic. Creases, cracks along welds or fresh patch welds are not. Pull the drain plugs if there are any and see if water comes out. A boat kept in saltwater or brackish water needs a close look for pitting, and on a boat that came from salt, ask if it had anodes and whether they were replaced.

Deck. Walk the whole floor, slowly, especially by the gates, the helm and under the seat bases where water sits. Soft spots mean the plywood under the vinyl has rotted. Replacing a pontoon deck is a well-known DIY project, but it means pulling every seat and fence panel, so price it in.

Transom and engine mount. Look at the engine bracket where it bolts to the tubes and the cross-members. Cracks, stripped bolts or a bracket that flexes when you push on the lower unit need a welder, not a wrench.

Engine hours. Newer Mercury four-strokes log hours, and a dealer can plug in and read the history, including any over-rev or overheat events. Lake pontoons typically put on a few dozen hours a season, so a five-year-old boat with 600 hours was worked hard, perhaps as a rental. Ask for the service records and when the water pump impeller was last changed.

Furniture and canvas. Faded or split vinyl and a torn Bimini are fixable but add up. Lift every seat cushion and check the storage bases for mildew and water.

Paperwork. Make sure the hull ID on the transom plate matches the title and the state registration, and that the trailer has its own title where your state requires one.

Which one to buy

For a small lake and two or three people who fish, a Bass Buggy 18 DLX is plenty and easy to trailer. A family that wants to cruise, swim and tow a kid on a tube will be happier with a Party Barge 22 or a Party Barge 24 XP3 on three tubes with at least a 115. Fishin' Barge and SportFish boats suit households where one person wants to fish and everyone else wants seating.