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2008 Sea Ray 185 Sport Photos
2008 Sea Ray 185 Sport Test Details
| Category | Bowrider |
| Length | 19ft 8in / 5.79 m |
| Beam | 7 ft 3 in |
| Engine Make | Mercury |
| Fuel Capacity | 26 gals / 98.4 litres |
| Weight | 2,600 lbs |
| Dealers | Contact Sea Ray Boats Dealers |
| Buyers Guides | Search For Sea Ray Boats Buyers Guides |
| Boats For Sale | Search For Sea Ray Boats For Sale |
2008 Sea Ray 185 Sport Description
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Successful boat companies dont just build good boats. They also build what marketing people call brand loyalty.
Designing and constructing a comfortable, safe, fun, reliable boat that performs as well as it looks is a great starting point. The company and its dealers then have to provide stellar service. After doing all of that consistently and well for quite a while, word gets around.Loyal owners will return totheir boat company and its dealers first when they want a new boat. They will also recommend that brand of boat to friends and families.
Sea Ray is one company that has done an excellent job of building loyalty among its owners. But buying a Sea Ray also seems to put boaters into a familyof like-minded owners.
Many boaters will join the Sea Ray family through the builders second-smallest boat, the 185 Sport. The Boats&Places test boat fits nicely into the under-$30,000 niche that seems to include many first-time boat owners. The 185 Sport,however, is not a stripped-out price-point boat, but one that includes plenty of desirable options including a trailer.
With an optional 190-hp 4.3-litreTurn Key Start V6 MerCruiser in the engine compartment, the 185 test boat is a sporty performer. It gets up on plane quickly, goes 0-20 mph in under five seconds, reaches 30 mph in less than eight seconds and tops out just under 50 mph in GPS-verified testing. The 185 cruises along nicely at 30.3 mph at 3000 rpm and at 36.1 mph at 3500 rpm.
Boating has to provide thrills and the fun factor. A combination of acceleration, speed and very tight handling characteristics makes the 185 Sport a real winner out on the water. The optional 4.3 L powerplant helps, but the test numbers show the hull design also deserves credit.Already semi-planing at 2000 rpm, the hull is solidly on plane and running at 22.4 mph at 2500 rpm.
The 185 Sport is very quiet at all speeds,with decibel readings of 78 dbA at the helm and 79 dbA in the aft cockpit area at a 3200-rpm cruising speed of 31.7 mph. Even at the 49.8 mph top speed at 4500 rpm, the sound meter registers only 85 dbA at the helm and 86 dbA in the back seat very quiet indeed.
The test boat has optional black topsides (blue, red and yellow are also available), nicely showing off the boats distinct sheerline, rising up from the bow and sweeping downwards aft to the level of the integrated swim platform.That sheerline is a design signature that helps identify the boat as a member of the Sea Ray family.
On board, the 185 Sport sticks with the tried-and-true bowrider layout of swivelling adjustable helm and companion seats, a bench seat aft, a hatch-cover sun lounge and seating in the bow area.Beyond that, Sea Ray adds some distinctive touches.
For starters, the test boats helm and companion seats are equipped with optional bolster-style lifting seat bottoms (Sea Ray calls themThigh-Rise Bolsters) that can add seat height when needed for improved visibility.The engine hatch sun lounge is split in the middle into two doors that lift gullwing-style; even the engine hatch contributes to the boats sporty appearance.
Up front, in the bow compartment, the boats designers have opted for a three-seat layout one in each aft corner and one forward-facing aft.There are moulded-in steps on each side between aft and forward seats. It makes much more sense than the usual wraparound seating that never comfortably seats more than a couple of small people.
The wraparound swim platform works well,with a telescoping boarding ladder in an inset. On the practical side, theres great storage alongside the engine compartments with King Starboard partitions.A voluminous cockpit floor locker with an L-shaped door will swallow more gear, unused canvas and a wakeboard or water-skis.A drained cooler under the aft bench seat promises to keep the boats new owners well-hydrated during a day on the water.
At the helm, theres a tilt steering wheel, easily read instruments and a black leatherette-covered eyebrow to cut glare. In the companion console theres a Clarion stereo,which comes with four waterproof speakers two in the cockpit and two in the bow area.
While the test boat is well-equipped for all-round cottage runabout duties or stylish and sporty day-cruising, a special Wakeboard Package of options including a Water Sports aluminum tower with integrated Bimini, special graphics, powered-up stereo and snap-in carpet could turn the boat into a real watersports tow star. Watersports lovers would find a warm welcome in the Sea Ray clan too.
For those who want to join the Sea Ray family,whatever their boating needs, the 185 Sport is a good place to start. Along with the boat, reward enough in itself, buyers will get a membership in the Sea Ray Owners Club, a subscription to Sea Ray Living magazine and a chance to get together with other Sea Ray owners for cruises and rendezvous events.
Last year, Sea Ray organized 125 Aquapalooza boating,music and boating raft-ups around the world. The Aquapalooza events are open to all boats, but Sea Rays naturally took centre stage.
Family, after all, comes first.
2008 Sea Ray 185 Sport Test Specifications
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Test boat engine: MerCruiser 4.3L Turn
Key Start, 262 ci/4.3 L, V6 producing
190 hp, pushing an Alpha drive and
23 pitch three-blade aluminum prop.
ACCELERATION (mph/sec)
0-20 / 4.9 ; 0-30 / 7.8 ; 0-40 / 12.8
TOP SPEED (rpm/mph)
4500/49.8
CRUISING SPEED (rpm/mph)
3000 / 30.3 ; 3500 / 36.3 ;
4000 / 43
SOUND LEVEL AT CRUISE (3200 rpm)
Helm 78 dbA ; Aft cockpit 79 dbA
SOUND LEVEL AT TOP SPEED
Helm 85 dbA ; Aft cockpit 86 dbA
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