[williamwalter]

Looking to purchase a 2002 to 2004 38 open. Any input on this boat would be appreciated. From research I've done so far it seems I should stay away from the cats and go with the cummins. Is fuel burn appox 30 an hour doing 24 knots and one nmpg. Are there any faults u should look for that r red flags especially on survey. How is the ride in rough seas.Any opinions on this and other issues with the 38 open would be appreciated. Thanks Bill

[ReelMagic]

I own a 2003 38 Open w/Cummin's 6CTA's (450hp). Have done extensive cruising with the boat over the past 9 years and the boat has performed well under most conditions (sea's over 4' get's my wife concerned but the boat handles it well)..... Live on Long Island and have been north to Canada (Montreal), East to Newport, Boston, Gloucester, Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, Block, Montauk, etc and south to the Chesapeake many times... Running at 2100 I'm making 24.5 knots with a 27 GPH burn..... Boat is great for my wife and myself..... Haven't found any faults with the boat.......Visibility is good at most speeds...... I modified the helm seat by raising it up 3" to make visibility better when seated. I'm 6' so I would think that would be a modification you may want to consider.

[anthem]

Looking to purchase a 2002 to 2004 38 open. Any input on this boat would be appreciated. From research I've done so far it seems I should stay away from the cats and go with the cummins. Is fuel burn appox 30 an hour doing 24 knots and one nmpg. Are there any faults u should look for that r red flags especially on survey. How is the ride in rough seas.Any opinions on this and other issues with the 38 open would be appreciated. Thanks Bill

Hi Bill....we bought a 2002 38 Open last June.  It's a great boat.  Built like a tank.  We have the Cummins 6cts's 450 hp.  I too elected to stay away from the CAT's.  At 2200 I cruise at 22 to 23 knots and burn about 30 gallons per hour.   The ride is very comfortable....you will be out when others are still tied to the dock.

[Chris Burkard]

The 3800 Open is an awesome boat! It has enough space to be comfortable, yet is not so large to be hard to maintain. It rides well in the rougher stuff and is relatively fuel efficient. It is one of the best hulls Tiara ever designed.

I know of a super clean 2004 located in Florida with the Cummins 480CE engines. The 480CE engines are the same engine as the Cummins 450, but with electronic fuel injection. They are slightly quieter, more fuel efficient and produce much less smoke than the 450s. See below for the approximate performance of a 38 with 480CE engines.

2000RPM 26.0MPH 22.6KTS 24.4GPH 1.07MPG
2100RPM  28.4MPH 24.7KTS 27.0GPH 1.05MPG

2200RPM  30.1MPH 26.2KTS 29.2GPH 1.03MPG
2300RPM  32.2MPH 28.0KTS 32.3GPH 1.00MPG
2400RPM  33.7MPH 29.2KTS 35.7GPH 0.94MPG

[greylion]

I have a 2006 with Cummins 8.3 QSC's, great power plant. I use mine in the Lake Michigan slop and it takes the 3-5 ft sharp waves great, much better than most of my passengers.

Good Luck with whatever you pick.

[williamwalter]

Thanks to all for the replies. So far I'm thinking this would be a great boat for my family. I noted Chris s reply about the 2004 with the 480 ce engines . Sounds good on paper but I've heard bad things about the electronic fuel injection if u have a problem as a posed to the mechanical which I heard were bulletproof .are these the diamond edition which I've seen in some ads? Thanks again Bill

[jhhall]

I have a 2006 36 Sovran with Cummins QSC 490s.  Great engines.  They have 500 hours and are electronic with SmartCraft.  The only problem I have had is with the sherwood water pump. It had a bad shaft bearing which caused me to go through impellers.  I had to replace the water pump which solved the problem.   I would recommend finding a good diesel mechanic.

[williamwalter]

John thanks for the post. In my research I have heard of others that have had problems with water pumps. Seems to be a week link. Bill

[ReelMagic]

Agree, the raw water pumps seem to be the weak spot for the engines.... I've changed both on my 6CTA's to the latest version from Sherwood, 1730C.  Also looked at using aftermarket "SEABOARD" raw water pumps as they claim to have re-designed the shaft seals which is the weak spot of the Sherwood pumps...... BTW CAT 2116 use the same Sherwood pumps (different gear) and have the same problem, shaft seal leaking...... Hopefully they solved the design issue with the latest version (1730C)..... M2C

For more information on the SEABOARD pumps go to: [Only registered and activated users can see links Click here to register]

[trit21]

I have replaced my Sherwood pumps on my 6BTA with Seaboard pumps and they are a real good design. I currently have 500 + hours on them, changed the impellers once (wasn't needed after I had it out but might as well replace at that time) and no other issues at all. Sherwood pumps are crap compared to the Seaboard SMX pumps. Do yourself and favor and put them in, you won't be sorry. 

Tom