I owned a 1996 3650 for several years. It was equipped with the 350 hp
Crusaders and a great suite of electronics. We loved it, despite its
prodigious appetite for gas. Construction quality was very good. We had no
issues with cheap hardware or subpar glasswork. No window leaks

There are a few gotchas. The vent line from the hull to the waste holding
tank has a tendency to kink, leading to head odor. Not pleasant. The
mechanics I consulted simply wanted to keep replacing the inline filter, but
finally I traced the line and found that there was a poorly designed hose
routing inside the undersink cabinet in the guest head. The hose made a 90
degree turn and wold collapse there.

Other than that, we had more or less typical problems with electronics you
find on a boat this age, especially the climate control panel. The buttons
started working intermittently. This was right around the time we sold it,
and I never did get around to fixing it.

The boat will make about 15-17 knots, unless you really want to push it,
then you might get 24 if you have a nice clean bottom. We ran among the
shallows of SW Florida and were really pleased with the shallow draft.
Handling is as you would expect given a boat with such a high center of
gravity. Definitely not a sport boat, but oh, that interior room is nice.
(We have a family of 5 and would routinely spend a week aboard at a time.)
There is also a lot of windage. Docking in a crosswind is quite the
adventure the first few times. However, I got to the point where I almost
couldn't dock when the wind was calm. Control authority is pretty good.

You need a swim platform if you plan to do much fishing or haul a dinghy.
Ours was not equipped with one and that was one thing I missed. We ended up
using an inflatable on the bow, but that was not ideal. There is a snap in
carpet for the aft deck, and we found it easiest to just leave it in the
dock box.

As for resale, I believe they're not as bad as some boats, but my experience
was affected by timing. I put mine on the market on Sept 10, 2001. As you
might imagine, the bottom fell out of the market the next day.

I could ramble on for hours. Any other questions, feel free to contact me
offline.

Ken

"Dennis T" wrote in message
m...
I'm looking at a 1998 3650 Motoryacht and was wondering if anyone out
there has any experience with this vessel. Its winter in Chicago and I
won't be able to sea trial until spring. Is there something I should be
looking for that is peculiar to this boat?

The boat appears to be well maintained, low engine hours, everything looks
like new. It was out of the water all last summer as the owners moved.

Any experience with resale? Does it hold its value?

Any info would be appreciated.

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