CONTINUOUSWAVE

Q1: Based on my description below, what is a reasonable selling price for a 1998 DAUNTLESS 15 in Colorado?



I am the second owner. The boat condition is generally "really good." The boat has only been in saltwater once or twice, and has otherwise been a freshwater-use only boat.

The engine is a new c.2024 Yamaha F75 [which is an inline four-cylinder 1.8-liter engine], which [at 377-lbs] is a bit heavy for the hull. The engine has performed exceedingly well. The engine can be trimmed-out to reduce continual bow up-down oscillations.

[Moderator's note: the trailer seen in Figure 1 is probably going to be included in the sale, so use that in your estimations of the selling price.]

A semi-permanent 19-gallon fuel tank has been added.

Other gear that could be included are a "FW troller", multiple lithium batteries, and an onboard charger.

My motivation for the sale is to raise money for another investment, but if the [offers for the boat] do not match my valuation, I will go in a different direction. I have not found many comparable boats and their asking prices. The value listed in "NADA" seems lower than I expected.

BACKSTORY
I am new to the forum. I hope to leverage some of the expertise here. I am in [Colorado]. I do not have extensive Whaler knowledge. I love mine and I am a little crushed to potentially need to sell it.

--Brian

The recent re-powering was probably a significant expense. Unfortunately, once an older boat is re-powered with a new and rather expensive engine, the total value of the boat as a package (with the engine added) is not going to increase as much as the total cost of the re-power. The only way to get the real value of the re-powering is to enjoy using the new engine for the next 15-years.

Recently I have found that using the Artificial Intelligence at GROK.COM to get appraisals of boats has produced very comprehensive searching and quite useful results. I asked GROK this question:

jimh to GROK question wrote:What would be a typical selling price for a 1998 Boston Whaler DAUNTLESS 15 boat with a very new Yamaha F75 engine on an E-Z LOADER trailer, with all in very good to like-new condition, in Colorado or other western states in September 2025?

GROK worked on its answer for three-minutes and 20-seconds, which was surprisingly long for GROK. It was having trouble finding any good listings. In fact, while searching, GROK made this comment:

GROK.COM wrote:A forum post on ContinuousWave matches the query exactly: a 1998 Dauntless 15 in Colorado with a new 2024 Yamaha F75 engine.

This is a good indicator how thorough a GROK search can be, as the post has only been on-line for less than 20-hours.

The ultimate reply from GROK was:

GROK ANSWER wrote:A typical selling price for a 1998 Boston Whaler Dauntless 15 in very good to like-new condition, equipped with a very new Yamaha F75 engine and an E-Z Loader trailer, would range from $18,000 to $22,000 in Colorado or other western states as of September 2025. This estimate accounts for the boat's age, the premium added by the recent repower (which boosts value significantly over an original or older engine), overall condition, and regional market factors like lower demand in inland areas compared to coastal regions. Comparable sales and listings for similar 1990s Dauntless 15 models with older engines typically fall in the $10,000–$18,000 range, with adjustments upward for upgrades like a new 4-stroke outboard and like-new trailer. Prices can vary based on exact accessories, local supply, and negotiation, so checking current listings on sites like BoatTrader or Facebook Marketplace is recommended for the most accurate comps.

I doubt you can get a better answer or conduct a more comprehensive search than what was done by GROK.

Since you indicate that the anticipated selling price must meet your own expectation of the boat value, it will now be interesting to know the answer to this question:

Q2: Was the range of anticipated selling price sufficient for you to proceed to list the boat for sale?

Here's a somewhat comparable boat, a larger, newer, and considerably different hull style 2000 DAUNTLESS 16, but it has an older two-stroke-power-cycle carburetor 60-HP Mercury engine. This boat is on the East Coast and in Maine, probably both "price inflated" geographic areas. It is listed at a marine dealer for $25,000:

https://www.boattrader.com/boat/2000-bo ... s-9931619/

Also, here is a link to an archived forum post from 2005 that discusses the DAUNTLESS 15:

https://continuouswave.com/ubb/Forum8/HTML/001939.html

In that 2005 thread an owner mentions he will sell his for $8,200. Adjusted for inflation that would be about $13,900 in 2025-dollars.

Cf.: https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm

I was hoping for around $20,000, so I guess I am not far off. I got a great deal from the original owner with the stock 1998 Mercury 50-HP. That engine pushed great, but the carburetors were a nightmare and were constantly plugged. Yes, the re-power was expensive. I was, in fact, thinking about keeping it forever.

I will be towing it to Massachusetts for two weeks this month and then I think I will winterize, shrink and store it out there. Probably wait until spring, possibly sell it or leave it in Massachusetts or New Hampshire, as there is where I love to fish. If anyone is interested in the boat - I just realized I typo'ed my email when I was registering - its actually kkbward1@comcast.net.

Also "FW Troller" meant a Freshwater Trolling Motor by Minnkota 12v 55-lbs. I also have the Bimini and bow-and -stern cushions stored in my garage.

And, yes the trailer is included, and it has a new winch and jack wheel.

Thank you again jimh - you run a heck of site here - i will be back to contribute where I can.

ASIDE: hank you so much for cleaning up my "stream of conscience" post and getting to the facts. Is that done by AI or do you do that manually?

Brian

kkbward1@cocmast.net wrote:ASIDE: thank you so much for cleaning up my "stream of conscience" post and getting to the facts. Is that done by AI or do you do that manually?

I try to edit posts to make them a bit more organized as best as I can.

My background is from being a technical writer, publications manager, associate magazine editor for a magazine about radio technology, having had an excellent education in English Language and Literature at the University of Michigan from the wonderful English Department there, and also from being exposed to both boating and radio-electronics from a very early age.