Catalina 320 Sailboats for Sale

A Mark II version was introduced for model year 2007, bringing detail refinements to the interior and deck layout. Buyers should note which generation they are looking at, as earlier boats had some first-production teething problems that are almost universally addressed on the examples now circulating in the brokerage market.

Layouts on the Used Market

The three-cabin layout — forward cabin, main saloon with convertible table berth, and private aft stateroom to starboard — is the more common configuration encountered on the used market, and both layouts do surface on the used market. The aft stateroom is a genuine selling point for this length of boat: it has standing headroom, a queen-size berth, and a dedicated hanging locker, a combination that is unusual in a 32-footer and one of the main reasons buyers choose the 320 over comparably sized alternatives.

The saloon presents well, with ash battens lining the hull, teak bulkheads and handrails, and a teak-and-holly sole. The overall impression below is of a boat significantly larger than her waterline suggests, aided by a beam of nearly twelve feet. The head is compact but functional, with a separate shower sump; access to through-hulls is via a removable panel, which makes routine inspection less of a production than on boats with buried fittings. The galley runs to port and is well-equipped from the factory, though owners who cruise extensively often upgrade the original refrigeration as the units age.

Equipment and Common Upgrades

Biminis, dodgers, autopilots, and chartplotters are commonly fitted across the used fleet — these are essentially baseline expectations when evaluating a 320 rather than premium additions. Air conditioning units, hot water heaters, and extended swim platforms are frequently seen on examples that have spent time in warmer cruising grounds, and a furling mainsail is a common retrofit among owners who found the standard fully-battened main manageable but preferred the convenience of roller stowage.

Among owner upgrades, inverters, cockpit showers, and solar panels appear with notable regularity, reflecting the model's popularity among liveaboards and extended cruisers who have systematically added energy independence over the years of ownership. Radar, spinnaker gear — both symmetrical and asymmetric — and dinghy davits represent less universal but still meaningful additions, particularly on boats that have done Caribbean or offshore passages. Heating systems are a frequent upgrade on higher-latitude examples, particularly those from Great Lakes and Pacific Northwest fleets. When a 320 has been actively cruised rather than day-sailed, buyers can reasonably expect to find several of these additions already in place.

The standard Lewmar Ocean series self-tailing winches are well-regarded and hold up reliably, but performance-minded buyers who want to tune the rig further will want to budget for a Cunningham and adjustable backstay — these were commonly added by owners who felt the original sail controls were adequate for cruising but limiting for getting the most out of the fully-battened main.

What to Inspect

The earliest production boats had two known construction-phase issues worth understanding before survey. The initial wiring runs were buried beneath the interior liners in a way that led to chafe and breaks; those boats were retrofitted with PVC conduit by the factory, and subsequent production was redesigned to eliminate the problem. If you are looking at a very early hull, confirm with a surveyor that the wiring remediation has been carried out. Separately, early models had bilge sumps that were too shallow, causing water to slosh amidships; again, these boats received factory retrofits with baffles, and later molds were retooled to deepen the cavities. A competent surveyor will know to check both.

The hull-deck joint is a shoebox arrangement bonded with filled polyester resin and through-bolted on seven-inch centers, which is a robust construction for a production boat of this era. Nevertheless, any prospective buyer should have a surveyor check the joint carefully for separation or softness, particularly on boats that have been stored or trailered aggressively.

The cabin top is cored with end-grain balsa and the deck with plywood sections. Balsa core in a cabin top is standard for the era and perfectly sound when dry, but it must be checked rigorously for moisture intrusion, especially around chainplates, deck hardware, and any through-deck fittings added by previous owners. Because the 320 has a mast stepped on deck with loads transferred through a compression post, the area around the mast partners and compression post base deserves close attention on survey.

The Yanmar 3GM30F diesel is a well-regarded engine with a long production record and broad parts availability. On older examples, look at the heat exchanger, zincs, and raw-water impeller service history. The engine is accessed most conveniently from the aft stateroom, which makes oil changes and filter replacements straightforward, but the placement can complicate larger service jobs.

Standing rigging on the 320 uses an unusual internal chainplate arrangement — wire standing rigging attaches to deck plates connecting stainless tie rods in the main salon to an L-shaped aluminum bar laminated into the hull. This is a sound engineering solution, but it is not a conventional external chainplate and surveyors unfamiliar with the boat may flag it as unusual. Confirm the tie rods and internal aluminum bar are free of corrosion and that the deck plates show no signs of working or leaking.

Availability and Buyer's Takeaway

The 320 is among the more widely available used production cruisers in North America, with strong representation across the United States and Canada. Examples regularly surface in the Great Lakes, Chesapeake Bay, the Pacific Coast, and Florida, as well as in Caribbean charter markets. The model is also found in Australia and to a lesser extent in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, though North American fleets represent the bulk of available inventory.

The Catalina 320 International Association maintains an active membership and owner resource base, which is an underrated advantage when buying used — it means technical knowledge, parts sourcing, and owner experience are genuinely accessible.

Before making an offer, verify the following:

• Survey by a surveyor familiar with molded liner construction and internal chainplate arrangements
• Confirm wiring remediation on early hulls (PVC conduit retrofit)
• Confirm bilge baffle retrofit on early hulls, or verify deep-mold construction on later examples
• Moisture readings throughout the balsa-cored cabin top and around all deck penetrations
• Inspection of internal chainplate tie rods and deck plates for corrosion and movement
• Yanmar service history: heat exchanger, impeller, zincs, belts
• Compression post base and mast partner area for stress or delamination
• Mark I versus Mark II generation, noting any owner-retrofitted sail controls or upgraded electronics
• Test sail to confirm rig balance and autopilot function, particularly if the boat carries a lot of added cruising gear