Dufour 3800 Buyer's Guide
Shopping the brokerage market for a Dufour 3800 means taking home a 1979-launched Frers design that replaced the Dufour 31, with only around 300 sold. She is a 30-foot-9-inch masthead fast cruiser with a teak interior that reads less plastic than her era's norm, and the used fleet splits across three iron keel types that decide where you can comfortably berth her.
Layouts on the Used Market
The 3800 sleeps eight with a saloon double and a pilotberth, but the used buyer should expect a cramped galley and a small chart table mounted over the quarterberth. The fin-keel version draws 5.58 to 5.88 feet, the shallow keel 4.43 to 4.73 feet, and the stub/centreboard lifts to 3.51 to 3.81 feet, so a centreboard boat opens shallow marinas the others cannot reach while adding a board trunk to maintain. Beam is 10 feet 6 inches and displacement about 8,360 pounds, giving a settled motion that suits couples with occasional guests more than full charter loads.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
A chartplotter is commonly fitted across the used fleet, the one navigation item you can rely on finding at the helm or nav station. An autopilot shows up as a less frequent owner upgrade rather than standard gear, so budget for one if you sail short-handed. Beyond those, the database's other tags are minor creature comforts; the consequential buyer items are the Volvo Penta MD5 diesel with shaft drive and the iron keel hardware, not stereos or galley gadgets.
What to Inspect
The hull and deck are fiberglass with a sandwich deck construction, so probe for softness where the cored panel is the lone non-solid structure. Confirm which of the three iron keels is fitted and check the centreboard trunk and pivot if the stub/centreboard version is offered, since that board is the only moving underwater appendage. The MD5 is an 8-horsepower diesel; verify shaft-log condition and that the shaft drive transmission is intact, as engine access and output are modest for a 31-foot boat.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
These boats turn up in Portugal, Belgium, France, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Netherlands. For a buyer, the short list is: confirm keel type and centreboard trunk if applicable, sound the cored deck, verify the MD5 shaft drive, and expect to add an autopilot if missing. A chartplotter will likely already be aboard, leaving the cramped galley and tight chart table as the compromises to accept for the Frers sparkle and teak cabin.
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Dufour 3800. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 6 rows
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 25 | 2 | $20,689 | — |
| Jan 26 | 1 | $20,397 | -1.4% |
| Apr 26 | 1 | $20,397 | 0.0% |
| Jun 26 | 3 | $17,676 | -13.3% |
| Jul 26 | 6 | $45,457 | +157.2% |
| Aug 26 | 2 | $30,829 | -32.2% |
Where they're listed
Dufour 3800 listings appear across 6 countries. Portugal has the most listings with 6 (40.0%), followed by Belgium and France.
Country view
15 listings · 6 countries| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portugal | $45,457 | 6 | 6 | 40.0% |
| Belgium | $20,689 | 2 | 0 | 13.3% |
| France | $32,927 | 2 | 1 | 13.3% |
| United Kingdom | $19,376 | 2 | 2 | 13.3% |
| Netherlands | $24,127 | 2 | 1 | 13.3% |
| United States | $9,500 | 1 | 1 | 6.7% |
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.
Similar boats to compare
11 similar designs| Model | LOA | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dufour Classic 36 | 36.33' | $ 78,902 | 77 | 14 |
| Dufour Classic 38 | 37.58' | $ 78,660 | 47 | 11 |
| Dufour Classic 32 | 32.67' | $ 45,000 | 31 | 11 |
| Dufour 35 | 35.25' | $ 30,000 | 26 | 1 |
| Dufour 2800 | 27.08' | $ 13,590 | 25 | 5 |
| Dufour 380 Grand Large | 36.71' | $ 149,731 | 25 | 4 |
| Dufour 3800You are here | — | $ 27,852 | 15 | 11 |
| Offshore 4800 | 34.94' | $ 30,253 | 13 | 4 |
| Dufour Classic 35 | 35' | $ 52,440 | 13 | 0 |
| Tartan 3800 | 38' | $ 129,000 | 10 | 4 |
| Morgan 38 | 37.67' | $ 69,000 | 5 | 1 |