Endeavour 38 Buyer's Guide
Shopping the brokerage market for an Endeavour 38 means weighing a Johan Valentijn-designed cruiser built by Endeavour Yacht Corporation from 1984 to 1990, about 215 of them made in aft- and center-cockpit versions. The boat's cored-GRP hull over a bonded steel grid and its detailed original electrical scheme make it a comprehensible project, but the yard's own doubt about organic subsole materials reaching its 12-to-15-year design life is the lens for any purchase.
Layouts on the Used Market
The aft-cockpit interior is built up of wood over a plywood sole glued and screwed to the steel grid, finished in teak and holly, with the galley to starboard and a large settee forward as you descend. Opposite, a double berth tucks under the cockpit behind a curtain, and the nav station faces an L-shaped settee around the dining table. Forward of the mast bulkhead is a large head with a separate shower stall, with hanging lockers and a V-berth in the forepeak opposite. The center-cockpit version carries 8,800 pounds of internal lead ballast against the aft's 7,000 and a 70-gallon two-tank water capacity against 76. Both share 6 berths, 6 feet 4 inches of headroom, 15 opening screened ports and 6 deck hatches.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
On the used market these boats commonly carry a bimini and dodger. Often seen are air conditioning, spinnaker or asymmetric spinnaker, autopilot, and chartplotter. The original rig is masthead sloop on 6061-T6 aluminum spars with internally run Dacron halyards; the base aft auxiliary was a Yanmar 3-HMF diesel at 30 horsepower, optionally a 3-JHE at 40, while the center-cockpit base was a Yanmar 4-JHE at 44. Original DC wiring is two-wire red and yellow from two parallel 12-volt batteries, AC is 115-volt 60-cycle from a 30-amp shore service, and all below-waterline metal is bonded with green-coated 8-gauge copper.
What to Inspect
The builder's chief engineer stated the Endeavour was built to last at least 12 to 15 years, yet at Endeavour they doubted that organic materials would last that long, so the saturated subsole wood and bonded steel grid deserve close survey for rot or corrosion at the interface. The steel framework in the bilge is placed and heavily bonded with woven roving, and keel areas, maststep, chainplates and engine beds use a special steel structure to increase stiffness — all past the yard's stated horizon and central to structural integrity. No other systemic defects are documented, but the explicit lifespan hedge is the only durability claim on record.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
Endeavour 38s typically appear in the United States market. A short checklist for the brokerage buyer:
- Confirm which cockpit layout and keel depth (4'11" shoal or 5'7" deep) is offered
- Survey the steel grid, bilge framework, and subsole wood for corrosion or rot
- Verify standing rigging chainplate attachments and internally run halyard condition
- Check original DC/AC color coding and below-waterline bonding integrity
- Match engine model (Yanmar 3-HMF, 3-JHE, or 4-JHE) to quoted specification
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Endeavour 38. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 4 rows
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 25 | 1 | $ 50,000 | — |
| Aug 25 | 1 | $ 54,000 | +8.0% |
| Mar 26 | 1 | $ 29,750 | -44.9% |
| Jun 26 | 3 | $ 25,950 | -12.8% |
Where they're listed
Endeavour 38 listings appear across 1 country. United States has the most listings with 5.
Country view
5 listings · 1 country| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $ 25,950 | 5 | 3 | 100.0% |
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.
Similar boats to compare
10 similar designs| Model | LOA | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bluewater Cruiser 38 | 40.35' | $ 80,346 | 192 | 52 |
| Dehler 38 | 38.71' | $ 235,000 | 48 | 22 |
| Sabre 38 | 37.83' | $ 49,900 | 46 | 16 |
| Sabre 38 Mk II | 38.67' | $ 60,000 | 17 | 5 |
| Endeavour 37 | 37' | $ 24,950 | 16 | 4 |
| Endeavour 35 | 35.42' | $ 29,900 | 12 | 6 |
| Kadey-Krogen 38 | 38.16' | $ 74,900 | 9 | 4 |
| Endeavour 38You are here | — | $ 25,950 | 5 | 3 |
| Morgan 38 | 37.67' | $ 75,000 | 5 | 3 |
| Endurance 38 | 37' | $ 85,839 | 4 | 1 |