Buying a Used Contender in Alabama

Contender has been building deep-V offshore boats in Homestead, Florida since 1984. They ride dry, handle a Gulf chop at speed, and hold up to decades of hard fishing. Here's what we check on every used Contender that comes through TMD Marine.

Hull, stringers, and transom

Contender hulls are famously overbuilt but a 10-to-20-year-old boat still needs a moisture read on the transom and a look at the stringers through the bilge. On 40 Express and 39 ST hulls, pay special attention to the motor-mount bolt pattern — triple and quad outboard rigs put serious load back there.

Repowers and warranty transfers

Many older Contenders have been repowered — Mercury V8/V10 400s and Yamaha 425s are the common upgrade paths. A recent repower with transferable warranty is a major value driver; the 2011 Contender 40 Express we're currently marketing carries triple Mercury V10 400s with Platinum warranty through 8/14/28.

Seakeeper, generator, and helm updates

A Seakeeper 3 or 4.5 install turns the ride at anchor from tolerable to comfortable — huge on an express boat where you're spending real time in the cabin. Verify the install date, service history, and whether the generator was sized to run the Seakeeper plus AC without cycling.

Pricing and what to expect

A clean, late-model-repowered Contender 40 Express with Seakeeper and updated electronics typically trades in the low-to-mid $400s. We're currently marketing a co-brokered 2011 Contender 40 Express at $429,995.

Current Contender inventory

See Contender boats for sale at TMD Marine, or call Shane at 850-602-2475 to talk through your options.