Starcraft Marine MDX 211

The Starcraft Marine MDX 211 is a mid-size bowrider built in welded and pressed marine-grade aluminium by Starcraft Marine of United States, a builder trading since 1903. On our measurements it works out at roughly 21 ft 1 in (6.43 m) of hull with a beam near 9 ft 1 in (2.76 m), which places it squarely in the trailerable family bowrider class: one vehicle, one trailer, one afternoon of prep, and the boat is in the water. American aluminium deck and bowrider builder with a 120-year manufacturing history.

Layout is classic bowrider and that is the whole point of the boat. Twin lounges run forward of the windscreen with a walk-through to the anchor well, the helm and companion seats sit amidships behind a wrap screen, and a full-width lounge spans the transom for sunbathing and socialising. Around 11 people fit aboard comfortably in sheltered water. Cushions lift out, backrests fold and filler pads convert the cockpit from a conversation pit into one long sun bed in a couple of minutes.

Underway the MDX 211 behaves the way a well-sorted mid-size bowrider should. It comes onto the plane early, holds a low tow speed without wallowing and tracks flat through a hard turn instead of skating out. In short chop you slow down and let the hull do the work, and it stays surprisingly dry for the size.

Power is a 160-240 hp four-stroke outboard package, and that suits both the hull and the way these boats are used. Keeping the machinery outside the hull frees up stern storage, simplifies servicing and removes the bellows and gimbal wear items that punish neglected stern drive boats. It also lifts the swim platform clear of the exhaust.

Watersports are well covered. A tow point is standard on almost every boat in this class, and Starcraft Marine owners regularly add a pylon or a folding tower for wakeboarding. A healthy outboard package pulls a slalom skier out of the water cleanly and tows children on an inflatable biscuit all day without protest. Skis, ropes and vests live in the under-floor and under-seat lockers so nothing sits underfoot while the boat is loaded.

Fishing is the quiet strength of this hull. Pull the bow cushions and the forward lounge becomes an open casting platform with clear access all the way around the bow, and the rear lounge lifts out to open up the transom and side gunwales. Ten minutes of work turns the family boat into a genuinely capable fishing boat, and ten minutes the other way turns it back again before anyone gets home.

Build and finish sit where you would expect for a mid range boat from United States. Starcraft has been building aluminium boats since 1903 and is one of the few American brands offering true alloy bowriders rather than fibreglass. The MDX and SVX ranges combine welded aluminium hulls with fibreglass-style fit-out — moulded consoles, wraparound bow seating, snap-in carpet and full upholstery — so the boats look and feel like a conventional bowrider while weighing less and shrugging off dock and ramp knocks. Aluminium also means no gel coat to oxidise and no fibreglass laminate to absorb moisture, which is a genuine long-term ownership advantage in northern climates where boats sit through hard winters. Layouts are family-focused with deep bow lounges, walk-through screens and generous storage under the seating, and Mercury outboard power keeps the cockpit free of an engine box. Starcraft is best known in the American Midwest and Great Lakes region, where trailerable alloy boats dominate, and used examples are plentiful and inexpensive relative to fibreglass equivalents of the same size.

Options worth having on the MDX 211 are the practical ones: a bimini for shade, a decent bow and cockpit cover so the upholstery survives being stored outside, an upgraded sounder if you fish, and a stereo package that can be heard over the engine. Aluminium hulls also reward a good trailer with proper skids, because the plating marks more easily than fibreglass on a poorly set-up trailer.

As a used buy, check the same things you would on any bowrider in this size band: transom firmness, stringer and floor soundness, hours and service history on the engine, steering and trim function, and the state of the upholstery seams, which are the first thing to fail on a boat that lives uncovered. Boats from this builder hold their money well, so a tidy example will not be cheap, and that is usually a sign you are buying the right one.

Our price guide for the MDX 211 is US$52,000 - US$69,000 new, which moves with engine choice, trailer, tower and how recently the boat was refreshed. Judged as a whole, it does what people buy a bowrider for: cruise, tow, swim, fish and entertain in one boat, without asking the family to compromise on any of them. Starcraft Marine has been refining that formula since 1903, and the MDX 211 is a straightforward, well-judged expression of it.