No propeller, huge flat swim deck, shallow draft. The safest-feeling family bowrider.
The Yamaha SX210 approaches the bowrider brief from a completely different direction. Instead of an outboard or a stern drive, twin 1.8-litre engines drive waterjets buried in the hull. There is no propeller and nothing protruding below the transom.
For families with swimmers, that single fact changes the whole day. The swim platform is flat, wide and completely unobstructed, so kids can climb out anywhere along the stern without anyone worrying about a spinning blade. Draft is shallow enough to nose onto a sandbar that would ground a stern drive boat.
At 21 ft 6 in (6.55 m) the SX210 carries ten people, and the cockpit is unusually open because there is no engine box intruding under the sun pad. Bow lounges are deep, the helm is car-like, and the storage under the aft seating is enormous by class standards.
The trade-offs are real and worth stating plainly. Jets have no bite at idle speed, so low-speed docking in wind takes practice, and jet boats generally drink more fuel than a comparable four-stroke outboard at cruise. Reverse is a bucket rather than a gear, which feels odd for the first hour and normal after that.
Acceleration is the compensation. The SX210 pulls a skier out of the water hard, hits the mid-40s in knots, and turns tighter than almost anything else at this length. Used examples are plentiful; check the wear rings and impellers, and confirm the jet intakes have not ingested sand or gravel from repeated beach launches.
The world's best-selling bowrider size, in its most accessible form: light, simple and easy to tow.
US$38,000 - US$52,000 new
The refined mainstream benchmark: quiet, dry, and beautifully finished for the money.
US$72,000 - US$95,000 new
The quality yardstick of the class. Everything is heavier, quieter and better made.
US$155,000 - US$210,000 new