Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/719034
Spark competitor in rec lite segment enters with $6,599 starting MSRP BY DAVE McMAHON EDITOR IN CHIEF Dealers were in for a treat when they gathered last month at McCormick Place in Chicago for Yamaha's Boat and WaveRunners Product Premier. Yamaha's all-new WaveRunner EX series is designed for buyers seeking an afford- able entry to the sport of personal watercraft, and Yamaha is banking that its reputation for durability, reliability and quality will be a for- midable match against the Sea-Doo Spark in the rec lite segment. BRP's entry-level model has spurred growth of the PWC segment over the past 18 months, but Yamaha wasn't necessarily getting caught in the wake. In fact, WaveRunner sales, up 12 percent in 2016, have outperformed a PWC industry that has seen sales rise by 10 percent compared to the first half of last year. "It's been a while since everybody's been up. Up is up, so that's good for everybody," Yamaha Watercraft Group general manager Bryan Seti said during the 2017 WaveRunner press intro, also in August, at the Ritz-Carlton Reynolds on Lake Oconee in Georgia. "Yamaha is growing for one reason — because we're bringing new product to market. The products we're unveil- ing here, these products are in categories where we're losing customers. We're losing some cus- tomers to Spark, some customers to Sea-Doo. These products today are specifically targeted to those customers in areas in which we had not played. So our growth is coming from new products and new technology, not just flooding the market with more of the same product." The VX Series continues to be the brand's top-seller, with the FX Cruiser SVHO also tak- ing the No. 1 spot in the PWC luxury perfor- mance category. Strong sales for WaveRunner led Yamaha to expand its outside sales force from a staff of eight, to now 12. A new Wave- Runner operations team has been formed that serves as a conduit between the marketing team in Kennesaw, Georgia, and the factory in nearby Newnan. "It's allowing us to meet market demands a lot more than in the past, when we were defi- nitely more manufacturing-driven," Seti said. "We're also working with the Japan office on supply chain management, trying to reduce lead times to one-half or even one-third on engines and jet pumps, and really anything that we get from Japan, so that we can be more responsive to the market." WaveRunner dealers will also welcome a new consumer-facing website, launched dur- ing the Chicago meeting, that will enhance the customer's path of purchase with some intriguing technology. But websites were far from anyone's mind when Yamaha hosted the press intro. Not with guys like Brian Baldwin, current IJSBA world champion in the Pro Runabout Stock class, and Danny Hampson, the 2015 Pro Wakeskater of the Year who also can wow at wakeboarding and wakesurfing, ready to show off the new models and generally talk Yamaha boats and WaveRunners. The EX was everything I needed and more to have a whale of time in front of the multi- million dollar homes that grace the shores of Lake Oconee. It's replacing the V1 series that launched in 2005, and Yamaha Watercraft Group product manager Scott Watkins said to count on seeing the EX Series to have a similar decade-plus lifespan. It's as nimble as you need it to be, and with a top speed of about 50 mph, it's also plenty fast for me. We experienced the then-new TR-1 HO engine at the same event last year, and with slight modifications, the engine's 100 horsepower offers plenty of fun. Service department techs will like the fun that comes WaveRunner reveals all-new EX Series 12 • September 6, 2016 • Powersports Business www.PowersportsBusiness.com See Yamaha, Page 14 Bryan Seti, general manager of Yamaha's Watercraft Group, was all smiles when discussing the growth of the brand's boats and WaveRunners during the 2017 model intro at the Ritz-Carlton Reynolds on Lake Oconee, Georgia. PWC 12 • September 6, 2016 • Powersports Business www.PowersportsBusiness.com