STINGRAY 180RX

Test Drive Test Engine: Volvo 3.0L Gi | Test Prop: 21" Aluminum | Test Load: People - 225 lb, Fuel - 10 gal | Top Speed: 48.0 MPH @ 5,000 RPM | Time to Plane: 2.8 sec. | Time to 30 MPH: 6.8 sec. | Min Planing Speed: 19.3 MPH @ 2,500 RPM RPM MPH SOUND LEVEL 800 4.0 68 db 1,000 4.7 71 db 1,500 6.3 79 db 2,000 8.3 84 db 2,500 19.3 84 db 3,000 25.3 86 db 3,500 29.9 85 db 4,000 35.8 92 db 4,500 42.9 95 db 5,000 48.0 97 db

Stats Length Overall: 18' Beam: 7'1" Dry Weight: 2,115 lb. Seating/Weight Capacity: 7/1,070 lb. Fuel Capacity: 21 gal. Max HP: 135 MSRP (test boat): $9,995 Notable Features • A trailer can be purchased for approximately $1,000 from your local dealer. • Ample storage under beam-to-beam sun pad. • Bucket seats are adjustable for optimum legroom. • Molded dash and passenger console feature full instrumentation and wood-grain trim. • Safety-glass windshield is gracefully curved for a sleek look and good visibility. • A 12-volt accessory plug in driver dash. For less than $10,000, the 180RX delivers a safe and exciting ride for first-time buyers.

It doesn't seem possible that a sporty bowrider capable of crossing the lake at nearly 50 mph could be had for the same price as the new three-seater personal watercraft. But the Stingray 180RX makes it so.

What do you get for the nine bills and change? A sharp little boat with seating for seven that reflects the best of the Stingray in-house upholstery shop. Bucket seats are roto-molded and won't rot. There's full instrumentation at the helm and a reliable Volvo stern-drive engine at the transom.

Yet it's only $9,995. After testing this family starter boat we thought it would be ideal for boaters who want to keep a boat at their lakeside cottage.

The Z-plane hull features strakes that are reverse-molded into the hull rather than added-on. The result is a quick, efficient hull with a solid bite in the turns. Put the 180RX in a hard-over turn and it can stick in its arc better than you can stick to your seat.

The water was calm on our hot and humid test day, so we chopped up the lake by plowing wakes at sub-planing speed in a crisscross pattern that would demoralize most skiers — and boaters, too. We then turned around and went through the mess with throttle wide open and slipped through with confidence.

It isn't often we see an 18-foot boat that runs this well with a four-cylinder 3.0-liter stern-drive, but this one performed admirably. We were impressed that it dropped to plane in less than three seconds.

There's a ski locker on board the Stingray 180RX and we think buyers will use it. More skis can be stowed under teh gunwales. A ski tow hook at the transom makes it easy to pull skiers, tubers and board riders. The stainless-steel reboarding ladder on the platform will get them all back in the boat with ease.

Stingray boats come with a five-year limited warranty, a three-year gelcoat warranty against blisters and a two-year engine warranty. All that for a boat and motor package (trailer optional through your dealer) that can be had for just $9,995.