Good news seems to be in short supply these days, but thankfully a little ray of sunshine came through our email inbox today. Even amid forced shutdowns and limited access to traditional commerce, personal watercraft enthusiasts are determined to get some time on the water – and that’s nowhere as evident than with the sales report from Yamaha Motor Corp. USA.

“As we expected, May turned out to be a monster month for us,” Yamaha’s media representative Andrew Cullen wrote to The Watercraft Journal. “Monthly WaveRunners sales in May were 156-percent of the prior year, a record month for Yamaha. Over the last weekend in May alone, Fri-Sun, we moved 3500 WaveRunners.”

This, considering restricted access to launch ramps in several states, as well as mandates for travel and otherwise, is incredibly impressive. Cullen noted, the Yamaha models most in demand were a nice cross section of the entire lineup: EXR, FX SVHO, GP1800R, FX Limited SVHO and of course, the family friendly VX Cruiser. What showed most peculiar was a massive boost to the SuperJet, which was up for the month at 146% of the prior year.

Wanting to keep the enthusiasm going, and quite frankly, get those “fence sitters” to jump off and commit to the 2020 WaveRunner they’ve been eyeing, Yamaha has extended its latest promo offer starting this past June 1st, and running through June 30.

It appears that COVID-19 is far more lethal than previously expected. But it’s lethality isn’t so much towards human lives (although one life is too many), but rather, to jobs and companies. To date, 36 million Americans are unemployed – an increase from 4% to 16% according to the US census. Businesses large and small are feeling the crushing weight of the forced closures, and sadly too many are collapsing under the load.

Wednesday, May 27th, BRP announced the termination of its Evinrude E-Tec and E-Tec G2 outboard engines. As the Sturtevant, WI facility will be repurposed for a yet-to-be-announced production line, BRP has finalized an agreement with Mercury Marine to continue to privately supply outboard engines exclusively for its boat brands – most notably Alumacraft, Manitou and its latest acquisition, Australian boat manufacturer, Telwater.

Lastly, BRP will be consolidating Alumacraft manufacturing into one single facility, namely its Saint Peter, MN location; consequently closing the Arkadelphia, AK plant. All of these changes will impact 650 employees globally. Already, a 10-week halt in production has reduced the production run for 2020, which has resulted in scarcity at dealerships. To offset this, some dealers in heavier-trafficked locations are taking to purchasing inventory from lower-traffic dealers just to meet demand.

Here’s the original press release:
Valcourt, Quebec, May 27, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — BRP (TSX: DOO; NASDAQ: DOOO) announced today it has re-oriented its marine business by focusing on the growth of its boat brands with new technology and innovative marine products. We will discontinue production of Evinrude E-TEC and E-TEC G2 outboard engines. Our Sturtevant, WI, facility, will be repurposed for new projects to pursue our plan to provide consumers with an unparalleled experience on the water.

We remain committed to our Buy, Build, Transform Marine strategy which has been underway since 2018 with the acquisition of Alumacraft and Manitou boat companies in the U.S., followed by the acquisition of Australian boat manufacturer Telwater in 2019.

“Our outboard engines business has been greatly impacted by COVID-19, obliging us to discontinue production of our outboard motors immediately. This business segment had already been facing some challenges and the impact from the current context has forced our hand,” said José Boisjoli, President and CEO of BRP. “We will concentrate our efforts on new and innovative technologies and on the development of our boat companies, where we continue to see a lot of potential to transform the on-water experience for consumers,” he added.

Discontinuing outboard engine business and signing an agreement with Mercury Marine
Following our decision to discontinue E-TEC and E-TEC G2 outboard engines, we have signed an agreement with market leader Mercury Marine to support boat packages and continue to supply outboard engines to our boat brands.

We will continue to supply customers and our dealer network service parts and will honour our manufacturer limited warranties, plus offer select programs to manage inventory. These decisions will impact 650 employees globally.

Pursuing new opportunities within Build and Transform phases of strategy
With this announcement, BRP will be positioned to expand its presence in the pontoon and aluminum fishing markets through technologically advanced solutions. We will leverage our track record of ingenuity through our R&D resources to enhance the boating experience with unique new marine products, such as the next generation of engine technology with Project Ghost and the next generation of pontoons with Project M, code names for new products we expect to transform the industry.

Maximizing operational and functional efficiencies
Lastly, we will consolidate Alumacraft operations from two sites to one. All Alumacraft operations will be transferred to St Peter, MN and our site in Arkadelphia, AR will be permanently closed. In addition, we want to upgrade the boat production facilities to reorganize manufacturing sites and apply the modularity model used elsewhere. This move is designed to enhance productivity and efficiency and to allow us to respond with even more agility to demand.

One of the great things about the PWC community is how it is a tight-knit community. We all share the same passion for riding and riders hardly ever shy away from helping out a fellow rider. With Sea-Doo, Yamaha and Kawasaki being the main producers in the PWC market, it is always exciting to see their new models and upgrades that come with them. However, just because the big three are the most common, it does not mean that there are other companies out there that are working hard to have their share of the market.

For those of you that do not know, Taiga Motors is a company headquartered in Canada and they are proud to say that they were the first ones to create an electric snowmobile in the world! With snowmobiles and watercraft sharing many similarities, Taiga wanted to wet their feet in the PWC world. And did they make a splash, their Taiga Orca was just recently awarded the prestigious Red Dot Award for Product Design of 2020 and a Red Dot Award in good design quality. This is a huge feat and it make sense once you see the Taiga Orca.

So what exactly makes the Taiga Orca special? Well, PWC with combustion engines push your craft across the water depending on how fast you choose. If you are wanting to do a full speed run, it may take a little bit to reach full speed since your engine has revolutions. Since the Taiga Orca is fully electric, you get an instant throttle response so you better hold on tight. With the fully electric and zero emission motor, it produces right around 180 horsepower.

While you may think this is a little low compared to competitor models, the entire craft weighs under 600 pounds! This means you can see a top speed of right around 64 mph which makes it the best power to weight ratio watercraft in the entire industry. It makes sense the Orca won the Red Dot Award for product design as the hull and top deck is made fully out of carbon fiber. The designers wanted to make this craft special and gave it unique and elegant lines to catch anyone’s eye.

No matter what the price of fuel is, it can become quite expensive to go out riding whenever you want if you have to keep stopping at the fuel pump. Whereas with the Orca, as long as you have a regular outlet, you can get an 80% charge in 20 minutes. The perfect time to stop and eat lunch before going back out on the water.

CEO and founder of Red Dot had a nice statement regarding the winners of the most recent Red Dot Awards, “The winners of the Red Dot Award have proved that they have created excellent products worthy of winning an award. The products won over the jury not only through their aesthetic, but also thanks to their incomparable functionality. With their designs, the award winners are setting new standards in their industry. I wish to congratulate them most sincerely on their success.”

The Red Dot Award for Product Design allows companies from all over the world to submit their products and be assessed by Red Dot. This year, there were over 6,500 products competing for the prestigious award. Because Taiga Motors has designed such a great product, their Orca will be added to the exhibition of “Design on Stage” in the Red Dot Museum. Whenever something is put in a museum, you know it has made a huge statement.

Taiga Motors has come a long way and their journey is not over yet. They are looking to continue to grow and are poised to receive more awards. For more information about the Taiga Orca, check out their website here. If you are interested in purchasing a Taiga Orca, you can pre-orderyou own today at a very competitive.

Watch Kommander Industries, co-owner Dustin Motzouris and his brother Tyron as they get underway on their PWC in search of a spot to do some bad ass race training. When they find the nearly ideal location, they set their course buoys and get busy lighting the course on fire!

Though the guys had to contend with placing the buoys in deep water, they crushed the course and had an awesome day of simulated race training on their stand-up skis. Motzouris towed his powerful Yamaha GP1 behind a WaveRunner while filming.

Dustin Motzouris (or Motz as he’s known) has raced for 25 years and doesn’t appear to be slowing down, especially on his Kommander Industries Yamaha GP1. The machine is a powerhouse of speed and is known for its stability at high speeds. It’s easy to maneuver at race speeds, thanks to the ingenious hull design.

The hull was visualized in a real world setting and then brought to life in a virtual CAD environment. Using the latest CAD technology, the team was able to create the perfect hull for optimal strength, fit, and performance.

The hull was shaped in such a way that it will lock in when cornering and riders would exert less energy during racing, which makes for faster laps for a longer period of time. Contact Kommander Industries for your custom GP1 build. The shop is located in Phoenix, AZ, where the multi-world champion Motz resides. He is itching to race again and looks forward to when it’s given the greenlight.

For now, he’ll continue training on his rocketship GP1 and developing more stand-up skis.

With summer weather approaching, don’t let that hot weather air rob your SVHO Waverunner’s airflow performance. Reduce your intake restriction with RIVA Racing’s Intake Manifold Upgrade Kit for your 2018-and-up SVHO-powered Yamaha.

Not only is this upgrade a must-have for any other performance accessories, but it is a beneficial kit alone without additional airflow enhancements. By removing the OEM restrictive mesh element, your airflow will increase, boost pressure can bump up by 1 psi, and horsepower is able to be unlocked.

According to RIVA Racing, the additional airflow and pressure will automatically be compensated for by the stock ECU so it is not necessary to make any other adjustments.

Check out the full list of features from this single upgrade in the announcement below from Riva Racing.

Our Intake Manifold Upgrade Kit for Yamaha SVHO engines delivers more horsepower by increasing air flow and boost pressure (+1lb).

Precision machined billet sleeve directly replaces restrictive mesh element that is prone to becoming dislodged in OEM plastic intake manifold.

Provides more low end punch and mid-range pull with improved reliability. This kit is designed for 2018+ Yamaha SVHO engines.

We offer other Intake Manifold Upgrade Kits for most Yamaha & Sea-Doo models. Shop RIVARACING.COM

– For free shipping in USA!
– Delivers more boost pressure & HP
– Improves reliability by removing OEM element
– O-ring design for positive seal.
– Includes hole saw & cutting fixture