Video: The 550-Horsepower Turbo-Powered FXR500 Is a Beautiful Thing


What do you get when you combine Japanese engineering, American build-quality and German precision? You get a Yamaha WaveRunner making more horsepower than some of the world’s fastest sports cars. That’s what. We only recently heard of CMJ4Tec (Custom Made Jetski) and their 500-plus-horsepower Yamaha FXR500. Although recently featured in a copy of Jet Ski Magazine International, we’re figuring you’re like us and are learning about this amazing machine for the first time, so here’s the quick version:

This is no ordinary FX SVHO. Retaining the top NanoXcel deck, CMJ cuts 170 pounds by using a carbon hull.

The turbocharged machine begins life as a 2014 Yamaha FX SVHO. Building upon the stellar 1,813cc four-cylinder, four-stroke, CMJ’s initial goals were to eke out the maximum power in addition reliability. And as we know, force-fed four-bangers aren’t terribly reliable at those kinds of speeds.

The block was bored over to 86mm x 78mm and sleeved, as the reciprocating assembly was equally modified with a knife-edged, rebalanced crank, new redesigned domed pistons. The top end equally was re-engineered with a pair of custom ground cams, and titanium valves and springs.

Unique to this build and proprietary to CMJ is the CCCS turbo header (or Co-Centric-Collector-System). Spooling this monster upwards to 22-to-28psi is a Garrett GTX 3076RS Turbo capable of spitting out 640hp. Also specific to this build is CMJ’s custom aluminum intercooler. A quartet of big injectors and a programmable Motec M1 ECU feed the beast with two brains – double maps serve to offer exact holeshots each round while the second map is activated by switch during the race.

There’s a metric ton of other innovations on this craft (like being 100-percent carbon fiber) and running a massive 14-vane 165mm Skat-Trak pump, so make sure to go to their site to read up. But until then, enjoy watching this killer in action below:

Share this post

Kevin Shaw

Editor-in-Chief – kevin.shaw@shawgroupmedia.com Kevin Shaw is a decade-long powersports and automotive journalist whose love for things that go too fast has led him to launching The Watercraft Journal. Almost always found with stained hands and dirt under his fingernails, Kevin has an eye for the technical while keeping a eye out for beautiful photography and a great story.

7 comments

Add yours
  1. Mitch 5 April, 2021 at 21:35 Reply

    No Kevin, Will is right. Just because the average idiot calls all PWC’s “Jetski” doesn’t mean someone who is “editor in chief”, of even the most irrelevant PWC news outlets, should perpetuate that inaccuracy.

    You should be part of the change, help improve society and the industry by refusing to call Yamaha’s and BRP’s “jet skis”….

    People in the car racing world don’t call all hot rods “Mustangs”. Just because people in the 70’s and 80’s were too ignorant to know any better doesn’t mean we should still be making that mistake in 2021..

    But we both know you don’t have the balls to lead a change.

    • Kevin Shaw 5 April, 2021 at 22:05 Reply

      No, Mitch you’re not only wrong but espousing an irrelevant point. Proclaiming that The Watercraft Journal is irrelevant (despite having more readership that ANY OTHER media outlet – and I can produce the receipts) and then believing I personally have the cultural clout to effect a deep-rooted change in the cultural lexicon makes you both a hypocrite and idiotic.

      People referring to all personal watercraft – regardless of manufacturer – as a “jet ski” is half a century old. Interestingly, it’s also regional, as many in the Southern states refer to all PWC as “Sea-Doos” – even fabricating the verb “seadooing.” What you’re asking is for societal change tantamount to demanding all people call carbonated drinks as “pop” regardless of region.

      So no, I don’t give two s**ts whether people call your Yamaha a “jet ski” – big f**king deal. And anyone who gets this worked up about such a feckless, insignificant topic sadly has wasted far too much of their life and energy on nothing. Literally nothing.

Post a new comment

No Thanks