If seeing the World’s Fastest Pontoon Boat in action recently, topping speeds of 114 miles per hour, has whetted your appetite for something a bit quicker, then how about a list of super-fast pontoon boats that you can buy today?
In days gone by, pontoon boats were just floating decks with some nice seats and a low horse power engine, with speeds of just 20 miles per hour if you were lucky. In more modern times things have really taken a step up with built-in wet bars to wake boarding towers, with some high-performance models on the market.
Even more recently there has been an explosion in what speeds pontoon boats are capable of due to advances in engineering, boat building materials, and production techniques.
The designers at the top brands have really upped their game, meaning you can now buy very fast production pontoon boats that can be more than an equal for some of the v-shaped hulls out on the water. You will need to spend a lot of money though, and opt for the sports packages and improved engine specs… these are not going to be cheap!
If you want to buy the fastest pontoon boat on the market, then check out the list below where you can see a list of models that are coming off the production lines and are available to the public.
I’ve listed them in order of speed counting down from number 7 to number 1, with the fastest coming right at the end, so you will need to keep reading downwards. Whilst you won’t hit the world record speed that Brad Rowland achieved in 2013, you will certainly have the quickest pontoon on the water on any given day with speeds of up to 50 miles per hour possible.
Number 7: Berkshire Sport RFX9 3.0+
Top Speed:Â 50 Miles Per Hour
Of all the fast pontoons, this one looks like something that you just know is going to shift some serious speed.
Number 7 in our list is is a solid and super-fast pontoon boat that’s decently priced given the specification. You’re still looking at a six-figure price tag though!
Unlike the other quick pontoons on this list, the Berkshire Sport RFX9 has just one engine, but it really does pack a punch with plane achieved at 14 miles per hour in just 3.75 seconds. Open it up some more and you can hit fast speeds of 30 miles per hour in 6.9 seconds – but there is still more in tank (and then some).
- Length: 25 feet 7 inches
- Width: 8 feet 6 inches
- Dry Weight: 3,000 pounds
- Passenger Capacity: 14 people
- Fuel Capacity: 52 gallons
- Engines: Mercury 300 horse power Verado Four Stroke
- Drive: Outboard
- Propeller: Mercury 14.7″ x 16″ pitch 3-blade stainless steel
- Price: $107,400
- Website:Â berkshirepontoon.com
Number 6: Bennington QR27 10 Wide
Top Speed:Â 51.3 Miles Per Hour
Bennington Marine make superb high performance boats – with the model above being a fantastic example.
With twin Yamaha F250 outboard motors, this high-end Bennington is capable of hitting speeds of 51.3 miles per hour, with 30 miles per hour being achieved in a stunning 4.2 seconds.
You can buy a production model with the Elliptical Sports Package that provides power-assisted hydraulic steering to help you handle the massive power that comes with this boat.
Don’t be worried about hitting wakes or entering rough water at speed, as with most super-fast pontoon boats, the Bennington QR27 comes with lifting strakes to help with flat turning and stability on the plane.
The Yamaha console is perfectly designed for speed too, with precise engineering giving you the control you need when hitting those top speeds.
- Length: 28 feet 3 inches
- Width: 10 feet
- Dry Weight: 4,702 pounds
- Passenger Capacity: 18 people
- Fuel Capacity: 83 gallons
- Engines: Twin Yamaha F250 250 horse power four-strokes
- Drive: Outboard
- Propeller: Mercury 15.5” x 17” pitch Saltwater Series 3-blade stainless steel
- Price: $193,367
- Website:Â benningtonmarine.com
Number 5: Premier Pontoons 290
Top Speed:Â 52.8 Miles Per Hour
Premier Pontoons are a family run business who know how to build a high-performance pontoon.
With a 600 horse power engine and 29 inch long tritoons, this is one of the “slower” production pontoon boats on our list. Did we say “slow”? Well, that’s all relative because this boat can hit top speeds of nearly 53 miles per hour… doesn’t sound so slow now does it?
With a wide 10 foot beam and a huge amount of comfort features, it’s one of the best luxury pontoons on the market, that will also combine that with fast performance. In fact, it was voted to be one of the top 10 pontoon boats of 2013. Go take a look!
- Length: 29 foot 3 inches
- Width: 8 feet 6 inches
- Dry Weight: 3,500 pounds
- Passenger Capacity: 18 people
- Fuel Capacity: 47 gallons
- Drive: Outboard
- Website:Â pontoons.com
Number 4: South Bay Super Sport 925
Top Speed:Â 57.3 Miles Per Hour
It’s sleek, it’s super… it’s South Bay. They look fast, and drive fast.
With the 600 horse power Mercury Verado engine, time to plane is timed at 2.4 seconds, with speeds of 30 miles per hour recorded in a super-fast 5.6 seconds – push it harder though, and you can get just over 57 miles per hour on this bad boy.
It’s a pontoon boat that screams attitude, with powder-coated aluminum, a wakeboard tower, and powerful twin Mercury Verado 300. It’s fast. Very fast.
- Length: 27 feet 9 inches
- Width: 8 feet 6 inches
- Dry Weight: 3,500 pounds
- Passenger Capacity: 7 passengers
- Engines: Twin Mercury Verado
- Drive: Outboard
- Website:Â southbaypontoon.com
Number 3: Manitou 25 X-Plode XT SHP
Top Speed: 62.8 Miles Per Hour
Speed and style combine to X-Plode with the Manitou range of high performance boats.
The Manitou X-Plode range are all capable of hitting speeds in the 50s, with this particular model going even further. These models have a unique design with a larger center tube mounted over an inch lower than the smaller side tubes. This design technique creates differential of over five inches, which when combined with lifting strakes offers insane performance over three tubes.
The twin Evinrude 300 E-Tec outboard motors let you get to the plane in 3.3 second, eventually hitting a maximum speed of nearly 63 miles per hour.
If you opt for the Sports Handling Package (SHP) you will benefit from improved handling and cornering, all controlled via the precise power steering on the helm.
- Length: 26 feet 8 inches
- Width: 8 feet 6 inches
- Dry Weight: 4,160 pounds
- Passenger Capacity: 13 people
- Fuel Capacity: 90 gallons
- Engines: Twin Evinrude 300 E-Tec
- Drive: Outboard
- Propeller: RX4 15″ x 22″ 4-blade stainless steel
- Price: $172,500
- Website:Â manitoupontoonboats.com
Number 2: Harris Crowne SL 250
Top Speed:Â 63 Miles Per Hour
High performance and high-end luxury features abound with the Harris Crowne SL 250 Twin Engine.
In second place we have he Harris Crowne SL 250, which is quite simply stunning. There’s no shame in being a runner up though, as it ranks as one of the fastest production pontoon boats on the market, with a top speed of 63 miles per hour. Yes, you heard that right.
With a sleek and contoured nose, it looks like it’s built for speed, which is confirmed by the stats; you can reach 30 miles per hour in just 5.6 seconds. It’s super-fast, looks great, and has a price tag to match.
- Length: 27 feet 2 inches
- Width: 8 feet 6 inches
- Dry Weight: 4,640 pounds
- Passenger Capacity: 11 people
- Fuel Capacity: 93 gallons
- Engines: Twin 350 hp Mercury Racing Verados
- Drive: Outboard
- Propeller: Mercury 21″ pitch 3-blade stainless steel
- Price: $185,100
- Website:Â harrisboats.com/crowne
Number 1: PlayCraft Powertoon X-Treme 3110
Top Speed:Â 65 Miles Per Hour
It looks stunning, and will be the fastest pontoon you will ever see out on the water.
And here is our winner in the battle for the world’s fastest production pontoon boats!
This manufacturer certainly has a desire to be known as building the fastest production pontoon boat, and they have achieved that with the Powertoon X-Treme 3110. When we talk about high-speed pontoon boats, PlayCraft are the name that will always crop up, and deservedly so.
With most high-speed pontoons, you will notice that they are on three logs or tubes, commonly known as tritoons.
PlayCraft don’t play that game though, and instead use the standard two tube design, but they are designed to trap air between them. This unique design approach creates lift to make the boat perform more like a modern powercat would handle in the turns.
On deck you will see bucket helm chairs, which give the pontoon a racing feel, with fast speeds to match. It truly is the fastest pontoon boat on the market.
- Length: 31 feet 6 inches
- Width: 10 feet
- Dry Weight: 3,500 pounds
- Passenger Capacity: 15 people
- Fuel Capacity: 100 gallons
- Engines: Twin Mercury Verado 400R
- Drive: Outboard
- Propeller: Enertia 19″ 3-blade stainless steel
- Price: On application
- Website:Â playcraftboats.com
See the PlayCraft Pontoon in Action!
Just take a look at this video below where the PlayCraft Powertoon X-Treme 3110 is taken out on the water.
Handy Hint: For most pontooners, you won’t need these speeds. Instead check out average pontoon boat speeds here instead.
Pros and Cons of Having a Fast Pontoon Boat
Now that you know the top 7 fastest pontoon boats that you can get your hands on, you may be wondering exactly what opting for a fast pontoon boat means and the pros and cons of doing so.Â
Pros of Having a Fast Pontoon Boat
Of course, one of the great advantages of having a fast pontoon boat is that you can go fast! But there is another that you may not have thought of.Â
A faster pontoon boat will create a bigger wake, which means more options for water activities such as wakeboarding, waterskiing, and tubing.
Cons of Having a Fast Pontoon Boat
On the other hand, there is really only one downside to opting for one of these fast pontoon boats.Â
This is simply because your fuel won’t last as long when you’re going fast, meaning that you will spend a bit more cash on gas than you would on a slower boat.Â
Conclusion
As you can see, it is possible to buy a pontoon boat that will exceed speeds of 50 miles per hour, with all of our top 7 super-fast models comfortably beating the 50 mph challenge.
However, these models certainly don’t come cheap, but thankfully are available on the used market at a greatly reduced mark-down in price – they do tend to depreciate quite rapidly.
