Deck Boats: Sales Plummet

Deck boats came about with a design that seemed to merge the pontoon deck “party boat” with the traditional bow rider boats typically used in open ocean or areas requiring more stability. Looking at the combo of all the good features from these two clashing designs, one would wonder why these boats wouldn’t be more popular. At one time these decks boats were “flying off the shelves”. Once he EPA revised their emission standards prices for these stern driven boats skyrocketed. As a result, manufacturers saw sales slow to a crawl.

Deck Boats: Sales on the Rise

Strolling through the vast array of different boats at a recent boat show we noticed a consistent trend. There were boats of every length, hull, engine, color. What seemed very common were the deck boats fitted with outboards. It seemed as though almost every deck boat had one. In fact there was one person there who mentioned that one of these deck boats had won last years boat of the year award. Can you guess what it had? On the back was a hefty outboard engine. Coming from an era where they all seemed to have stern powered engines, this was quite unique. stern powered on the other hand, was strongly lacking in presence.

Deck Boats: Why Outboard?

As previously mentioned, the primary reason deck boats sales dropped were due to the higher emissions of their common stern driven engines. Manufacturers are turning to outboard engines to combat this issue. This is allowing for less harmful properties going into the water which makes for a cleaner environment. We also see the design of the boats changing. They provided space to stand, walk around a little more, and lounge on the larger cushions; this made for an overall more comfortable experience. Much more space on the boat is opening up due to the engine relocation. Now with the safer emissions, more deck space, and consistent advancement in outboard technology, Deck boats have regained their value.

Click here for more information on some of the popular boating trends in 2017

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