2010 Yamaha Sportboat 242 Limited S

By: Mike Milne

In a model year when many boat builders are backing away from new designs, Yamaha steps up to the plate with a new flagship for its sportboat fleet. And the 2010 242 Limited S is a home run.

The 242 has a pair of new 1.81-litre internal drive (water jet) engines, an all-new hull design and a layout that will appeal to anyone who can’t construct a sentence with the word “boating” without the word “fun.” It’s got space usually only seen in deckboats, performance and driving convenience that surpasses most sterndrives, and a watersports tower with speakers and lights.

While most big deckboats and bowriders provide two main lounging or activity areas, Yamaha creates a third by adding a centre walkway aft, two full-sized padded transom seats and a side-mount dinette table. Only inches above the water’s surface, the swim platform is also a great staging area for swimming, diving or watersports.

In the cockpit, there’s a companion seat that converts to a rear-facing lounge and spotter seat, a portable cooler with dedicated storage space, another dinette table location and an enclosed head compartment. Forward, the bow compartment is longer and wider than typical bowriders with cushions that create child-friendly forward “rumble seats” and a bow walk-through (or diving platform).

The physically low profile of the engines lets Yamaha maximize cockpit living space, but their performance is anything but low profile, providing snappy acceleration and a top speed of 46.7 mph at 7400 rpm. With a lower-pitched exhaust note than previous Yamaha sportboats that revved much higher,

the 242 LS is very quiet at cruising speeds between 25 and 40 mph. Handling is typical of most twin jet boats. It turns as tight as the driver and passengers want.

The 242 Limited S comes standard with Cruise Assist and WakeMode speed controls, plus a GPS based speed, navigation and information system that includes water depth and fuel flow data. A stereo system with six speakers on the boat and two on the tower will keep the crew rocking.

With a series of 24 footers in their 2010 lineup, Yamaha gives boaters plenty of choices. Priced from $49,493 for the SX240 HO to $57,014 for the Limited S, they all represent excellent value.

TEST BOAT ENGINE
Twin Yamaha 110.6 ci / 1.81 litre, inline four-cylinder, four-stroke gasoline inboards with electronic fuel injection, producing 180 hp each, driving internal water jet drives.

ACCELERATION (mph/sec)
0-20 / 3.9 ; 0-30 / 6.3 ; 0-40 / 10.38

TOP SPEED (rpm/mph)
7400 / 46.7

CRUISING SPEEDS (rpm/mph)
4500 / 16.8 ; 5500 / 30.1 ; 6500 / 40; 7,000/45

SOUND LEVEL AT CRUISE (5000 rpm)
Helm – 85 dbA ; Aft cockpit – 87 dbA

SOUND LEVEL AT TOP SPEED
Helm – 94 dbA ; Aft cockpit – 96 dbA