Yamaha has released their new 2023 lineup and much like Sea-Doo, the trend is that there are not many changes for this year.
There are a few things of note that we’ll go over, but if you got a 2022 or even a 2021 you won’t feel like you missed too much.
We’re now really feeling the supply chain problems from the past few years, but it doesn’t seem to have slowed down Yamaha as much as Sea-Doo or Kawasaki, as they report building more units in 2022 than 2021.
Price Increase
Let’s get the elephant out of the room, Yamaha and all PWC manufacturers have increased the MSRP of all models, with many of them still keeping the extra surcharges.
Inflation has affected jet ski prices, and the cost to manufacture them keeps going up during the year, and thus why we also have surcharges. The manufacturer can’t change the MSRP once set due to legal reasons in many countries, so the surcharges are used to counteract the rising prices through the year.
The margins on jet skis isn’t as high as many people think. The real money is made in the accessories, and why Sea-Doo and Yamaha lean so heavily on new gear for your jet ski.
Rec Deck
Probably the most interesting change for Yamaha in 2023 is that all FX models will come with pre-drilled holes for the Rec Deck accessory platform.
The holes will be there, but sealed up until you want to add the accessory. This will make upselling and installing the Rec Deck so much easier, especially for the average customer.
This is one of those things that Yamaha should have done from the start, as the Sea-Doo basic LinQ system made adding the few accessories easier in comparison.
I can see Yamaha selling more Rec Deck and it’s accessories this year.
Even better is that Yamaha is adding the Rec Deck to the VX and GP lineup too. You can now carry more fuel, fishing rods, coolers and more accessories on your VX or GP waverunners.
FX & Speakers
All models of the FX, except for the base model, will come with Yamaha’s premium audio system that is controlled through the touchscreen.
The FX HO and FX Cruiser HO will come with the larger 5-inch color touchscreen. The FX SVHO, FX Cruiser SVHO and FX Limited SVHO will have the 7-inch color touchscreen.
The FX models with the speaker system will have the microphone for making calls with your smartphone, along with the USB port and LED light in the glove box.
Color Changes
Most models stayed the same, but with a few color changes.
For example, the GP lineup stayed the same, but now sport a great Azure Blue with Cyan color options. You still have the option for black, but these dark blue colors are just spectacular and really mixes it up a bit!
The VX line up does sport a few new colors, a lot of them looking better than the 2022 models.
GP SVHO
The GP SVHO can have the stereo system added for an extra cost, but it keeps the smaller 5-inch screen and can’t add the microphone for making and taking calls from your jet ski.
You have the nicer dark blue color with the GP SVHO, and the black option is black with “acid green”.
Future Watercraft
All jet ski manufacturers for 2023 won’t be releasing anything drastically new, so don’t feel like you’re missing out if you’re waiting for your watercraft to come in.
It’s probably safe to say that 2024 won’t be ground breaking either, with the supply chain shortages and with everything going on the jet ski innovation world is certainly on pause for a few years.
The manufacturers tend to be 5 years ahead for future product planning, and 2020, 2021 and 2022 has delayed those 5 year ahead products. Stuff that would have come out in 2025 will more than likely be 2026 or 2027 as the ripples take effect.
If there is a time to buy a jet ski, it would be now because nothing huge will change as the ripple of the past few years runs its course.
What will be most interesting from all of this is how manufacturers adapt. They all adjusted how they make jet skis and where they get parts. In the “before time” they could be more sloppy as anything you wanted could be here in a predictable time frame. Even if things return to the way it was, I doubt manufacturers will not be planning for more black swan events.
This will lead to changes to future watercraft, and it will be interesting to see how they adapt.