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Marine

V8 Wet Rod: The luxury yacht of personal watercraft?

By Ben Coxworth
July 03, 2014
V8 Wet Rod: The luxury yacht of personal watercraft?
A rendering of the V8 Wet Rod
A rendering of the V8 Wet Rod
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A rendering of the V8 Wet Rod
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A rendering of the V8 Wet Rod
It will feature a 16-foot (4.9-m) carbon fiber/epoxy body powered by a 300-hp 5.7-liter V8 engine
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It will feature a 16-foot (4.9-m) carbon fiber/epoxy body powered by a 300-hp 5.7-liter V8 engine
Strand tells us that the Wet Rod should be commercially available later this year, with prices starting at $49,000
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Strand tells us that the Wet Rod should be commercially available later this year, with prices starting at $49,000
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If you're a millionaire who wants the ultimate in opulence for your sea voyages, you get yourself a luxury yacht. However, what about those times when you're just playing around? Currently, you get the same Jet Ski-type thing as everyone else ... although there may soon be an alternative. Yacht designer Kurt Strand has just announced his forthcoming Strand Craft V8 Wet Rod luxury personal watercraft.

Presently in development, the vaguely naughty-named Wet Rod will feature a 16-foot (4.9-m) carbon fiber/epoxy body powered by a 300-hp 5.7-liter V8 engine. Its water jet propulsion system will reportedly take it up to a top speed of 65 mph (105 km/h).

It will feature a 16-foot (4.9-m) carbon fiber/epoxy body powered by a 300-hp 5.7-liter V8 engine
It will feature a 16-foot (4.9-m) carbon fiber/epoxy body powered by a 300-hp 5.7-liter V8 engine

Drinks (presumably bottles of Dom Pérignon) can be stored in an ice box under the seat, while larger items will go in a waterproof luggage box. Optional extras include wood or carbon fiber inlays, custom paint and/or wrapping, a custom trailer, a sound system, a chrome engine dress-up kit, and GPS navigation.

Strand tells us that the Wet Rod should be commercially available later this year, with prices starting at US$49,000. That's still a lot cheaper than his planned $25 million Strand Craft 122 yacht, which would come with its own supercar that could be stored on board when not in use.

Source: Strand Craft

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MarineLuxuryPWCWatercraft
22 comments
Ben Coxworth
Ben Coxworth
Based out of Edmonton, Canada, Ben Coxworth has been writing for New Atlas since 2009 and is presently Managing Editor for North America. An experienced freelance writer, he previously obtained an English BA from the University of Saskatchewan, then spent over 20 years working in various markets as a television reporter, producer and news videographer. Ben is particularly interested in scientific innovation, human-powered transportation, and the marine environment.

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22 comments
Bob Flint
Maybe fast on the water, but up on shore it looks like a beached whale.
Rehab
Kinda like the motorcycle with a V8, no reason for its existence. Good luck with this one!
BigGoofyGuy
I agree with Bob, it does look like a beached whale on land. It does not look like a PWC. it does have a look all its own.
BleedingEdge
Could it possibly have a more socially awkward name...
The Skud
OK if you have money to waste - I would rather buy the 2-seater version of the Gibbs ATV - that is even cleverer, you finish play, drive back to the campsite or SUV/trailer in a clearing out of the elements.
Mel Tisdale
Sometimes I wonder what planet these people live on. We are only a few years away from oil supply not meeting demand, no matter how hard the oil producers try. Yet we can have machines like this purely intended to frivolously consume as much of it as possible.
We are like very young children who have discovered a bag of sweets (for sweets, read oil) and are consuming them (it) without any thought for the future. We are metaphorically down to the last few sweets (think barrels) and still have no plans of what we are going put in the tanks of tractors and trucks, let alone toys such as this item. Perhaps Bob Flint's "beached whale" comparison might be even more appropriate than it first appears.
Jesse Jideofor
Lol. Good one @Mel Tisdale
Jay Finke
WOW ,, I love this thing, it's almost as big as my bass boat, and I bet it rides smooth, a jet ski will beat ya up bad in ruff water. heck you can use this as a tug boat, just strap some old tires on it. I want one !! nice build.
jerryd
As someone who designs, builds high performance boats of all type, this is about as useless for it's size as I've even seen.
Nor at 65mph is it that fast. No reason you need more than 100hp if designed right in much less space, weight.
I built a PWC when I was 15 as fast as this one with just 15 hp.
MonacoJim
Great style design, Poor practical design! When wet getting back onto this thing will need grab rails, I cant see any, and look at that instrument cluster, have these people never hit a wave that throws the driver down onto front? The instrument cluster is ready to deliver severe trauma to the head and upper body at the first big wave or beach hit. This is much like the "Skimmer" (http://www.gizmag.com/go/6864/) no grab handles, no security for the humans on board, slick designs like this would be hell when wet. The engine is too big and heavy for such a craft, how are those beached machines going to be got back in the water? wait for high tide? Put a driven rubber track on the base, like that new form of transport (http://www.gizmag.com/go/5638/) that way you could drive them back into the water and out into the yacht when you got there. These designers need to get away from the design pad and use something in the environment they are designing for, to get practical ideas.
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