Two years ago, on a lake somewhere in Florida, I had my perception of speed completely rewired aboard a Sea-Doo RXP-X 325. You see, in the US, there's a 'gentleman's agreement' between personal watercraft (PWC) manufacturers and the Coast Guard that limits PWCs to a 70-mph top speed. So, performance PWCs will all get to the 70-mph speed limit, but how they get there is what they're playing for.
Sea-Doo just rewrote the playbook with its new RXP-X 350.
It took the RXP-X 325's class-leading, 3.4-second 0-60 mph time to rewrite my understanding of acceleration, while it turned almost every orifice of my body into RAM air ducts. But for MY27, Sea-Doo increased the unit's power output by 7.7% or 25 hp and, as a result, dropped the RXP-X 350's 0-60 mph time to just 3.1 seconds. Even more impressively, Sea-Doo managed to achieve all this without dropping a whole new motor into the model.
Photo by: Sea-Doo The RXP-X 350 used the three-cylinder, 1,630 cc, supercharged engine found in the RXP-X 325, but to call it the same engine wouldn't be fair, because Sea-Doo heavily revised the unit and propulsion system. The latest iteration of the Rotax 1630 ACE engine features a new booster wheel, which has been increased from 72.5 mm to 72.5 mm, increasing air volume and boost output. Another major factor in increasing the power output is the new, higher rev limit of 8,500 rpm, up from 8,250 rpm on the previous model.
You can't just start jacking up performance hardware parts without strengthening the engine as a whole. Sea-Doo revised the jet-pump system hardware and optimized the conrod and bolt designs to deal with all the extra stress. Much like a motorcycle or car, you can't you won't get the full benefit of upping the power without upgrading the chassis alongside it.
For the RXP-X 350, Sea-Doo uses the same T3-R hull as its predecessor, but the brand has revised the ride plate, which will help transfer the extra hp into a reduced 0-60 mph time as efficiently as possible. The 2027 RX-X 350 has an MSRP of $23,699 in the US, which is an increase of $3,500 over the outgoing RXP-X 325.
