Jet skis are an adventurous and exciting way to kill time, but what’s the fastest jet ski in the world?
The fastest jet ski in the world is a heavily-customized SeaDoo RXP-X 300, built by a British racing company. The super-powered “158 Black Edition” can reach speeds of almost ninety miles per hour and reaches sixty miles per hour in just three seconds.
Read on to learn more about this impressive piece of equipment, and how much it costs.
Wrist Work Out
James Bushell is the driving force behind the world’s fastest performance jet ski. He has a considerable legacy in the world of jet skiing, being a bona fide world champion.
Together with a racing company located in the United Kingdom, Bushell worked to design the ultimate jet ski. The collaboration produced the Black Edition 360, the fastest jet ski in history.
That was in 2013, and by 2020 it still remained unbeaten.
On their website, 158 Performance explained that the Black Edition 360 starts off life as a regular SeaDoo – an RXP-X 300. They strip it down to its bones and rebuild it with racing-quality carbon fiber.
Then, they remove as much weight as possible from the body of the machine. They tweak the engine, add an upgraded cooling and exhaust system, and a string of bonus features.
Ultimately, the jet ski comes out of the rebuilding process with a top speed of almost ninety miles per hour. It boasts three hundred and sixty horsepower, driven by a massive 1630cc engine.
The craft is capable of reaching sixty miles per hour over the water in just three seconds. Reportedly, that’s faster than a Ferrari 458.
Any vehicle with this amount of power would be dangerous, but that risk is multiplied by the jet ski element. You’re only held on by the strength in your arm, something which James Bushell himself addressed.
After testing the Black Edition 360 for the first time, he parted with a warning message. He said, “It practically pulls your arms off – this isn’t one for the weak wristed.”
While there are some powerful jet skis on the market, nothing can beat the Black Edition 360. Its power output is like nothing ever seen, and it skips across the water totally unimpeded.
Although, you’ll need to put up some serious cash to enjoy one. They’re super-exclusive, owing to 158 Performance only having built around one hundred of them.
And they cost upwards of thirty-two thousand dollars.
Comparable Competitors
It goes without saying that the Black Edition 360 sits proudly at the top of the table. However, there are offerings from competitors that try their best to sit as close to it as possible.
Jetdrift.com explains at length the criteria that go into measuring and judging the power of a jet ski. They highlight the clear fact that it’s not at all easy to say for sure the top speed of any such vessel.
This is due to factors such as speed limitations, the rider weight, and style, and the conditions of the weather and water. One ride might reach top speeds of sixty miles per hour and the next, sixty-five miles per hour.
However, estimates can be made, and tests can be completed. On paper, the closest competitor to the Black Edition 360 is the Yamaha GP1800R HO.
This production jet ski can reach a top speed of around sixty-seven miles per hour. It accelerates to thirty miles per hour in just under two seconds.
It isn’t alone in these measurements, though. It’s extremely common for high-end jet skis to top out at sixty-seven miles per hour.
Although, sixty-seven miles per hour on a jet ski is still a deeply exhilarating ride. Further, the Yamaha GP1800R HO won’t break the bank as the Black Edition 360 would.
You can get started with a GP1800R HO for as little as twelve thousand dollars. That’s less than half the cost of a Black Edition 360.
Theoretically, if you performed the same upgrades on the GP1800R HO as on the Black Edition 360, they’d end up the same. The former isn’t even supercharged, and it has a capacity of three riders.
There’s plenty of room for adjustment there, especially considering the Yamaha has a curb weight of 865 pounds. The Black Edition 360, on the other hand, has a weight of 620 pounds.
So, could a new contender be on the horizon? Watch this space.