Review: 2003 MasterCraft X-Star
Drive
As you'd expect from a MasterCraft, taking a seat in the cockpit is a very comfortable feeling. The dash looks great with all the gauges in full view, the throttle is positioned just right, Perfect Pass is ready to take over the speed-control duties and the seat is plenty cushy for your bum.
Once you fire up the engine (LQ9 - 6.0L 385hp EFI in our test boat), you'll find it to be very well muffled beneath the rear deck. The boat maneuvered very well at slow speeds around the dock and docking on the driver's side was a breeze. As is the case with most inboards, due to the left-hand turning prop, the rear of the boat tends to go to the right when in reverse, which aids in docking on the driver side and makes docking on the passenger side a little trickier.
Out in the open water, the X-Star also handles very well. The bow rides a bit higher than most boats even after getting the boat on plane. When bringing the boat to a stop, the bow drops down to a normal level, although, because of the lines on the boat, it may appear to sit a bit low. As long as the driver knows what they're doing, there is no danger of scooping any water with the pickle-fork front end.
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The low-end power was a little disappointing with the boat fully loaded. However, it may have been due to the prop selection rather than a lack of engine power. The OJ Stainless 14/18 prop on our test boat, in combination with 1.5:1 gear reduction, may have been too much prop for this boat. It could probably stand to be changed out with something that could push a little more of the engine's horsepower toward improvement of the holeshot, especially if the user will be adding a lot of weight to the boat. This will make it easier to get the rider out of the water.
MasterCraft Comment: Most interested riders have realized that all props are not created equal. Some use the same prop all the time for a wide range of circumstances and some switch props when changing from wakeboarding to cruising, etc. It's a matter of personal preference. The 6.0L tested comes standard with a 14/18 prop to prevent the engine from hitting the rev-limiter when the boat has an empty load. It's common to reduce the prop size when you run with a heavy load and ballast. We recommend a 14/18 for consumers, but we set up the boat differently for Pro Tour stops. We tweak it a lot based on the conditions at each stop, as well as Travis Moye's [Pro Tour driver] and the pro riders' suggestions. NASCAR drivers set up their cars different from the average consumer, but they don't divulge their secrets for obvious competitive reasons and liability.
Once you've got the rider out of the water and the Perfect Pass has kicked in, giving a good pull is effortless. As mentioned before, the slow-speed handling is excellent, so swinging around to pick up the rider is no problem.
The most surprising part of the X-Star's drive came when crossing over large waves. It slices through them like a hot knife through butter. When pulling a double up, it's a pleasure to cross over the wakes without having the hull slamming into them and shaking everything in the boat. This ability to handle waves is especially impressive considering the sturdiness of the X-Star wakes (see Wake Section) we were crossing.
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