What Kind Of PWC Is Right For You?
When you’re looking for thrills and chills out on the open water, you can’t go wrong with a personal watercraft. From Waverunner to Sea-Doo, there are a great many personal watercraft (or PWC) on the market these days, which can make it hard to figure out which one is right for you. If you’re confused about your options, help has arrived in the form of this guide from the fine folks at H&W Marine. We have two dealership locations, in Marshall, Texas, and Shreveport, Louisiana, to serve our customers looking for great PWCs from brands like Yamaha, Sea-Doo and more.
Seating Needs
First off, you need to determine how many people you plan to take with you on your watercraft adventures. Do you want everyone going to have their own PWC? That can get spendy, and not everyone is able or willing to operate them. So you might look for models that offer more seating options, allowing you to bring others, including children, who can ride behind you as you drive.
The types of PWC that can seat multiple people are generally the larger and wider models, which are not as fast or as easy to maneuver, but this can be great for novice riders and people looking to have fun rather than go at the highest speeds. You can find models that seat up to four people in some cases, with removable modular seating that can turn the back of the PWC into a larger swimming platform when you don’t have passengers. Generally, though, most personal watercraft that seat multiple people have room for up to three passengers, including the operator.
If you’re looking to ride your PWC alone and you’re well-versed in how they operate, you can look at the shorter and narrower models available that only have room for the operator. These models will go faster than the multi-seat models and be more nimble in the water. Shorter and smaller PWC allow you to do tricks if you’re so inclined and experienced enough to attempt them safely.
Buying New Or Used
Your next concern when buying a PWC is whether you want to go with a new or used model, based on your available budget and other concerns. New models will obviously come with all the bells and whistles and a warranty to protect your purchase should any manufacturing flaws come to light. If you’re not as tied to having a brand-new vehicle, though, or you like the more vintage styles, you might consider buying used to save some money that you can then put towards gear and maintenance concerns. However, if you buy used, you’ll want to make sure you’re buying from a reputable dealer who has done the necessary repairs and inspections on all their used stock. You might even want to have a professional mechanic independently inspect the used PWC you’re looking into purchasing, just to make sure nothing is amiss.
Features
Each style of PWC has its own set of features and amenities, so you’ll have to figure out what you need in a personal watercraft before you pick one. The larger and wider models offer swimming platforms so if you’re interested in sunning yourself or relaxing in the water with the engine off, you should go for one of this style. However, if you’re more concerned with speed and the ability to do tricks, a narrower and shorter PWC will serve you well. Some PWCs come with charging bays for your phone and waterproof storage options which can hold your first-aid kit and other necessary supplies. If you want to listen to music, you might look for a Bluetooth-enabled sound system on your PWC which isn’t standard, but they are available. Check out some models and make note of the features you like so you can determine what’s most important to you before you plunk down your cash.
Ready to look at some great personal watercraft? Our showrooms are well-stocked with a great variety of personal watercraft, both new and used. We carry the latest Sea-Doo and Yamaha styles of PWC. H&W Marine serves all of western Louisiana and east Texas with our two dealership locations in Shreveport and Marshall, respectively.