Sea-Doo Spark Trixx: Watercraft Review
A trick new package for the affordable Spark adds more fun, excitement and agility- Hitting new heights in the Personal Water Craft market
You can't miss the new 2017 Spark Trixx. If not launching from the water — tail walking, power sliding, doing 180-degree hops, jumping waves and 'submarining' — and they're just the tricks we pulled off at the world launch in Tampa, Florida — then looking sweet in the distinctive Candy Blue and Chilli Pepper colour combo.
Of course, this is the forte of Bombardier Recreational Products (BRP), the big Canadian company expert at making deliciously consumable recreational craft. This new 2017 Spark two-seater with 90hp Rotax 900 ACE HO engine and Trixx Package has a keen $10,099 (msrp) in Australia, where we get the world's first stock for our 2016 summer. Get on it.
Hailing from the Rec Lit range, which includes the original Sea-Doo Spark (review) released three years ago — a $7800 game changer credited with bringing tens of thousands of new riders to the sport — the Spark Trixx features some cool kit in a clever package that is transformative.
With the ultra-light two-seater Spark platform, 90hp Rotax 900 ACE HO engine and three key enhancements designed to get the watercraft easily airborne, Sea-Doo gives its entry-level offering even more youthful exuberance and freestyling appeal.
Sea-Doo says the raison d'être for the Trixx was to create a whole new ownership category. The average age of a Spark buyer is over 40, but millennials are the target of this new-age fun, in particular, those looking for a challenge, keen to share their stories, and wanting something that's easy to learn.
Given the culture of wave jumping and wake surfing, helped along by the instant fame of social media, the Trixx could be the ideal vehicle to get you noticed. We do forecast the Trixx will fuel a passionate new fan base.
More than an A-B 'ski' and one-trick pony, this Trixx has real purpose. The tricks aren't all new, mind you, but today's new riders are seeing them for the first time and able to jump right on into the groove. Go online, post and compare your tricks.
BRP hopes legions of new followers mount "top this" challenges and, in the wake of our world-first rides at the #SeaDooLife Beach Party and media gig in Tampa Bay, FL, we await the viral clips of serious airborne Trixx action.
Using the original 160kg-passenger-rated, two-seater Spark hull, with the Austrian-made 90hp Rotax 900 ACE HO engine, not the de-tuned 60hp base ACE model, the Trixx offers plenty of bang for your buck.
The combination of the Polytec plastic hull and the inline three-cylinder four-stroke 900 ACE HO engine — both lightest in the market — ensures power-to-weight performance and low running costs. Just a tank-and-a-half (45 litres in total) was burn over two days of media riding.
The exclusive features on the Trixx are not found on any other production watercraft. They include Sea-Doo's fast stopping Intelligent Brake and Reverse (iBR) system and its Variable Trim System (VTS) as standard.
There is a trick new handlebar
with adjustable riser reaching up to 15cm higher than the Spark, step wedges for supporting your feet at the back of the footwells, and 10 per cent more out-trim range in the VTS (plus two per cent more in-trim), not to mention that exclusive colouration!
Sea-Doo's D-Sea-Bel system dampens operating noise along the way, as does the Polytec hull material, while the electronic Intelligent Throttle Control offers Touring (smooth acceleration) and Sport (quick response) modes via the
integrated iControl combo dash dial.
This way, you can dial-up the performance to suit your riding style, which on the Trixx is bound to be freestyle. Just remember that most states including Queensland, NSW and Victoria require that you keep 200m from shore when cutting loose and riding this way.
The Spark hull is a relatively short and light platform, meaning it's nimble, with a shallow V-shape to
maximise efficiency. It's easy to manoeuvre thanks to iBR, playful thanks to the engine combo and VTS, plus low maintenance due to that Polytec material, a recyclable, low density, high-impact polypropylene with glass-fibre reinforcements. Yes, plastic. The watercraft's Exoskel provides minimalist architecture, rigidity and weight reduction.
The handle grips with palm rests are a nice design touch, while the wet-grip footboard and knee pad add to your lower comfort. The large multifunction digital information centre on the dash is easy to read and, as with most things Sea-Doo, ergonomics are a high point, leading to intuitive operation at at-one riding.
The Spark Trixx has a tow hook and rear grab handle for your passenger (don't do tricks when they're aboard), plus optional reboarding step, along with a standard bilge pump kit and flush kit. It's all packaged up and ready to go.
The 1.6lt glovebox is welcome but storage can be boosted with an optional 28lt front bin. Leave it out if you want to maximise water drainage.
One other thing: the key parts from step wedges, the VTS system, handlebars and riser mechanism are available for retrofitting to 2017 and later Sparks. You can also add some of the kit to earlier models, we're told.
Last but not least, servicing access was good withe screw-off ports and sub-seat access, while the hull and deck are simply bolted together. You can effect repairs to a damaged hull up to a certain point, but the Polytec material has an amazing impact resistance. It bounces off stuff.
The 900 ACE HO, the lightest and most compact watercraft engine on the market today, drives the Spark Trixx to a top speed of almost 50mph (80.4kmh).
It's snappy acceleration for a base model Sea-Doo helped by the excellent power-to-weight ratio.
The Rotax engine hits 8000rpm at wide-open throttle, but maximum torque is back at 6500rpm, which means there’s plenty of mid-range grunt as well as trigger-happy hole shot.
The big difference with the Trixx over the standard 90hp Spark is that additional 10 degrees of out-trim from the VTS. This is accessed by a couple of quick clicks of the "up" arrow button. This takes you straight to trim position 9 from as many that are available. Two more quick clicks of the down trim arrow and you're back to neutral trim.
The handlebars can also be adjusted on the fly or while you're bobbing about, lifting an extra 7.5cm over the standard 7.5in height premium. Move the handlebars up and down to suit your tricks. The rear boot wedges are angled to 60 degrees in the footwells to let you plant your weight out back on your heels.
Together, these things increase your COG and launch angle and pop you vertically with just a simple quick squeeze of the trigger. The willingness to launch is immediate, available to diminutive riders and kids, thereby broadening this craft's rider appeal and novelty value.
In minutes, you too will be doing tail stand and then walks, hops and spins and, before long, you are bound to see some serious air. One can only imagine launching on waves and wakes and the 'summersaults' to come. Its a fun, wet, water ride.
Without the optional Convenience Package storage bucket in the bow, the Trixx has a very clean Exoskeleton hull perfect for submarine tricks, too.
Shift your weight forward and outboard in the turn then power up as you bury the rail and bow. However, it's not quite so willing to submerge compared to other Sea-Doos due to the inbuilt buoyancy in the bow. You might need to sit on the bow facing aft for this trick.
Pop back up and the water drains efficiently, rushing like a rapid though the hull. From plumbing new depths you are back hitting new heights again. And so it goes.
We found the Spark Trixx to be a hoot mid-summer in Florida after 20 hours flying from Australia. It's a get-wet experience and a heck of a lot of fun from the energetic BRP design team.
The playfulness costs a premium, about $2300 over the base $7800 Spark pricing, but this new Trixx is a purpose-built Sea-Doo that rewards rider input. With very little effort, you can ramp-up your performance, impress your fan base, and enjoy a much-needed expression session at the end of the week. It's a rush and you can use it in a small area (subject to regs) going nowhere much at all.
Everyone, even kids and slight women, are able to ride the Trixx and pull-off cool tricks. You can tow from it, too. And with the candy colour and decals for 2017, the Spark Trixx fires up sitting still and parked on the beach.
After successfully sparking the watercraft market three years ago, the Spark has a new entertaining brother. The Trixx ramps up the fun while remaining in the affordable league.
For Sea-Doo, the Trixx a new way to #sparksomefun. For riders, the sky's the limit. Show us what you go. And don't forget the hashtagging.
>> Accessible performance
>> Easy vertical launching
>> Overall trick package
>> Intuitive operation
>> Ergonomics and handling
>> Cool styling
NOT SO MUCH
>> Plasticky feel though it is a budget watercraft
>> Not the biggest fuel capacity or range from 30lt tank
>> Pick your stage as not everyone will appreciate your tricks
>> Restrictions on freestyle riding close to shore (<200m) in most Aussie states
Specifications: Spark Trixx
Price: $10,099 msrp and about $11,500 drive away on trailer with registrations and jackets.
Key Features: Intelligent Brake and Reverse (iBR), extended range variable trim system (VTS), handlebar with adjustable riser, step wedges, exclusive coloration
Length: 279cm Spark two-up hull
Beam: 118cm
Height: 112cm
Weight: 192kg
Storage: 1.6-litre glovebox, plus optional 28-litre front bin
Fuel: 30 litres
Fuel Type: 87 octane
Ride Capacity: 160kg
Engine: 90hp Rotax 900 ACE HO
Engine Type: Naturally aspirated 899cc four-stroke engine, with three cylinders and four valves per cylinder.
More at www.seadoo.com.
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