Stingray 180RS and 200LX

I cast the lines at Birkenhead Point Marina as the pea soup fog trended west, while the traffic roared, screeched and tooted melodically over old Iron Cove Bridge. Alongside, a captain with a neatly pressed white uniform emblazoned with gold chevrons climbed the gangway to his charterboat.

Like the nameless skipper, I, too, felt a sense of purpose about my impending voyage. I had put a half-day aside for my annual Tour de Parramatta River. And, need I tell you, a year is a long time on a river of infamous change especially now that it's earmarked as an Olympic conduit.

Suffice it to say, new edifices have popped-up along the riverbanks like mushrooms after a midnight shower. In fact, I counted more tracts of levelled ground, more clay construction sites, more cranes and barges and tugs, more reworked wharves and marinas, and more public works of dubious interest than ever before.

But, hey, was I worried? No way. Not with more pressing things at hand...

The new Stingray 180RS and 200LX I drove along Parramatta River are simply one of the best examples going of production trailerboats.

MORE THE MERRIER
Like waterfront development, the Stingrays have evolved because of economies of scale. As much as I love to buy Australian, there's no arguing that volume, market share, and investment in tooling create more affordable boats. Even the way the dollar is, the benefits remain for local boat buyers.

Covering around 21,000sqft, the Stingray boatbuilding plant in South Carolina churns out literally tens of thousands of produc tion dayboats each year. Though it rates among the top 5% of American boatbuilders, Stingray is in some ways a big niche company.

Sure, Stingray produces 20-odd models that run the gamut of applications using all the popular layouts. Sure, you can buy bowriders, half-cabins, sportsboats, cruisers, fishing and skiboats. But what it concentrates on are trailerboats. All the Stingray models range are from 18-24ft long.

THE ROBOTICS RULE
Thanks to computer-driven efficiencies, a new Stingray model can be designed and built in just a few hours. A spot of lake testing later, perhaps a nip and a tuck here and there, and the new boat is ready to put in production.

Indeed, the way a Stingray is made is really very simple. To create a new model a designer uses a computer to draw the lines, a program to assemble the major components on screen, and a network to send the data to something called a multi-axis 3D milling machine.

While you're devouring a wiener and Dr Pepper for lunch, the machine makes a full-size model. Once that model is approved over dinner, it can be put in full production the following day This is how boats can be made comparatively inexpensively, in high numbers, and to a consistently high standard.

Further efficiencies come from using devices such as CNC routers, production-line robotics, flat-bed water-jet cutters, and programmable graphics machines. But more than just a high-tech boatbuilding plant, Stingray concentrates on customer relations, too. The company has, for example, an impressive, interactive website. Here you can enter your zipcode and find your nearest dealer; enter a wishlist with the model, engine and options and get a quote; find a virtual library of boat tests; source hands-on information; and even play with a performance calculator to find out your boat's probable top-end speed.

PERFORMANCE PLUS
On the nuts and bolts side of things, each Stingray hull has Klegecell and Coremat foam cores that's the good stuff internal fibreglass liners, treated marine-ply panels, rot-free moulded seat bases, and doubly-thick marine upholstery.

And each boat is built on something called the Z-plane hull, which features a step in the underside like a raceboat. Due to this step, the sterndrive legs and propellers sit high in the water for low drag and improved top-end speed.

I definitely rate performance as a strong point. While the Stingray 180RS and 200LX might look like a couple of cloned American bowriders, they perform more like two props from Water World. Consider turn of speed from the relatively small horsepower. With a frugal four-cylinder, 3.0lt, 135hp petrol MerCruiser engine, the 18ft Stingray was good for a wicked 88kmh on the speedo.

With a discernably smoother 4.3lt V-six, 190hp MerCruiser engine, the 20-footer roared along at a displayed 58mph (just under 100kmh).

Suffice it to say, in the confines of Parramatta River, these boats feel fast. But for a short brain snap in Hen and Chicken Bay where I acted the goat, I toured the river at more sedate speeds. Not that these are slow cruising boats.

The 20-footer sat happily at 65kmh at 3400rpm and 49kmh at 3000rpm, while the 18-footer will cruise all day with four people aboard at around 75kmh. These are faster cruise speeds than many more conventional hulls. Using a touch of in-trim, the boats also have excellent hole-shot.

With a fine entry and an optional fibreglass bow cover (fitted to the 20-footer), you should be able to tackle the harbour in both fair weather and foul in these Stingrays. Unlike some bowriders, they appear to have a decent amount of freeboard. While the bow tapers to a fine point, it quickly fans out to broad shoulders capable of supporting quite a load.

JUST SPORTING
Calm water or rough, fast or slow, the boats are dead easy to command.

Power steering, a sports wheel, and responsiveness to the throttle thanks in part to factory-matched propellers make both the 180RS and 200LX stress-free, sporty drives.

Indeed, the Stingrays should be on the short list of any prospective new bowrider owner. And with front-to-back seating, they are perfect for carrying freeloading families or hopeful friends. Their gregarious layouts make them perfect vehicles for dayboating.

The one shortfall was a lack of anchor locker on both boats, though they are otherwise exceptionally well-equipped. You get lots of soft seats and optional aft lounges, plush carpets, lockers for the wakeboard or waterskis, icebox, oversized drinkholders, and a stereo.

I also noted that deckware was a good solid grade, with the stainless rails around the bow thicker than those on some other imports. The dash was a highlight, with back-lit chrome-rimmed gauges and waterproof switches with internal lights, and excellent ergonomics. Only on the odd occasion did the leading edge of the windscreens obstruct your view.

THE GENE POOL
Just to make sure you feel part of the family, Stingray offers accessories including Actionwear and, get this, a set of 14-carat gold earrings. Its options' list is as long as a Chinese menu, though the boats are genuine turnkey models even in standard guise.

I'm not sure about the earrings, but thanks to production-boat efficiencies the 180RS and 200LX are certainly keenly priced. The 18-footer costs from $30,000 ride-away (plus trailer), while the 20-footer with a V-six engine starts at $40,000 (plus trailer).

Incredibly, delivery time is quoted as 10-12 weeks and that's anywhere in Australia.

Speaking of which, back in the land of builder's labourers, stop-work meetings and smokos, I can't see how the Olympic viaduct formerly the Parramatta River will be finished on time for the Games.

Not in 10 months, 10 years, certainly not before the Opening Ceremony in September. And not that I care. With the Stingrays, the drive is the highlight. For my money, the 200LX with the V-six MerCruiser, takes some beating.