Why winter is a great time to buy a jet ski

Winter may be the quietest time of year for water sports, but it’s also when you can save thousands on a brand-new jet ski, as dealers clear out stock ahead of the next wave of models arriving for summer.

Although Kawasaki coined the Jet Ski name, the term is now widely used by the public and media to describe personal watercraft, or PWC.

With that aside, all three major brands – Sea-Doo, Yamaha WaveRunner and Kawasaki Jet Ski – typically offer sharp deals during the Australian winter.

This year, though, a perfect storm has created even bigger discounts than usual.

Many jet ski dealers are overstocked due to a significant sales downturn over the past two years, following a pandemic-driven boom in demand during international travel restrictions.

Expecting continued growth, all three major brands ordered aggressively – but two major shifts have triggered today’s substantial savings.

Demand for new jet skis in 2024 dropped by about 18 per cent compared to 2023, and is down roughly 36 per cent from the 2022 peak of nearly 10,000 annual sales.

At the same time, the used market was flooded with near-new jet skis, as many buyers from the pandemic years decided to sell after using them less than expected, often at low prices to move them quickly.

Market leader Sea-Doo has been hardest hit, accounting for nearly seven out of every ten jet ski sales in Australia.

Sea-Doo is still running out 2024 stock – many of which are virtually identical to the 2025 models, even in colour – with discounts ranging from $1000 to $3000.

Key Sea-Doo deals (valid until 31 July 2025) include:

2024 Sea-Doo GTR 230: Save $1000
2024 Sea-Doo Explorer Pro 170: Save $1000
2024 Sea-Doo Explorer Pro 230: Adventure pack valued at $2533
2024 Sea-Doo GTX Limited 300: Save $3000
2024 Sea-Doo RXT-X 325: Save $1000
2024 Sea-Doo RXP-X 325: Save $2000
2024 Sea-Doo GTI SE 170: Save $2165
2024 Sea-Doo GTX 230: Save $1000
2024 Sea-Doo Wake Pro 230: Save $2000
2024 Sea-Doo Fish Pro Sport 170: Save $1000
2024 Sea-Doo Fish Pro Trophy 170: Save $1000

Kawasaki Australia is also clearing excess stock, with savings between $1500 and $2500 on the following models (until 31 July 2025):

2024 Kawasaki STX 160: Save $1500
2024 Kawasaki Ultra 160: Save $2000
2024 Kawasaki Ultra 310: Save $2500

Yamaha WaveRunner Australia recently offered low-interest finance deals until 30 June 2025.

However, Yamaha appears to have managed its inventory better than its rivals, with no July offers currently advertised. Still, new deals could emerge in August if sales need a further boost.

Sea-Doo and Kawasaki often extend monthly deals, while Yamaha tends to stick to its published deadlines.

You’ll often get better pricing, longer warranty periods, or low-interest finance. Always check the offers pages on each brand’s Australian website.

Warranty periods only begin upon delivery – Sea-Doo offers two years, Yamaha has conditional three-year coverage, and Kawasaki offers five years.

Sea-Doo’s year-to-year changes are often cosmetic only, making last year’s model hard to distinguish from the latest release.

When it comes time to sell, the model year (not the purchase year) determines its age, potentially lowering resale value.

Some models receive performance or feature upgrades from year to year.

Yamaha and Kawasaki frequently update colour schemes, which can date a prior-year model more noticeably.

Buying a prior-year jet ski in winter is often the smart choice if you’re chasing value. The main exceptions are high-performance models, which tend to see more regular updates; and luxury models, which tend to get more equipment.

But for the most part, the skis are the same – just in different colours, or in Sea-Doo’s case, sometimes no change at all.