2011 RZR or 2011 X2

[talltigeguy]

We owned a MC X2 for 2 seasons and we just traded it in and bought an RZ2. We have always loved Mastercraft boats (for as long as I can remember), but when we started getting more serious with surfing, we realized that we were severely handicapping ourselves with the MC. As hard as we tried, adding ballast in every possible combination, we simply could not get a good surf wake out of the Mastercraft. I then demoed a number of other MC boats, to see which one would give us the surf wake we wanted. We kept demoing and demoing the MC boats (X25, X35, X45, etc), until one day a friend of mine took us out in his RZ2. It took about 10 minutes to figure out that we needed to get the Tige. Mastercraft builds a great quality boat with a killer interior, but their hulls simply don't produce a good surf wake (not even close). In addition, the MC towers are absolutely horrible. Anyway, if surfing is even remotely a priority for you, don't even look at MC boats. Tige is the way to go.

To keep the record balanced, I have owned an X45 and the surf wave was very respectable. But this thread is not about that boat.

The MC forum has plenty of guys who seemed to have love for their X2's I would suspect that you should have a similar thread on that site. They posted some decent pics of the surf wave and wakeboard wakes. But I don't think any of them get a surf wave comparable to the RZR. I would take the Tige tower any day over the power tower from MC. it is just another item waiting to break. It would be pretty hard to turn down free service for the warranty period.

For reasons that boggle the mind, the 5.7L Ilmor engine is rated at 320 HP. It is fuel injected, has the same displacement as the PCM, and in all likelihood performs as well. The Tige hull will allow you to be a bit more efficient, but I personally believe that it will be a wash in the engine department.

I will just use the word interesting to describe that the MC is less expensive. There is something unusual about the situation.

[dom w. forte]

Pay close attention to drivability, MC drives like an Impala, and Tige like a Corvette with Caddy suspension, I cant stress that enough.
I attribute some of the handling to a lack of tracking fins on the MC and the rest to hull design.
Watch the steering reaction time left and right ,I can make a MC cavitate the prop, ill throw you out of the seat in a Tige.
As far as engines, yes there both Chevys, thats not the problem, its marine application at this time, Illmor I believe needs some time to get hours on the water and see if they have everything worked out, they build good performance engines but that doesnt equate to pulling lots of loaded up ballast.

[Clax]

To keep the record balanced, I have owned an X45 and the surf wave was very respectable.

I would agree that the X45 surf wake is very respectable, but even if you are a die-hard MC fan, it would be hard to justify the cost of an X45 that has a surf wake that is "respectable", when someone can spend far less on an RZ2 (or an RZR) and get a surf wake that is "amazing". When surf wake is a priority in a boat purchase, I can say with hands-on experience that MC is not a boat that can compete favorbly in the marketplace (and I learned this the hard way, having to trade in my X2 after only 2 years of use). MC needs to look at a full hull re-design in order to achieve a better surf wake. I know that the new X30 has been released claiming to have a good surf wake, but I have yet to see any footage of surf wakes that are impressive. I'm sure MC will make the necessary changes to be more competitive in wake surfing (which is the fastest growing segment in this market), but as of today, they are lagging behind other manufacturers. I would rank Tige, Centurion, Malibu and Nautique ahead of MC (solely in terms of surf wake).

[talltigeguy]

I would agree that the X45 surf wake is very respectable, but even if you are a die-hard MC fan, it would be hard to justify the cost of an X45 that has a surf wake that is "respectable", when someone can spend far less on an RZ2 (or an RZR) and get a surf wake that is "amazing".

Comparing the X45 to the RZR is not the same. Calling the X45 surf wave very respectable was just to not sound like I am trumpeting MC on Tige's website. I guess that was not exactly accurate. The X45 has a great surf wave. I personally liked it better than my Tige 24V and my malibu 247.

According to the OP, the MC costs less...so I can only generalize that in his area the X45 is going to be the same cost as an RZ4?

Bashing an entire line of a manufacturer as being poor surf boats is way off the mark.

[Clax]

Comparing the X45 to the RZR is not the same. Calling the X45 surf wave very respectable was just to not sound like I am trumpeting MC on Tige's website. I guess that was not exactly accurate. The X45 has a great surf wave. I personally liked it better than my Tige 24V and my malibu 247.

According to the OP, the MC costs less...so I can only generalize that in his area the X45 is going to be the same cost as an RZ4?

Bashing an entire line of a manufacturer as being poor surf boats is way off the mark.

So, if the X45 has a "great" surf wake, then I guess it safe to say that the RZ2 has an "insanely incredibly awesome" surf wake? I tested the X45 in countless ballast configurations (I WANTED to buy another MC, that is the truth), and I found that the RZ2 is on another planet altogether, giving you a competition level wake with very little effort. This was shocking to me, as I have always been a Mastercraft fan, and wanted to stay with the brand. As I have said, there are many things that I like better about MC boats (interior finish being one of them), but the surf wake simply isn't one of them. Do you know any serious surfers who would choose an MC first, out of the other options out there? I don't. Sorry, that's not bashing, that's just the reality. Even people at MC that I talk to recognize that they are behind the curve in surf wakes, so this isn't a big secret or a conspiracy for me to tarnish their brand.

[chadsanchez]

Thanks for all of the input ...

We did demo the MC X2 on Saturday and we thought it handled pretty good ... I thought the precision on steering was pretty right on. It produced a "good" wake for wakeboarding ... we loaded up the stock ballast and it produced a "good" wave for surf ... I thought? This is of course coming from a soon to be 1st time boat owner.

The mastercraft interior was super nice ... of course. The boat we demo'ed didn't have the power tower and it didn't have perfect pass or the digital screen. If we were to go with MC ... it would be a different X2 (still 2011) but it has a power tower and has the perfect pass w/ digital screen. We noticed on Saturday that the tower does rattle quite a bit and it's a BRAND NEW boat 1.0 hours! They claimed "every tower" will shake a little bit.

That boat (2011 X2 w/ power tower, 2 tower speakers, perfect pass, 5.7 Ilmor 320 hp, pro package) is only 67 k walk out ... this is with a single axle trailer. This is 2 k cheaper than the RZR ... ???

The RZR will be tested on wednesday! I cannot wait ... me and my wife absolutely love the Tige ... but want to test it out before we purchase ... The RZR has the 5.7 PCM 343 hp ... alpha z flex paint ... 4 tower speakers ... 1600 lb ballast swivel board racks ... who is jealous? Yup ... we can't wait!!!

I still want to hear everyone's input on the price of MC and the RZR ... why is the MC cheaper? Isn't MC always overpriced? I'm afraid I'm passing up a deal with the MC because of strictly the price.

Also ... looking out for resale down the road ... which direction if MC name going and where is the Tige name for resale?

Thanks!

[Bruizza]

I was shocked how much closer prices on the MC, Bu, Tige than I expected them to be. One reason the x2 might be so cheap is because they redesigned the top deck for 2012 so you'd be buying the old design. Plus a single axle trailer is cheaper. Does the RZR have a single or dual axle trailer?

[robert theisen]

Thanks for all of the input ...

We did demo the MC X2 on Saturday and we thought it handled pretty good ... I thought the precision on steering was pretty right on. It produced a "good" wake for wakeboarding ... we loaded up the stock ballast and it produced a "good" wave for surf ... I thought? This is of course coming from a soon to be 1st time boat owner.

The mastercraft interior was super nice ... of course. The boat we demo'ed didn't have the power tower and it didn't have perfect pass or the digital screen. If we were to go with MC ... it would be a different X2 (still 2011) but it has a power tower and has the perfect pass w/ digital screen. We noticed on Saturday that the tower does rattle quite a bit and it's a BRAND NEW boat 1.0 hours! They claimed "every tower" will shake a little bit.

That boat (2011 X2 w/ power tower, 2 tower speakers, perfect pass, 5.7 Ilmor 320 hp, pro package) is only 67 k walk out ... this is with a single axle trailer. This is 2 k cheaper than the RZR ... ???

The RZR will be tested on wednesday! I cannot wait ... me and my wife absolutely love the Tige ... but want to test it out before we purchase ... The RZR has the 5.7 PCM 343 hp ... alpha z flex paint ... 4 tower speakers ... 1600 lb ballast swivel board racks ... who is jealous? Yup ... we can't wait!!!

I still want to hear everyone's input on the price of MC and the RZR ... why is the MC cheaper? Isn't MC always overpriced? I'm afraid I'm passing up a deal with the MC because of strictly the price.

Also ... looking out for resale down the road ... which direction if MC name going and where is the Tige name for resale?

Thanks!

As far as resale they should be very close in value.As far as price i can't say why the MC is cheaper .All the X2'S i've seen are higher than a RZR comparable equipped.Maybe your MC dealer really wants to sell his boat.

[JreisRZR]

The difference between the boats here was 30k, TIGE the cheaper. It sounds like you get a bit more boat for the money with the TIGE though they are similarly optioned

[chadsanchez]

The Tige has a tandem axle trailer ... yeah it's crazy ... the MC dealership here is selling the boats at cost "supposedly" ...

[Bruizza]

Trailer is A ton of the price difference then add in the bigger engine and you are doing better on the Tige price.

[Clax]

Regarding resale value, both Mastercraft and Tige tend to hold their values relatively well, if you option the boat properly. In comparing the X2 and RZR for resale value, I would guess that the RZR would hold its value better, given that it is a newer design. As with cars, boats that have a newer design platform will typically hold value better.

With respect to the towers, I guess "technically" your MC dealer is correct (every tower will "shake a little bit"). But, some towers are very well engineered and the movement will be barely perceptible, and others will be very noticeable. In comparing the MC to the Tige, you will be able to draw your own conclusions.

Good luck!

[houstonshark]

The RZR will be tested on wednesday! I cannot wait ... me and my wife absolutely love the Tige ... but want to test it out before we purchase ... The RZR has the 5.7 PCM 343 hp ... alpha z flex paint ... 4 tower speakers ... 1600 lb ballast swivel board racks ... who is jealous? Yup ... we can't wait!!!

There's a special in the Tige store right now on some pretty sweet beach towels. I think they say that quantities are limited so you may want to go ahead and place your order. I have a feeling you'll be making a tough phone call to the MC dealer on Thursday that you are buying the Tige...

[chadsanchez]

I can't wait to make that phone call!

[Nobody]

Pay close attention to drivability, MC drives like an Impala, and Tige like a Corvette with Caddy suspension, I cant stress that enough.
I attribute some of the handling to a lack of tracking fins on the MC and the rest to hull design.
Watch the steering reaction time left and right ,I can make a MC cavitate the prop, ill throw you out of the seat in a Tige.
As far as engines, yes there both Chevys, thats not the problem, its marine application at this time, Illmor I believe needs some time to get hours on the water and see if they have everything worked out, they build good performance engines but that doesnt equate to pulling lots of loaded up ballast.

Yea Yea Yea....but which boat has the quality of a Toyota?