For the past nine years MasterCraft’s X45 has dominated the 24-foot inboard boat market – but since its creation, boating has undoubtedly changed. To keep up with the fast-paced lifestyle, MasterCraft has retired the legend and replaced it with another. Presenting the X46: the all-time game changer.
Dean Castle reviews the latest MasterCraft at Misverstand Dam in the Western Cape.
Legacy, power, and precision all in a neat package – that’s the new MasterCraft X46. One of the things you’ll notice is that this newcomer has styling lines borrowed from the X-Star, the X10 and the X30 – but don’t think that this craft is just an up-scaled version of its predecessors. No sirree, MasterCraft acknowledge that a 24-foot boat has an altogether different raison d’etre in life to their smaller models … so while the X46 does borrow some of the exclusive traits of the other craft in the line-up, each MasterCraft has a unique purpose-driven hull to give each boat its own fine-tuned character.
Deck layout
Even though the X46 is only a foot bigger than its predecessor, it brings a wealth of new features and design trademarks that you could only expect from MasterCraft. Let’s take a look at some of the standout features on offer.
Industry-leading seating solutions are a hallmark of any MasterCraft boat, and you’ve guessed it: the X46 is no exception. Up front, the bow seating (which is just as roomy as the bigger X55!) has been sculpted to hold you snugly when you’re facing rearwards to watch the action; or sit forwards and enjoy the fold-down arm rest which is always a hit with the ladies. The awesome new gullwing transom seat storage gives passengers access to tubes, vests, ropes and just about anything else you’ll need for that day out. Seating versatility is extended to the stern where you can configure the best seat in the house to your liking; meanwhile, the rear centre flip seat has three options: you have the conventional forward facing position, or you can flip it over for the rear facing position; or give it a little tug to set it flat and you’ve got a great area to lie down and get some sun.
Staying with the seating, a huge design aspect of the X46 was to make this a very social boat, so MasterCraft added in rear seats that flip up from the stern sunpad so you can sit and watch the action from the front row – or just hang out while your friends swim and have a good time on the water. Between these seats you’ve got easy access to get in and out of the boat with a nice step system that follows up- and into, the boat.
