I have an 06 AR230 HO, and I absolutely love it. The swim platform is really
what sold me on it, as a jet driven boat wasn't even on the list. The HO
version is more efficient and gets slightly better gas "mileage" than the
standard engines. There's loads of storage, and PLENTY of power. This thing
is out of the hole in less than 3 seconds, and up to 30mph in about 4
seconds. Low speed steering sucks on all jetboats, but I added steering fins
http://www.cobrajetsteering.com/ and now it handles like my old I/O did.

My boat throws an average wake... nothing a good boarder would get too
excited about. However, my buddy's MasterCraft throws an exceptional wake,
and that great wake cost him an additional $40,000! I think that answers
your question about value.

Go to www.yamahajetboaters.com and read all you can about these boats.

Good luck with your decision and purchase!

--Mike

"Ron" wrote in message
...
I'm looking for a sport/wake/runabout boat... I'm sold on the jet
direct drive technology. It seems that Yamaha and Sea Doo are the two
contenders.

So, anybody care to comment on the Yamaha 212x vs Sea Doo 230 Wake?

...or the Yamaha AR 230 vs Sea Doo 230 Challenger

... or any other Yamaha / Sea Doo matchup?

I'm concerned about a few things:

1) Reliability (of course)
2) Wakeboard performance
3) Value / Resale
4) Speed
5) Maneuverability
6) Performance in chop
7) Conveniences (e.g. stereo, swim platform, etc.)

I didn't see this topic debated since 2000 when searching the archives
and things have changed radically since then.