The Lexus Sport Yacht Concept Floats Our Boat

When you hear “Lexus”, the image of a luxury sedan or sports utility vehicle probably paints a picture in the mind. One doesn’t normally equate the auto brand with a long hull torpedo-shaped yacht propelled by twin 5.0L V8 engines – each offering 440 horsepowers and sourced from the Lexus RC F coupe. Yet, here it is, a marine machine expression of the Lexus Design Centre in Japan.

The Lexus Sport Yacht concept made its global debut on January 12, 2017 at a Lexus-hosted “Through the Lens” global media event in Miami, Florida. Though a Lexus concept, the watercraft was actually manufactured by The yacht, built by the Marquis-Carver Yacht Group of Pulaski, Wisconsin.

We worked closely with Diesel Center Frabetti Design of Italy and with the Lexus designers and Toyota Marine engineers from Japan to ensure we met the exacting quality and performance standards Lexus expects when putting their name on a product.

-Josh Delforge, Marquis’ Vice President of Design and lead on this project.

The one-of-a-kind twin engine, 42 foot open sport yacht is as fast as it looks, capable of top speeds up to 43 knots (49mph for us landlubbers) thanks to its ultra-light carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic construction and the muscular duo of V8 engines (the same found under the hood of the Lexus RC F and new LC500 coupe).

The bespoke maritime machine hides a bevy of luxurious accoutrements one might expect from the Lexus brand, including a small galley with sink and stove, an air conditioned living compartment with sofas, air conditioning and 4G LTE/Wi-Fi info-tainment system outfitted with premium drivers, and the all-important head with a shower for keeping clean on the high seas. Don’t get too attached to the idea of saving up for one of these luxe yachts: Lexus is content for now registering the Sport Yacht Concept as a symbolic expression of the brand’s design language and engineering for now.