ESCAPE
HIGH SEAS
The Right FORMULA Formula Boats’ SENSATIONAL new 53-foot 500 SSC family cruiser debuts Mercury’s 600-hp V-12 Verado outboard By Howard Walker The ghost of Don Aronow must be smiling at the awe-inspiring sight of Formula Boats’ newest flagship, the 53-foot 500 Super Sport Crossover, spearing across the water at an insane 60-plus mph. Prior to creating such iconic brands as Donzi, Cigarette, and Magnum out of his gritty Thunderboat Row factory on 188th Street in North Miami, Aronow—the undisputed king of go-fast boats—founded Formula Marine in 1962. He sold the company two years later, but not before his groundbreaking 23-foot needle-nosed Formula 233 had dominated the Florida powerboat circuit, winning the 56
grueling Miami-Nassau and Miami-Bimini offshore races. Aronow lived and breathed high horsepower, so the mere sight of this new $2.8 million Formula 500 SSC would have had him salivating. That’s because hanging off the back of this sleek, stylish, XXL-sized bowrider is a quartet of 600-hp Mercury Verado V-12s. The 500 SSC has the distinction of being one of the first boats to not only be designed around these truly revolutionary outboards, but to offer them at all. These V-12s boast two-speed automatic transmission and a steerable gearcase—the en-
gine itself doesn’t turn, just the lower section. Also impressive is that the engine is made to run 200 hours between oil changes and routine servicing, as well as a staggering 1,000 hours (or five years, whichever comes first) before more in-depth maintenance is required. No wonder they each come with an eye-watering $77,000 price tag: They’re a head-turning addition to a boat that already turns heads. “Super Sport Crossover” is a fitting description for this multitasking powerboat. It’s part
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