Yes, Suzuki is a Japanese brand! But it is in the format of an American show that we had the right to the presentation of their new 350 HP outboard engine. For the occasion, the engine manufacturer had gathered in Miami all his staff who worked on the creation of this engine to talk about it with the world press. About 150 people were waiting for the announcement of the event without really knowing what was going to be presented to us.
Toshihiro Suzuki
An American-style show
After the presentation of the Suzuki managers with in particular the speech of Toshihiro Suzuki (CEO and son of the founder) and the engineering team to present us the various research and innovations present on the new engine ( see the subject on Bateaux.com to discover the technical details of this engine ), we had the right to discover the novelty under a howling music accompanied by smoke and bright lights. A very successful American show!
A well-crafted presentation
4 years of work to launch a new 350 hp
Yasuharu Osawa, Executive General Manager, (in impeccable French!) told us about the genesis of the project:" I have had the chance to work since the beginning of the project. It all started over four years ago. During the developments, we had many surprises that slowed down the final production a lot. We would have liked to get out sooner. We worked a lot on the engine noise to get to today's noise. "
Distributors Involved
Christophe Vasse, Director of Suzuki Marine France, adds:" We worked hard with the Japanese to develop this new engine. We were asked to define the specifications and our technical manager went several times to Japan to test and validate the progress of the developments. A year ago, my manager even came back and told me the inverter was slamming so hard he was afraid he'd broken it! Today you could see how sweet and silent he is. This is to show our involvement in the developments; and it is the same for the whole range. "
Toshihiro Suzuki, Christophe Vassas and Yasuharu Osawa around the DF350A's exploded body
France has great sales potential
The large outboard power market is being tricked by the United States. Hence the launch of this 350 hp on American soil in Miami. But Christophe Vasse adds:"France represents the second market in sales potential. Hence Suzuki Marine France's involvement and teamwork with the Japanese"
Christophe Vassas heuruex of this launch
Where and at what cost?
Christophe Vassas:"The engine will be visible on our stand at the Cannes boat show in September 2017, but to see it in the water on a boat, we will have to wait for the Genoa boat show in Italy (21/09/2017). For end customers, the engine will be available in our network from September." And to the question of the selling price of this outboard, he elude with a big smile:"The price is not yet definitively defined. I can only tell you that the 250 hp is worth 25 000 €, the 300 hp is worth 30 000 €..." That's all we'll know. We let you imagine how much the 350 will cost..
