Marine Technology Inc. (MTI), builder of go-fast catamarans and luxury center-console vees, has announced plans to add a third model to its outboard-powered line of cats. Randy Scism, president of the Wentzville, MO-based manufacturer, said a new 44-foot cat will soon be joining the company’s popular 340X and 390X models.
“The 340X was a home run for us, and everybody loves it. And then we did the 390X, and that was a home run as well,” he says. “So we’re gonna try again.”
Scism said the new boat is a response to the many MTI clients who boat offshore and on large lakes. “We have so many clients boating on big water,” he says. “They’re in Florida traveling to the Bahamas, and on Lake Michigan. They’ve been asking if we could do a bigger version, so this is just the next natural progression for us.”
MTI is designing the new model from the ground up, with all new tooling, CNC and molds, with a goal to have the new 440X ready to display at the 2023 Miami International Boat Show. The result will be a similar but roomier configuration compared to its smaller siblings.
“The cockpit will be a little bit bigger,” Scism explains. “There will be more room inside the boat. Obviously, the running surface will be longer. The overall size will be bigger. It’s going to have more versatility. We feel like our 39′ is the best handling and running boat out there, both in adverse conditions as flat water. We want to build upon that give our customers a little bit more boat.”
Like their predecessors, the 440X will be powered by a pair of Mercury Racing 450Rs—at least, until the famed engine builder unleashes an even beefier outboard to the marketplace. In the meantime, Scism tells Speedboat that he expects the twin 450R package to be an excellent fit the 440X. “I think it will work just fine for us,” he says. “I hope it’ll run great and handle even better than our 390X does.”
Randy Scism’s daughter, MTI client relations director Taylor Scism, tells Speedboat that she’s stoked about the new model. “I’m really excited about it,” she says. “There are some things that we’ll be changing to make it quite different. But we’re continuing to go full force with our 340X and 390X as well—they’re fantastic boats, and the 440X will be a great addition to the overall family.” Taylor, of course, captured a Factory Stock class World Championship last season racing with Johnny Tomlinson in an enclosed-canopy version of the 39, called the 390XR. She is also in contention to be an international offshore racer in the new E1 World Electric Race Boat Series for the debut 2023 season.
MTI continues to market its line of I/O-powered catamarans, with five different models (38′, 40′, 43′, 48′ and 52′) in pleasure and offshore versions. “They’re still going strong, and we’ve got lots of those in production,” Scism says. “But we’re trying to give people an inboard ride with the outboard motors.”