2018 212x versus 2019 and overall size on trailer

[stevenk2]

What are the differences between the 2018 and 2019 212X? Also, what is the overall length, width and height on the trailer? Will it fit through a standard 7-foot garage door (with the tower folded, of course)?

 

[stevenk2]

I did some digging online and on the forums here, and from what I gather, the absolute minimum height you can get the 212X down to is 7' 6" (90") with the caster mod on the tongue of the trailer and the tower folded completely (possibly with the retaining cables mod?). The info I dug up was on older models, so I was somehow hoping that the 2018-19's by some miracle of Yamaha design might be lower? All that being said, I measured my garage door opening last night, and the clearance is actually 1 inch shy of 7 feet at 83", so there's no way I'm going to get the boat in even at the minimums. My only hope would be to leave it covered out in the driveway during boating season, then remove the wheels and tires and put it on dollies to get it in the garage for storage during the off season. Even at that, I'd still need to confirm the clearance needed when it's on dollies so that there's no surprises.

I was also reading that some folks have flipped the trailer axles so that they ride on top of the springs instead of under them, which supposedly gives about another 4" of clearance - not sure if that's a wise move or not? I don't know how that would affect the ride, but it seems like you'd probably need to reinforce that setup somehow so that things don't break down the line.

I'm not finding any source with a comprehensive list of the differences between the 2018's and 2019's, but I gather from some pics I've seen online that the Connext screen has been changed slightly. It looks like they may have gotten rid of the row of physical buttons under the screen and gone completely touchscreen controls on the 2019's with a slightly larger screen. Hull/tower color choices appear to have changed as well - the 2018's were either red or green, the 2019's look like blue and grey. Beyond that, I'm not certain of other changes - if anyone had more info on those, that'd be great, as well as any problem areas on the 2018's that might have been addressed with the 2019's (or vice-versa if there were new problems introduced with the 2019's).

 

[JDRacing]

I'll take a crack at some of these questions. With the tower folded on my 2018 212X, the minimum height was about 103". Extending the cables to about as far as one can might bring it down to about 90". I have my cables extended so it's about down to 92" folded. See the thread on extending tower cables in this same forum for details. You'll need another 8-10" or so to get into your garage, which seems like it will be a challenge.

As far as changes from 2018-2019, I don't think there were many, beyond color choices and a new jet nozzle which incorporates lateral thrust outlets. Also, I'm hoping that Yamaha fixed the sound system wiring to connect the speaker pairs in parallel, rather than series, and in the process that they also fixed the other sound system wiring problems they built into the 2018 212X with the Wet Sounds hardware. If so, it should sound pretty good. Looks like they went from the Polk to the Fusion Head Unit for 2019.

I was not aware of any changes to the Connext system for 2019 on these boats, although looking at the pictures on Yamaha's website, the Screen does look a bit different and it looks like they've eliminated the analog tachs. I believe it's still a 7" screen, based on the technical data. It also looks like they have included a basic nav. system in the 7" Connext readout that the 2018's don't have. Perhaps @PJ73 can weigh in here, as I know he's a proud new 2019 212X owner.

Jeff

 

[PJ73]

Hi Steven,
Jeff, you pretty much nailed what I was going to say. The hull dimensions are the same as well as the trailers for those two years (since the "redesign"). They did eliminate the twin tachs on the left side of the cockpit, and gave the 19's the "connext upgrade" similar to the 242 series, not everything but an upgrade where the tachs flank the screen for port and starboard. In place of the tachs they put a phone holder (I personally would have liked to have the analog tachs but, it is what it is), The cockpit is a touch "glass" 7 inch (similar layout to the 12" 242 screens but not as many goodies). I heard they gave some attetion to the stereo wiring (saw on another thread) to it's better this year. The 19's come with the new buckets and the lateral thrusters from the factory. The height on trailer and tower up is 10'4", water bridge clearance (tower up) is 7'3". Jeff is close on his measurements as far as I can tell where as Jetboat pilot measured a LTS fully down and front end down at 97".

Full specs are here: 212X

Video from jetboat pilot

Also, when I get it home, I'll make a couple vids, trailer stuff, differences, garage clearance and post them for others.
I hope this helps, if there is anything else, just let us know.

PJ

 

[stevenk2]

Thanks so much for the replies on this, much appreciated!!! It's helpful having some real-world measurements from actual owners.

The gist of it is that there's no way I'll be able to clear my 83" garage door opening without some major intervention, in whatever form that would take. As I said, I may end up either having to consider storing it outside during the season, then removing the wheels and tires and dropping it onto rolling casters to get it into the garage for storage during the winter, or just end up settling for a 19-footer like the AR195. If anyone had some height measurements for the 212X on the trailer with the wheels/tires removed and on the rolling casters, that would be helpful. I suspect that even with that it's still just going to be too tall to fit through my garage door. The other thing I need to consider that I haven't mentioned previously is the overall length on the trailer with the tongue folded. With the garage door shut, I have 24' from touching the back wall to the backside of the garage door - a tight fit to be sure, but it seems like it would still fit. Searching online, I'm seeing like 22' 3" with the tongue folded for the slightly older models, is that still accurate for the 2018's?

Even with heroic efforts to get it to fit under, I still have to decide if I'm comfortable having it parked in my driveway all spring/summer. I love the added features of the 212X versus the AR195, but it's a question of how much trouble I'm willing to go through to have those options, and how much I'll truly use them (mostly speaking of the wake/ballast system for boarding/surfing here). The AR195 would fit just perfect in my garage without modification, but will I always wish that I'd gone with the 212X instead?

 

[JDRacing]

Yes, 24 feet should work fine.

Any place to put a 25 foot long pole tent for shelter, just to keep the elements off of it? Or a lean-to?

 

[PJ73]

I don't envy your decision. I've always kept my boats on the side parking spot next to the house all season. Although, it's a different sun up here in Wisconsin so it's not like its out in Arizona. That said. The 195 is still a great boat with lots of room, I think it's 19.5' long and 8'2" wide, so a bit larger than a conventional 19 footer. There are those who absolutely love the 19 footers and others the 21 footers. It comes down to what you're looking for. Both have great lounging, back deck, storage. Power plants are either supercharged 1.8 (about 250 hp) or twin 1.8's (360 hp).

I started off looking at the AR210 but quickly jumped up to the 212x. For me personally I wanted the room, power, versatility and trim level of the 212x. As my family grew (kids are 5 & 7) I wanted a boat that could do everything I ever wanted and wouldn't need (personal need) to "upgrade". Believe me, that is not a knock on any of the 19 footers, just a personal preference. I didn't go 24 ft because I trailer all over and the wife was nervous about launching a 24 ft all the time.

Here is the Boattest on the 195:

And the boattest on the (2017) 212x (they havent done a 18 or 19 but it's almost identical, minus the cockpit cluster)

 

[stevenk2]

Yes, 24 feet should work fine.

Any place to put a 25 foot long pole tent for shelter, just to keep the elements off of it? Or a lean-to?

I rent a duplex, so no real options as far as rigging up any shelter - the only real option would be to park it in the driveway with the cover on it. Living here in the Willamette Valley of Oregon, I'd likely be looking at around June to September with it sitting out, probably with occasional rain especially at the beginning and end of the season. Presumably the cover and the tower would take the brunt of the weathering sitting out all summer long.

 

[stevenk2]

Thanks for your thoughts on all of that, PJ73. Given the space considerations of my garage, I'd really only been considering the AR195 up until now, but the dealer has a leftover 2018 212X discounted right now, and I've been hearing the "buy your 2nd boat first" advice a lot. The 212X has a lot more features than the 195, but I keep asking myself how much I'd really use the extra features on a regular basis. The two big things for me would be the ballast tanks and the sound system, though having all of the controls on the Connext system screen on the 212X would be nice as well. I'm not sure if having two engines would be an asset or a liability - I think that the 195 is definitely not underpowered with the single SVHO.

The 195 is the perfect fit for me right now, and it wouldn't take any special accommodations to just bring it home and garage it - it's the safe bet. The 212X would be a stretch, both financially and storage-wise, but I keep hearing a little voice in my head asking if I will regret not stepping up while I have the chance. The thing is, about half the time, it's just going to be me in the boat, so the ballast/wake features won't be used; also, my two kids aren't hardcore boarders, but they'd like to learn how to wakesurf and potentially wakeboard. I think the 195 would do okay for that, but you're just not going to plow up as big a wake with it as you can with the 212X.

I'm going to probably pull the trigger on one or the other by the end of February, so I've still got some time to think about it - any more thoughts you all have on any of this would be greatly appreciated.

 

[PJ73]

I wouldn't want to push in in one direction or the other. They're both good boats. But lets look at the pro's:

AR 195
- cheaper
- one engine (maintenance)
- store in garage
- cheaper insurance (not by much)
- easier to launch and recover if you're alone (not that the 212x is difficult, it's drive off and drive on)
- you're jumping up 3 ft from your scarab

212 X
- more room
- ballast
- stereo system
- twin engine (power)
- kids might enjoy going out more on a "wake boat" (bigger wake for surfing and wake boarding)
- Ripping across the lake in a 212x

Only con to the 212x is you need to watch out for the dents. Yes, the dents from all the women throwing themselves at you and that boat.

 

[stevenk2]

All good points - pretty funny stuff about the potential for dents on the 212X.

In the end, I guess anything's possible, I just need to take a hard look at all of the pro's and con's and decide what I can live with. You're right though - both are good boats, and both will be a huge step up from my Scarab, so in that respect, I really can't go wrong either way.

One other drawback for the 212X I just noticed - the ballast tanks/bladders take up space in the keel hold and the rear storage compartments on the boat. Not that I have a ton of stuff I'll be storing onboard, but still a consideration. I'd imagine that at least some care has to be taken not to puncture the bladders with gear or while working in those areas as well. Any thoughts on the long-term reliability and/or durability of the ballast system? In my mind, it would seem like one more system to potentially have issues down the line, but I tend to give Yamaha a bit more credit when it comes to quality, so maybe it's unlikely to have problems even down the road a bit.

 

[Combatcraig]

Can someone confirm the total width of these 212 model boats on the trailer? My garage is 107”w X 109”h...

 

[JDRacing]

Can someone confirm the total width of these 212 model boats on the trailer? My garage is 107”w X 109”h...

The boat's beam is 8'6" according to the specs above. It's not any wider on the trailer, since many states, and perhaps all of them, have 102" maximum towing width laws. Your garage should be wide enough. You should also be tall enough with the tower down, without having to extend the cables.

Jeff

 

[Combatcraig]

The boat's beam is 8'6" according to the specs above. It's not any wider on the trailer, since many states, and perhaps all of them, have 102" maximum towing width laws. Your garage should be wide enough. You should also be tall enough with the tower down, without having to extend the cables.

Jeff

Thanks so much.