 2020 Yamaha FX SVHO WaveRunner | |
| Product type | Personal watercraft |
|---|---|
| Produced by | Yamaha Motor Company |
| Country | Japan |
| Introduced | 1986 |
| Markets | Worldwide |
| Website | www |
WaveRunner is a trademarked name and type of personal water craft (PWC) produced by the Yamaha Motor Company. [1] Unique to the WaveRunner among PWCs is the spout of water that shoots into the air from the rear of the vehicle, a visual brand identifier that exists as a trademark of Yamaha. [2]
The first personal watercraft was designed and built in the 1960s by an American motorcycle enthusiast banker, Clayton Jacobson II, and produced and marketed by Bombardier in a licensing agreement. In 1971 Jacobson transferred the license to Kawasaki, resulting in the Jet Ski. Other manufacturers began making similar vehicles in the 1980s, including Yamaha, which had been building watercraft since the '60s, and with whose water vehicle division Jacobson signed on a consultant in 1986. First produced that year, the WaveRunner (then called Marine Jet 500T) was the world's first saddle watercraft, a model which today dominates the market.
In 1987, the handlebars mounted on an articulated arm, characteristic of hand watercraft, were replaced by a fixed handlebar on the WaveJammer 500 (Marine Jet 500S). In 1990, the WaveRunner III 650 (Marine Jet 650TL) was the first personal watercraft to offer a three-person seat and reverse. [3] The same year, Yamaha released the SuperJet 650, its first personal watercraft. [3] Yamaha then diversified its offer into various categories, ranging from models for beginners to those intended for competition listed below: [3]
Retired products in the WaveRunner line include the Yamaha WaveBlaster, Yamaha WaveRaider, Yamaha WaveVenture, Yamaha XL Series, Yamaha GP Series (Two-Stroke) and the Yamaha WaveJammer.
The Yamaha Motor Company currently produces five different series of WaveRunners. [4] They are:
| WaveRunner | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Sega AM-1 |
| Publisher(s) | Sega |
| Platform(s) | Arcade |
| Release | 1996 |
| Genre(s) | Racing |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer |
| Arcade system | Sega Model 2 |
WaveRunner is a Sega racing arcade game developed and released in 1996. The game was built on the Sega Model 2 arcade hardware. The game is based on the water craft of the same name by Yamaha, which Sega consulted with when making the game. [5] The game was reviewed by Hyper magazine and rated 4 out of 5 stars. [6]
WaveRunner was designed in a cabinet that resembled an actual WaveRunner model. The game features three courses: "Novice", "Intermediate", and "Expert". Players can do tricks on ramps. Players steer by either turning the handlebars or using their weight to make the WaveRunner model lean in the direction of a turn. [7] Up to four cabinets can be linked together for multiplayer racing. [7]
WaveRunner wasn't ported to any home systems. This game is emulated on the Model 2 Emulator by ELSemi.
A sequel, WaveRunner GP, was released in 2001 and used the NAOMI hardware and was available on standard cabinet and deluxe cabinet, which is the same cabinet as the first game. However, The standard cabinet was actually a cabinet of Arctic Thunder, which released by Midway a year earlier in 2000.
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Sea-Doo is a Canadian brand of personal watercraft (PWC) and boats manufactured by Bombardier Recreational Products (BRP). All Sea-Doo models are driven by an impeller-driven waterjet. All Sea-Doo PWC models are produced at BRP's plants in Querétaro and Juárez, Mexico. Its Rotax engines are produced at BRP's plant in Gunskirchen, Austria. In 2016, Sea-Doo had a 45.8% share of the PWC market.
A personal watercraft (PWC), also called water scooter, is a primarily recreational watercraft that is designed to hold only a small number of occupants, who sit or stand on top of the craft, not within the craft as in a boat.
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A WetBike is a planing motorised personal water craft that is often described as cross between a motorcycle and a jet ski. The original Wetbike was introduced in 1978 by Spirit Marine, a subsidiary of Arctic Enterprises.
The SuperJet is a stand-up type personal watercraft (PWC) made by Yamaha Motor Corporation. Part of Yamaha's WaveRunner line of watercraft, it was introduced in 1990 and has become one of the most successful stand-up personal watercraft ever made. All SuperJets, including the engine, are hand-built in Japan. Credit for the design is given to Clayton Jacobson II.
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The WaveBlaster is a personal water craft (PWC) made by Yamaha Motor Corporation. Part of their WaveRunner line of watercraft, the Yamaha WaveBlaster 700 made its debut in 1993. Although technically a runabout style PWC the blaster is more closely related to the SuperJet.
The Yamaha FX-1 is a stand-up type personal watercraft (PWC) made by Yamaha Motor Corporation. Part of Yamaha's WaveRunner line of watercraft, it was introduced in 1994 and discontinued in 1995. It was built in very limited numbers and only around 1500 total were made.
The Sea-Doo GTX is a personal watercraft (PWC) made by Bombardier Recreational Products of Canada. Part of their Sea-Doo line of watercraft, the Sea-Doo GTX has been produced since 1992. It is a three-person personal water craft with a 'luxury' ride combined with a series of engines. The performance of a Rotax marine engine with R.A.V.E. exhaust, a three-passenger contoured seat; dual mirrors; deck pads; ski-eye; left-side forward/neutral/reverse lever; and full instrumentation.
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Periscope is an electro-mechanical arcade shooting submarine simulator. Two companies developed similar games with the name. The first, initially called Torpedo Launcher, was designed by Nakamura Manufacturing Co. and released in Japan in 1965, as the first arcade game Masaya Nakamura built. Sega Enterprises, Ltd. also built and released Periscope in Japan in 1966, as one of its first produced arcade games.
A WaveRunner is a brand of personal watercraft made by Yamaha.
