Brilliant Showing: Cigarette's 42X stands out whether it's sitting in the water or running offshore

By Jason Johnson

Often a boat's performance will outweigh its appearance and vice versa. That was not the case with Cigarette Racing's 42X we tested in Miami for our annual Speed Roundup.

Not only did the V-bottom run 106.7 mph on twin Mercury Racing HP850SCi engines, the 42-footer was one of the most stunning boats we've ever seen from the Miami-based company.

With an array of bright blue colors in the Grafikworx paint job and amazing attention to detail in the cockpit and cabin, the Lip-Ship Performance edition 42X blew us away before we even started the engines.

Fortunately for us—and the boat's owner—the 42X didn't just look the part, it was a masterpiece on the water. With its 850-horsepower engines paired with Mercury Racing's No. 6 dry-sump drives turning 34"-pitch Hering five-blade propellers, the triple-step hull was as solid as they come.

In typical Cigarette fashion, the 42X ate up the rough stuff. Swells in the 4-foot range were no match for the deep-V-hull as the boat cruised in the Atlantic Ocean at more than 80 mph with the engines turning around 4,500 rpm.

Inside Miami's Biscayne Bay, the 42X showed off impressive acceleration for a boat of its size. From a standing start, the V-bottom reached 75 mph in 20 seconds, a notable time considering it took more than 6 seconds to come on plane with the Mercury Racing 380S K-Planes down. In the 40-to-70-mph drill, the 42-footer took 7.7 seconds.

Overall, the boat's maneuverability was superb. From slaloms and tracking to turns and deceleration, the 42X earned near-perfect ratings. And the best part was the boat's balance between being a powerful hot rod and being civil and easy to manage around the docks. Chalk that up to Lip-Ship Performance's setup and Mercury's HP850SCi power plants.

Cigarette opted for staggered motor installation in its eye-catching engine compartment. Opening on billet hydraulic lifts, the underside of the hatch was painted to match the boat's striking light and dark blue color blend. The builder even had the engine covers painted to match with miniature “1” numerals rotated in different directions—a theme incorporated throughout the boat from its dash panels to a strip along the starboard side of the deck.

The meticulous work carried over into the cockpit and onto a pair of electric dropout bolsters for the driver and co-pilot and a rear bench with three buckets. The seats were constructed with two shades of carbon-fiber-looking vinyl (light and dark gray) and blue trim.

At the helm, our test drivers were treated to oversized Auto Meter Pro-Comp Marine gauges with carbon-fiber panels and a large color Garmin 3010C GPS system. Directly above the screen was a massive GPS tattletale speedometer with smaller tachometers on each side.

Marine Machine shifters were mounted to the left of the blue and chrome steering wheel, and the throttles were to the right. A cool concept, the Marine Machine throttles were staggered toward the driver to keep their hand from rubbing against the padded gunwale.

For rear passengers, Cigarette installed Mercury SmartCraft SystemView monitors on the back of the bolster seats.

The 42X also included a stellar cabin. An electrically operated door led to a cabin with four facing bucket-style seats and a head compartment fore of the large V-berth. The cabin was finished in the same carbon-fiber fabric and bright blue vinyl that was in the cockpit.

While we could debate whether its performance or appearance was more impressive, the end result was a memorable Cigarette 42X.

Test Results

Click to enlarge.