With its new 335 Performance, Baja Marine delivers a winning combination of luxury and performance.

By Jason Johnson

Don't look now, but Baja Marine is creating quite an impressive lineup outside the typical performance and runabout world. After evaluating Baja's new 335 Performance, we have no doubt that the Bucyrus, Ohio, company is onto something.

The boatbuilder touts the V-bottom as the best of both worlds, offering the luxury of a cruiser with the performance of a go-fast boat. We agree. Although nine out of 10 times we'd take a go-fast 35 Outlaw just for performance sake, the new 34-footer is an outstanding alternative with functionality beyond any sport boat.

Take the first hull from the mold—the one Baja delivered to our spring roundups that was in the midst of testing. The features of the 335 Performance were off the charts. It was obviously the sibling of the well-appointed 405 Performance, one look around the cockpit, let alone a glance in the spacious cabin, told us that.

At the same time, the boat's execution on the water was splendid with twin MerCruiser 496 Mag HO engines.

"It's still within the performance brand," said Barbara Grobicki, Baja's marketing director. "But with this boat, it appeals to a slightly larger audience, people who want cruiser styling but don't want to give up performance."

As mentioned, the test model Baja brought to Sarasota, Fla., was in the process of being validated. Strain gauges were built into the boat, and a variety of new components from the hatch actuators and steering to the security system and Dirt Devil vacuum were being evaluated.

With snotty, wind-whipped conditions on Sarasota Bay, our Test Team was happy to contribute to the validation process. Equipped with Bravo One X drives with 24"-pitch Bravo One propellers turning out, the 335 Performance excelled in the rough stuff.

The 8,000-pound, deep-V hull tracked well at all speeds and powered through the 3- to 4-footers. Not only did the 34-footer feel solid in chop from all directions, but when we looked in the cabin after putting it through its paces, everything was still in place. That's always a good sign.

The boat slalomed well and received high marks in turns at cruising and full speed. Our test driver did notice a slight hop in tight turns, and because of its tall hullsides, the boat was affected a bit by the wind.

Still, its performance exceeded expectations. With the twin 425-horsepower motors turning 5,000 rpm, the 335 Performance topped out at 67.7 mph on radar. At a cruising speed of 4,000 rpm, the boat was running 54 mph.

And it was pretty quick for its size. It didn't matter whether the Lenco trim tabs were down or not, the boat took a little less than 6 seconds to come on plane. From still in the water, the V-bottom reached 37 mph in 10 seconds and 61 mph in 20 seconds.

The most impressive part about the performance was that the boat was fully loaded. It had more than $60,000 in options, not counting the $41,500 upgrade to the 496 Mag HO engines. Base price with a pair of 350-hp motors is $169,000. A our test model checked in at $272,000, a reasonable price for everything Baja packed into it.

The spacious cabin, which had 6-foot-2 headroom, offered some cool features. From the stainless-steel microwave and Isotherm refrigerator to the air conditioner and flat-screen TV, the cabin didn't feel like a 34-footer. Especially when we converted the U-shape lounge into a V-berth large enough to sleep three people. Baja designed the well-padded lounge with hinged bottom cushions that lifted up and out and met in the middle, resting on a table, which lowered on a hydraulic base. Pretty nifty.

Also nifty was the central vacuum system. It made cleaning the cabin easy and the vacuum even reached out into the cockpit to help keep the dark blue snap-in carpet tidy.

The cockpit also included some innovative amenities to go with the performance-looking helm that had Livorsi Marine controls and gauges in chrome bezels on a carbon-fiber dash. At the starboard-side galley behind the driver's bucket seat was another Isotherm refrigerator, a sink and a stainless rail around the counter space.

A unique engine hatch took the entire rear bench and the starboard-side transom walk-through with it to provide wide-open access to the engines. The stowage was extraordinary. Taking advantage of the space between the engine hatch and the sun pad, Baja designed a cool, double-sided stowage compartment. A draining locker was fore of the vented compartment that was best accessed from the integrated swim platform.

Baja also went wild with the hardware on the 34-footer, an easy way to up the luxurious feel. All cupholders, lights, fasteners and grab rails were stainless steel.

With a refreshing mix of style and performance, Baja's got a winner.

Contact Information
Baja Marine
1520 Isaac Beal Road
Bucyrus, OH 44820
877-321-2252
www.bajamarine.com

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