As wakeboard and wakesurf boats continue to increase in size, dry weight, and ballast capacity the powertrain that drives them increases as well. With a dedicated powertrain engineering team constantly testing combinations of engines, transmissions, props, programming and more, Malibu’s current generation powertrain is the best in the industry because of a great balance of power, fuel efficiency, and low sound emissions.

After all the testing and development, Malibu is proud to participate in industry reviews. Each year Boating Magazine holds their independent boat tests to put an array of manufactures’ products through their paces. Not only are the behind the boat aspects such as surf wave and wakeboard wake tested, but the boat is hooked up to a computer for precise measurements. While hooked up to the specialty computer, called Diacom, the editors record things such as noise level inside the boat, speed at rpm, and fuel economy.

For their 2019 test, our 25 LSV, 22 LSV, Axis A22 and T23 were selected amongst others to be put in the ring. Having an objective third party run these tests has some significant advantages, primarily of which is that the data is true and unbiased. The results were remarkable when we look at the data against some of our competition:

• The Malibu and Axis product range delivers better fuel economy than the competitors’ towboat models

• Malibu and Axis models deliver the quietest ride of all towboats tested, allowing you to converse with your crew easier and enjoy the premium stereo options better

• Malibu’s patented Power Wedge III was not used in the testing process for this data. Using the Power Wedge III’s lift mode function helps deliver even better fuel economy by reducing time to plane.

Malibu’s full 5-year factory warranty stands behind all Malibu and Axis 2019 products and the drive train is no exception. Our team works with the industry’s top suppliers such as GM Marine, PCM, DaVinci, McLaren, eControls, X1, Alfa-Laval while devoting more development into engines, transmission and propping per model than any other towboat manufacturer – over 5,000 hours for just the 2019 model year.