Easily Towed,
Versatile Family Boat
DEPENDING ON OPTIONS and your
ability to drive a deal, a qualified
purchaser can put little more than the
sales tax down to become the owner
of a brand new 2008 Smoker Craft
Resorter 151 boat, motor and trailer
package for somewhere between
$160 and $190 per month.
We are pleased to bring you a
review on this boat because it has an
impressive range of capabilities in a
package that is well under 1,000
pounds. That means it can be trailered behind minivans and even many
smaller cars without difficulty.
So, families with children often
shop for a boat at 40 hp or less. The
trick is to get a boat that can do a lot
with only 40 horses.
You may see this as only a fishing
boat, but the Resorter 151 has a wide
range of capabilities. The open
interior configuration allows you to
carry up to 1,000 pounds of people or
gear on a camping trip, or for cruising
and exploring.
It can also pull water skiers or
even wakeboarders and we are confident that the 40 hp Suzuki engine
could pull an adult up on water skis.
PERFORMANCE
Test boat engine: Suzuki DF 40,
40 hp four-stroke 3-cylinder,
815 cc, dual overhead cams and
12 valves, sequential electronic
fuel injection
ENGINE (RPM) SPEED (MPH)
1,500 3. 8
3,500 14. 7
4,000 19.1*
4,500 22.2
5,500 28. 7
5,800 31.2
Acceleration to planning speed
3.07/14.7 seconds/speed
*Cruising speed
weighing 575 pounds dry, it has the
accommodations to handle a couple
of grown adults and some kids too.
The Resorter 151 is 15’1” in
There’s something very important
about this boat as well. It performs
very nicely with a 40 hp Suzuki four
stroke outboard. That is significant
because a while back the Canadian
government introduced age and
horsepower restrictions for operators
of power boats. The highest horsepower a person can operate legally is
40 hp until they reach the age of 16.
This is an aluminum boat with a
mild, vee-bottom shape that helps to
smooth the ride out and Smoker Craft
has used 100 gauge aluminum for the
bottom of this boat as they do on
their larger models. The bottom is
formed from a single sheet of aluminum, an excellent feature.
Aluminum makes for a light, strong
boat too. In spite of the hull only
For a boat this size, we found the helm
spacious and comfortable. The steering
wheel is well located as is the sidemount-ed control for the engine. The power trim
for the Suzuki 40 was particularly responsive. You get little protection from spray
or rain though.
length with a 75” beam, so it is wide
for its length. That gives greater side
to side stability and helps the boat
plane off a load quickly. We would
