Press Room

Since 1983, the Bass Buggy has been one of the most important boats on the market and also one of SUN TRACKER's best sellers. It has enabled working folks to get out on the water and go fishing in a roomy, family-friendly design for a very low price. This year, SUN TRACKER made a host of changes that not only make the Bass Buggy a more refined, better-performing package, but somehow still keep it super affordable.

Unique Factor

The nationally advertised, nohaggle price of $10,795 is pretty amazing considering the totally revamped layout. Something you seldom see on outboard-powered pontoons is a real stern swim platform, but this 19-foot, 6-inch Buggy has a huge one that's totally unobstructed thanks to the engine bracket that moves the motor off the deck. Built into the engine bracket is a humongous 42-gallon gas tank, which is incredible when you consider that compact pontoons most often use 6- gallon portables that also take up space out back.

The biggest change has been the addition of more seating ... way more seating. Instead of last year's single Llounge for passenger seating, there are now twin opposing couches in the bow, a stern bench, a forwardfacing amidships bench and a double- wide captain's seat. That's not even counting the twin fishing chairs in the bow. SUN TRACKER didn't go cheap on the upholstery to keep costs down either, with robust 30- ounce marine vinyl that features a stain-resistant topcoat. With a widetrack 8-foot, 1-inch beam, guests will have plenty of space to move around. The only downside is that if you want to store items under the bow and stern seats, you just slide the gear on the deck under the seat ? stowage is completely open and prone to getting wet.

Performance

We tested the setup offered at the nationally advertised price that features a super-quiet 30 hp four-stroke Mercury EFI. Although the Bass Buggy 18 is rated to handle up to 75 hp, this wasn't a bad match, considering many people buy pontoons to use on smaller bodies of water. It was surprisingly fast out of the hole with a time to plane of just 4 seconds. Top speed was 18 miles per hour with the three-cylinder Mercury turning 6200 rpm. Not bad when you consider the max horsepower will only net you a top speed of 25.5 mph, as we discovered in a previous test. Even at WOT the 30 EFI was pretty quiet, measuring only 80 decibels. The engine seemed a lot less frantic at 4500 rpm, which netted a speed of 11 mph and would probably translate to longer life, even though Mercury designs smaller engines with the knowledge that many boaters run them wide open most of the time.

Handling

Surprisingly, handling was one of the boat's strong points as it changed directions quite easily. With the smaller engine, the cable steering didn't seem stiff and we were able to fling it around without that awkward dive to the outside you can sometimes experience on smaller twintube pontoons. The Bass Buggy 18 features extra-large 24-inch tubes, which allowed it to ride higher in the water and contributed to a better ride and slightly higher speeds. The extra buoyancy allows this SUN TRACKER to handle up to eight passengers, and with all the extra seating on this year's model it won't be standing room only.

Best Uses

With a name like Bass Buggy, you might think it's only about fishing, but actually the standard setup makes this SUN TRACKER more of a cruiser. Make that a long-range cruiser with its massive 42-gallon tank. This allows for some impressive range when you consider that the 30 hp Mercury only burns about 2 gallons per hour at 4500 rpm (according to Mercury numbers), so you can run it for more than 20 hours at this speed before gassing up. That's half a summer for some slacker boaters.

Those who scoff at the idea that this could be a credible fishing machine couldn't be more wrong. Sure, you won't have to turn your hat backward unless that's your natural look, but there's more to this Buggy than meets the eye. I'm not a huge bass angler, but the biggest one I ever caught (7 pounds) was on a Bass Buggy. We were fishing wild shiners under a raft of water hyacinth with small anchors at the stern and bow to hold it steady. When the fish hit, I was able to walk from the bow to the stern to land it, something you can't do on a lot of small boats if you have other anglers aboard. The Bass Buggy's lateral stability gives it a distinct advantage over small fishing boats, which is especially important when taking kids fishing.

Preferred Setup

SUN TRACKER gives owners a wellequipped standard package, starting with a pair of fishing seats in the bow that this year are in front of the rails for easier fishing and casting than in previous years. The helm station is pretty Spartan, with only a tachometer to keep the driver entertained, but the seat is extra wide and sits atop a storage area that doubles as a 96- quart cooler.

To make the Bass Buggy 18 fishing ready you need to select the fishing package, which gives you a wireless MotorGuide trolling motor that you can control with a key fob from anywhere on the boat. In addition, there's a livewell and a Lowrance X50 DS fishfinder, which is a modest black and white unit, but it does a tolerable job of painting the bottom and identifying fish. There are only a few options available, other than more power, including a single-axle trailer, a color-matched cover, and a grill for frying up some fresh crappie, which despite the crappie name is some good eatin'.