Strand-Craft's Spectacular Swedish Stingray Speedboat
Click above for gallery of Strand-Craft's Stingray speedboat
The '63 Corvette Stingray split-window coupe may not have been quite as aerodynamic as GM would have us believe, but it does remain one of the most iconic designs of all time. So iconic, in fact, that one shipyard is considering taking it to the water to see if the shape is seaworthy.
Bo Zolland of Sweden's Strand-Craft shirks the minimalist design of his home country's most prolific furniture chain with the most exquisitely designed and crafted teak-decked retro runabout ever to grace the surface of water, with a little Corvette flair thrown in for good measure. The blueprints call for a carbon-fiber hull and a big block engine with competition prop drives (we see two engines powering the one above). Strand-Craft is taking orders for an untold limited number of Stingray speedboats to be made on special order according to the customer's speficifications, and we have a feeling there might be some Corvette aficionados who'd be eager to bring their passion out of land-lock and out onto the open water.
Gallery: Strand-Craft Stingray speedboat
[Source: Strand-Craft via All Cars, All the Time]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Rafer 7:06PM (8/21/2008)
Im sorry but what is the point of an enclosed speed boat.
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tuna 7:35PM (8/21/2008)
The point is so the rich bastards and their ladies won't mess up their expensive hair-dos.
Duh.
ddorsey 10:25PM (8/21/2008)
TTops maybe?
why not the LS2LS7? 1:36AM (8/22/2008)
Offshore racing speedboats are enclosed for speed and safety now (following about 15 years behind unlimited hydroplanes) and surely this is trying to look like one of those.
CarbonBlack 7:25PM (8/21/2008)
That is such a hot boat! all it needs is that F430 engine
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andrew 8:56PM (8/21/2008)
umm, surely a corvette based speedboat will have corvette power? LS7? LSA?
why not the LS2LS7? 1:39AM (8/22/2008)
Surely you are kidding me. You don't want a high strung engine in a boat. If your engine fails, you can't just walk to a service station like you can when your car breaks down. Get far enough offshore, and even "calling for a tow" is a huge hassle.
Besides, motorboat engines run at a near constant speed for hours, and although I expect the Ferrari engine could do it, the pleasing whine of a 8,000rpm Ferrari would likely turn annoying even more rapidly than the 3,000rpm droning of a pushrod motor.
Dave 12:10PM (8/22/2008)
I don't think they want an unreliable Italian based engine. Remember Fiat-Fix It Again Tony.
CarbonBlack 7:43PM (8/22/2008)
I was just refering to this
http://blogs1.edmunds.com/straightline/2007/07/ferrari-f430-powered-boat-sets-two-speed-records.html
Mi key 7:28PM (8/21/2008)
If it looks this good as a model I'm sure the real thing will be Hawt!
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integradude 11:34PM (8/21/2008)
this is a pretty sick boat and i couldn't help but notice the valve covers on the red boat clear as day read "Viper" kinda seems a bit of sacreligious considering the corvette styling. Personally o would shotty 2 ls9s
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Ryan 10:14AM (8/22/2008)
Must be a pair of Ilmor Viper V10s. They are good for up to 710 horsepower a piece and they are substantially lighter than the comparable Chevy big blocks with blowers (I'm guessing weight is an issue in a carbon fiber boat).
I agree with you though; it does seem a little sacrilegious to put Viper V10s in Vette inspired boat.
Amani576 7:49PM (8/21/2008)
Sure, it's gorgeous, I don't think many people will contest that.
But, I agree with the first commenter. There really is no point in an enclosed speedboat (except for racing). And seriously... the engine is mounted midship on this, which best I can tell, will really throw off it's handling (most weigh in the middle, steering from the rear, it's gonna either be a slow turner, or flop back and forth wildly in the water at the speed it turns). Atleast that's how I see it.
Anyways...
Just a serious waste of money and Carbon Fibre.
GR
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rwcmick 10:15PM (8/21/2008)
Hey,
Just one thing I'd add to this story. Bo Zolland's firm is Vizual Tech
http://www.viztech.se/engelsk/index.html
Strand Craft is kind of like the "skunk works" where they can make Bo's visions come to life.
I'm sorry, but I didn't really make that clear in my post on All Cars, All the Time. I think I was about three Seinfeld episodes and a beer or two into things when I wrote it.
Bo's team has also designed an open version of this boat, but it understandably loses some of the styling cues that connect it to the Stingray.
Cheers,
rwcmick
All Cars, All the Time
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LoneWolf 10:19PM (8/21/2008)
..but a nice design
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why not the LS2LS7? 1:40AM (8/22/2008)
What led to the autoblog ding on the Stingray aerodynamics? Is there some story I haven't heard?
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john riley 7:13AM (8/22/2008)
Something to go with the Porsche Design Fearless:
http://www.geekologie.com/2007/02/porsche_design_studios_first_b.php
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john riley 7:15AM (8/22/2008)
Something to go with the Porsche Design Fearless:
http://www.geekologie.com/2007/02/porsche_design_studios_first_b.php
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Galley 9:28AM (8/22/2008)
Absolutely gorgeous!
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Andrew 10:27AM (8/22/2008)
I wonder if people on Autoblog know that boating is actually VERY important in Scandinavia. Each summer people will spend the bright, long days on the sea along the vast coastlines of Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Not to mention the fjords of Norway!
You know us Vikings have seawater in our blood ;)
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