When it comes to cool offshore brands from the good old days, Sonic USA is a boat company that comes to mind. Founded in South Florida in 1976, the builder focused on offshore boats with a distinct stylish look and offshore capabilities. They didn’t usually make any outboard sport boats, but there was a one off custom ordered 1996 31 with outboards built for a customer in Fort Lauderdale. There may have been a few others built but it was a very small number. A readers father acquired the boat many years and has run it since then and the boat has been fantastic.

Joe Johnson is a friend of Wave to Wave and let me know about his fathers special boat. Joe races PWCs and is an avid boater in South Florida. Him and his Dad have had some really cool boats, including another rare Midnight Express sport boat with quad 300XS. But the Sonic is such a cool and practical boat that they still have it and would probably never sell it.

The 31 Sonic was repowered with twin 275 Verados, offering a really efficient turnkey ride that still gets to 70 MPH and can really crush waves in comfort. Originally the boat had twin 250 EFI Mercs. Sonics were always a little ahead of their time in design and these still look really cool. Back in the day, the bigger Sonics maybe started the reverse radar arch trend. But the 31 was a popular size for the brand in the hey day of big block powered mid size sport boats. You could tell a Sonic from a mile away with their distinct deck lines.

Here’s an exert from a Powerboat Magazine review of a 94 Sonic 31 SS, where they talk about the construction and performance. Twin MerCruiser 502 Magnums are only 4 or 5 MPH faster than twin 275 Verados. That’s really icredible.

“Like all Sonics, the 31 SS is constructed of three-molded fiberglass pieces: the hull, the cabin liner and the deck. After the hull is pulled from the mold, the cabin liner is fitted and glassed in place everywhere it comes in contact with the sides and bottom. Stringer cavities are filled with foam before the deck mold, which includes the cockpit liner, is bonded by hand to the hull. It's as close as you'll get to unitized construction in a 7,000-pound fiberglass boat. No seams. No screws. No bolts.

Hand-laid construction features vinylester resin, Divinycell high-density foam coring and bi-axial fiberglass. Openings cut into the cabin liner for stowage lockers do double duty, letting workers get to those hard-to-reach places when glassing together and foaming in the hull. Imron clear coat enhanced the luster of the white gelcoat and black and yellow PPG graphics, which are protected by a white plastic rub rail.”

SONIC USA 31 SS

Hull Type: Deep V

Deadrise at transom 23 degrees

Centerline 30'6"

Beam 8'6"

Bare hull weight 4,400 pounds

Weight as tested 7,400 pounds (twin 502 Magnums)

Radar 74.4 mph at 5000 (Hydromotive Quad 4 15.5” dia 26” pitch)

Built for the rough stuff, Sonic used quality materials so you still see some around that are really solid. Around 2001 Sonic was using high performance resins, Baltek core, with an infusion process. They made some really crazy big boats too. At the Miami Boat Show in 2002, Sonic brought a 45 footer made for long range. Powered by twin 800 HP Seatek diesels, and France Helices surface drives. Using their new infusion process, the boat was there to show off the new technology. In their history they made several models between 22’ and 45’. The 31, 38 and 42 were popular.

This rare outboard version of the 31 Sonic USA is really incredible though. Joe and his Dad got a chance to visit the factory in 2005 when Richard Hewitt owned it, and when they told Richard about the boat he said that he’d never seen it. And he added that the 31 mold had some holes in parts of the liner that they couldn’t figure out but would make sense for an outboard. I saw one other old ad for an outboard 31, so I’d assume there are only a few at most. Thanks to Joe Johnson for sharing this classic. With today’s outboard technology, you can see why people are gravitating to outboard sport boats. You get the practicality and comfort of a sit down with more comfort and performance than a center console.