Australian boating legend chooses Tohatsu power
“Everyone should have the opportunity to have a boat.”
That’s the simple, yet heartfelt philosophy of Tim Stessl when you ask him about why he continues to be involved with the boat building industry.
Tim and Sally Stessl are the proud owners and proprietors of Sea-Trex and Makocraft aluminium boats, based and built on the Gold Coast, Queensland. They have fitted Tohatsu outboards to both boat brands and became exclusive dealers of Tohatsu outboards in 2020.
“We genuinely like Tohatsu outboards, they have performed really well on our hulls,” explains Sally.
“They are simply a great Japanese motor, they’re more competitively priced than the other major brands and we just don’t have problems with them,” she said.
The small recreational boat market in Australia is perhaps one of the most competitive markets of its kind in the world. Tim and Sally can tell you plenty about how that market has morphed since Alf Stessl (Tim’s father, now retired) was making a name for himself in the industry.
“The smaller tinny market continues to grow,” according to Sally, “there’s all types of Australians looking to do a trip with a car-topper tinny, get on the water with a small boat or set up a fishing rig for the weekend.”
“There’s plenty of people who save for years to get their first boat, and being able to package that first boating option with a Tohatsu means we know they’re getting a good package,” Sally explains.
And the reason for trusting in Tohatsu outboards?
“They are built with fewer complexities, they’re simple to use and the reliability is second to none,” says Tim.
No doubt – and Tohatsu’s engineering approach is a mirror of this opinion.
All Tohatsu outboards are designed and built under the company’s “Simpliq TechnologyTM” design that encompasses quality, ease-of-use and simple architecture.
As the world’s oldest production outboard builder and now second-largest outboard manufacturer, the fact that Tohatsu’s heritage was building outboards for fishermen in 1950’s Japan provides some insight to this design heritage.
“We package the Topper Tracker, one of our most popular Makocraft, with the 20hp Tohatsu,” Sally said.
“That outboard is super-reliable and comes in around 5kg lighter than its competitors which is a huge advantage with a boat/motor combo designed to be portable.”
The Tohatsu “lighter and simpler” approach is mirrored across their portable/small, mid and high-power ranges. The brand in fact now boasts the best-in-class power to weight with its recently released 150hp outboard, (punching hard in a virtual featherweight class of 178.5kg – with propeller!).
Two brands – one heritage
The Sea-Trex and Makocraft ranges truly deliver offerings for all needs, whether that be a tinny on a budget or something a little more refined with custom extras. Coupled with a Tohatsu, these boats help deliver the Tohatsu brand promise of “Feel the Wind”, a joy reserved specially for those who get on the water in small boats.
Sea-Trex delivers a range of simple open tinnies, cartoppers and tough, no-nonsense open, console and front cab trailerable boats up to six metres. They cater for the simplest of on water needs through to endless family or fishing adventures.
Sea-Trex was originally introduced to the Australian market in 1983 by Alf Stessl to deliver affordable and accessible boating for the recreational market. More than 40 years later, Tim and Sally Stessl have taken over the brand and continue its legacy of quality boats on a budget, with Tohatsu on the back to deliver a reliable package.
Makocraft – founded by Tim Stessl in 2005 – celebrates 21 years of quality plate aluminium designs and an enviable reputation.
With a range of models almost as numerous as its years being built, there are Makocraft options from cartoppers through to fully optioned 7+ metre centre cab vessels for serious ocean adventure.
With Tohatsu power on the back, these premium vessels certainly deliver the strength, durability and reliability that professionals, serious boat owners and fishing enthusiasts demand.
You can see the Stessl family legacy and their range of boats at makocraft.com.au and seatrex.com.au
As the new Australia, New Zealand and Oceania region distributor for Tohatsu Outboards, Power Equipment pays homage to the recently retired Alf Stessl, Tim and Sally Stessl and their boating industry legacy. As a family-owned business itself, Power Equipment is proud to continue supplying Tohatsu power to the Sea-Trex and Makocraft stables.
