Sport boats like the Formula 37 PC are fast and fun, and they make day cruises a blast. Formula Boats builds plenty of models that fit that mold, but with its Performance Cruiser (PC) line, they take things up a notch for boaters who want to spend a weekend or longer aboard.
The Formula 37 PC is a longtime favorite in the PC line, having impressed industry experts and owners alike for well more than a decade now. She’s still available new (the PC comes in four models between 31 and 40 feet for 2017) and many hulls can usually be found on the brokerage market. As of this writing, there were 40—with one sale pending—at prices ranging from $84,500 for a 2000 model to $780,875 for a 2016.
“I’ve sold a few of them and I’ve owned a few of them,” says John Grosz with Rick Obey & Associates, who holds the listing on a 2005 Formula 37 PC listed at $149,000.
“Formula sets the bar for that echelon of boat, the performance cruiser. The build quality: Their rigging is second to none in that genre. I just sold one that wasn’t even taken care of, and it still, despite needing TLC, was a fantastic boat.”
Given the heritage of Formula Boats as a performance brand, it’s no surprise that the 37 PC has always been available with powerful ponies. Engine packages of course changed over the years as manufacturers offered new versions, but owners for any given model year could usually choose a setup that got the boat well up over 40 MPH. As of 2007, the Formula 37 PC could be ordered with 8.1-liter GIDP Volvo gas V-8s coupled to Duoprop sterndrives; by 2013, standard engines were 380 HP 8.2 L MAGs, with the option of 430 HP MerCruiser 8.2 L MAG High Output ECT DTS engines with Bravo III drives (the latter could top 46 MPH.)
“The Formulas outperform most of their competitors in terms of speed and efficiency,” Grosz says, “and that 37 is one of the only boats that will offer a diesel package at that size range. It’s an expensive option—it prices most people out of the market on that boat—but it pays for itself if you keep the boat long enough.”
The listing that Grosz has for sale includes the diesel package. “I get almost a mile and a third per gallon out of that boat,” he says. “That’s quite a bit.”
And the Formula 37 PC has more than just a solidly performing hull. Her interior is meant for a weekend or more on the hook, with a beam of nearly 12’ and the roomy feeling that comes along with it. Headroom in the saloon is 6’ 7”—which means no crouching, even for the tall guys.
The master stateroom is in the bow with a pair of hanging lockers plus extra stowage for a good-length getaway. The aft stateroom has a settee that converts into a double berth, perhaps ideal for kids out cruising with mom and dad. The galley and dinette are sized for long weekends on the hook, with a settee that converts to sleep another two people, say if the kids want to bring along their cousins.
John Adams, long the designer for Formula Boats, penned the Formula 37 PC, which year after year has earned top marks from industry experts on handling and performance. A lot of stories about sea trials include the phrase “as I’ve come to expect from Formula,” with reviewers expressing pleasure about the consistent nature of the brand.
When shopping for the Formula 37 PC on the brokerage market, Grosz says, look primarily for the types of flaws that you’d see from normal wear and years’ worth of use, such as sagging vinyl in the salon overhead.
“A few years in, it will start sagging—but that’s typical all the way through the age range,” he says. “That’s the kind of thing you’d look for in any other kind of boat.”
See the Formula 37 PC listings on Yachtworld.
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