SeaVee 340Z (2019-)

The SeaVee 340Z is designed and built for the serious offshore angler. Fishing amenities are abundant and all add to the vessel’s focus on landing fish on long days offshore, which is the primary reason for anglers to consider this vessel. While triple outboards get the job done in terms of speed and power, they are not easy to manage unless they come with a full complement of features including power steering, iTrim and iSteer – all of which were incorporated in the triple Evinrude E-TEC G2 rig on our test boat. For anglers who want to bring their family aboard, a set of options are available to increase the number and comfort of seating aboard.

While the SeaVee 340Z is available with twin outboards, the triple installation of Evinrude G2s on our test boat made sense for improved performance and a robust equipment setup.

• Color-matched triple Evinrude E-TEC G2 300s make the engines look like they were designed to be part of the boat, and virtually any color or graphic treatment can be painted on these engines. No other engine brand comes close to the color selection that Evinrude makes available.

• SeaVee livewell plumbing will be on serious anglers’ list, with a seachest directing the raw water to two pumps per livewell, the kind of redundancy that shows this builder knows a day when the bait all dies is a day on the water ruined.

• Evinrude clean rigging means the swim platform is tidy and usable, without extra hydraulic hoses to trip up swimmers or anglers trying to secure the catch. Because the engines tilt 81-degrees – more than any other outboard – the props and lower units come completely out of the water when not in use.

• In-deck fishboxes are laid out so they can be handy, and handle loads of fish. In the foredeck is an electric-ram-actuated lid that will raise the optional coffin box, even when it’s full.

• Evinrude ICON Touch engine-monitoring display has an intuitive interface that lets the skipper track tank levels, set automated trim and steering systems, and keep an eye on the outboard performance, and more.

• An optional upper helm station is designed to give the skipper a game-changing view of the fishing action, with a seat that will help keep everyone comfortable.

• The optional Seakeeper 3 gyro stabilizer is built into a custom-designed leaning post that lets this device slow the roll when seas get rough and uses power from a few additional batteries (rather than adding a genset).

The blue circles indicate storage compartments, fishboxes, livewells, bilge access, and the anchor locker.

The SeaVee 340Z is a proven design that has a 10’ (3.4 m) beam and draws just 20” (51 cm) with gear up. She can store as many as 42 rods in lockable compartments, and in the model we tested there was full access to the gunwales forward, something we don’t see on most center consoles because of the raised casting platforms that are molded in forward.

The 340Z Open can be up graded to the Luxury Edition (LE) which provides additional seating fore and aft.

The 340Z can be customized to fit an owner’s fishing and boating lifestyle. Families seeking extra comfort may find removable forward and rear seats along with toilet and shower facilities appealing. Sun pads or molded-in seating is also available in the Luxury Edition (LE).

This aft bench seat is handy for entertaining, but can be removed for more serious work.

These twin forward facing seats are modeled to the deck in the Luxury Edition, but anglers can still get to the gunwale forward to handle ground tackle or work a fish there.

There is storage under the seats.

The forward sections of the hull have a sharp forefoot with reverse chines to knock down spray. The bow expands to a subtle flare in the topsides. With a 23.5-degree deadrise at the transom, the SeaVee 340Z has a deep-V to create a soft landing when waves grow large and conditions get sporty.

This design means she’ll hold turns at speed in sloppy conditions. The hull is twin-stepped and cross-ventilated, and uses the company’s proprietary patented design, called SpeedRail Technology. The idea is to use multiple flat planes in the wetted surface to create lift, using the surface geometry to provide a fixed trim angle throughout a wide range of speeds.

SeaVee says it means the view of the horizon is clear, and fuel efficiency, speed, and handling are optimized.

The bow shows a sharp forefoot with a strake and a pronounced hard chine both reaching the stem.

The ends of the two steps in the running surface are visible here.

The bow layout is wide open, with plenty of fishing room. Covering boards forward are 30” (76.2 cm) high and 19” (48.26 cm) wide and all-around coaming pads are 8” (20.32 cm) deep. Anglers can work fish all around the bow without the encumbrance of a casting deck. In fact, the whole bow is a casting deck.

The deck is finished in SeaDek and there’s loads of stowage, including under-gunwale bins with lipped edges.

The bow deck has a clean design, with a hatch revealing a locker with an anchor hanger and an additional locker forward.

A hatch in the bow creates a clean look and pop-up cleats reduce the snag factor on fishing lines.

The anchor hangs, inverted by its stock, over the rode locker.

A door below grants excellent access to the rode locker. This access is rarely see in this type of boat and it will come in handy where there are snarls.

This optional coffin box is 3’9” (1.14 m) long, and has a gasketed lid held up by a gas-assist strut.

The foredeck is covered in SeaDek matting to soften the ride and has stowage under hatch lids, including a pair of 45-gallon (170 L) fishboxes to either side, a 53-gallon (201 L) centerline locker that can be rigged to be a fishbox or livewell, and a 180-gallon (681 L) forward fishbox with a two-piece hatch lid.

Our test boat had equipment and batteries mounted in the center locker, for some equipment we’ll discuss later on.

Rod storage is abundant and up to 42 rods can be accommodated.

Access to the 180-gallon (681 L) forward fishbox is easy through this two-piece lid…

… or through a custom electric-ram system, which allows the fishbox to open, even with the coffin box in place.

Bait wells can be placed in the deck. SeaVee permits a high degree of customization to meet the needs of anglers.

The upholstered seat built into the front of the console has details like diamond-pattern quilting and custom stitching, and it slides to port to reveal a compartment.

The seat on the front of the console has grab handles to either side, as ABYC standards require for NMMA certification.

The seat slides to port, a smart design solution to create access to the compartment.

There’s a fold-out latch to hold the seat door open per NMMA certification to ABYC standards.

There’s variable geometry in the compartment, and the overhead measures 5’ (1.52 m) in the aft area, and higher forward at the entrance. There’s a sink in here, room for a Porta-Potti, or an electric toilet with a 14 gallon (53 L) waste holding tank. There is an electrical breaker panel as well as a locker for additional stowage and access to the backside of the helm control panel.

The design of the overhead and steps in the console compartment let our test captain get in and out without bumping his head.

The sink has a pull-up shower wand for a faucet, making this a wet head if wanted.

Generous walkways to either side of the console have eight vertical rod holders per side in our test boat, and bring us past the T-top frame pipes, which are mounted to the console sides. Built-in ladders to either side have steps 10” (25 cm) apart, in compliance with ABYC standards for NMMA certification, as are grab handles of a smaller diameter than the main support pipes.

On each side of the console there are eight vertical rod holders, in addition to those on the transom and in the gunwales. This permits handy switching to fly casting, heavy or light tackle, depending upon which game is on at any given time during the day.

The robust pipe frame of the hardtop has grab handles and ladders where they’re needed. Note that the T-top supports are screwed to the console base and not the deck.

These ladders to either side of the helm grant access to an upper helm station.

An isinglass windshield protects the helm console from the front and sides right up to the finely finished molded hardtop with LEDs built in, including one that can switch to red, preserving night vision. The compass lines up with a centerline wheel on its fixed base. The main helm panel consists of two 16” (40.64 cm) Simrad multifunction displays behind a protective, latching acrylic panel that holds itself up on gas-assist struts.

The hardtop is finished from top to bottom, has tracks for a three-sided polycarbonate windshield and carries such features as built-in LEDs and mounts for outriggers.

A large compass with a side-reading card is set on top of the console among SeaDek foam that’s designed to have recessed trays to hold odds and ends. This is an excellent design and one that is custom made for the 340Z.

To starboard of the wheel is the Evinrude ICON II Premium EST Control Binnacle, trim tab controls, the ignition key, a Simrad autopilot control, and engine trim control.

Across the top row are, from left to right, the Seakeeper control unit, the JL Audio stereo control, and the engine start-stop switches.

The Evinrude ICON Touch controls all of the engine features and functions, including engine information, including RPM and fuel flow monitoring, water temperature and boat speed, it also provides precise readouts of fuel and oil levels, and control of iSteer, iTrim, and automatic winterization.

Control of the function of up to four outboards is easily managed with an intuitive visual interface on the Evinrude ICON Touch located on the port side of the dashboard.

Evinrude ICON II Touch 7” (17.78 cm) CTS Features

• Touchscreen display

• RPM for up to four outboards

• Fuel-flow monitoring

• Water temperature

• Boat speed

• Fuel levels for up to four tanks

• Oil levels

• iSteer

• iTrim

• Winterization

The ICON II Premium EST binnacle provides LED indicators showing neutral, forward and reverse, trim and tilt control, engine synching with an RPM up or down key to allow 50 rpm jumps in engine speed at the touch of a button, all in an ergonomic electronic control package.

The ICON II Premium EST binnacle provides control over up to four outboards and delivers numerous features in an ergonomic design.

ICON II Premium EST Binnacle Features

• LED shift indicators

• Trim and tilt control

• Engine synching

• RPM up or down key

• Ergonomic electronic control package

Rocker switches for various electrical systems are along the lower edge, under an acrylic cover.

Our captain found the switches in the knee-bump zone when he used the angled footrest, which has a handy toe kick beneath.

There’s an upper helm station on top of that hardtop that’s accessed by the side ladders on the top’s pipe frame. The upper station helm has a centerline wheel on a fixed base, a Simrad multifunction display, an Evinrude ICON Touch display, and trim tab and engine trim controls as well as start and stops, and the ICON II Premium shift and throttle binnacle.

The climb is easy with lots of spots on the frame to grab.

The upper helm is a second station with networked functionality via the Simrad and Evinrude displays.

A double helm seat with wraparound armrests aids comfort and security.

;Our test captain would like to see a footrest for use in the seated or leaning position.

There’s a glovebox to stow odds and ends and access rigging.

The Leaning Post

The leaning post has a 45” (114.3 cm) wide seat upholstered with diamond-pattern quilting and the Sea Vee logo. The forward edge is designed to serve as an angled leaning bolster.

;The seat position is fixed so prospective boaters should test it to see how it works.

The forward edge is angled to serve as a bolster.

A stainless steel, flip-down footrest adds to the seating options.

The leaning post has a grabrail that runs along each side and all around aft, good for passengers who are standing around the helm for the run to the fishing grounds, as are the beverage holders alternating with rod holders.

The aft end of the leaning post has a foldout shelf for bait prep, and below that, a pair of lockers with gasketed doors side by side keep tackle trays organized.

;Tackle trays will stay organized in these lockers.

Seakeeper Gyro Stabilizer

In the bottom of this custom leaning post is the Seakeeper 3 gyro stabilizer in a striking installation behind a window. We didn’t test its ability to reduce the rolling effects of rough seas on the boat.

The Seakeeper 3 gyro stabilizer is designed to help reduce the roll of the boat, but we didn’t have the time or conditions to put it to the test.

 Remember the array of batteries in that foredeck locker? They provide the juice to spin the gyro in the Seakeeper system. The 50 available amps produced by each of the three Evinrude G2 magnetos supplies more than enough power to the batteries to keep the gyro operating. The Evinrudes are particularly important in this application because they produce more available amps than any outboard on the market in class.

The cockpit sole is finished with the same SeaDek except on the lid of the 60-gallon (227 L) in-deck livewell. A pair of fishboxes to either side hold 40 gallons (151 L) each. There’s a centerline lazarette with a sea chest that serves four raw-water pumps, two for each livewell. The through-hull fittings are all double-clamped, exceeding ABYC standards, a sign of a boat built with care.

The see-through 1” (2.54 cm) thick acrylic hatch lid in the cockpit sole allows bait checks.

Fishboxes to either side manage the catch.

A lazarette serves as a mechanical space with a gas-assist strut positioned to simplify access.

The sea chest reduces the number of hull penetrations, and it’s especially helpful when each livewell has two pumps. 

The transom features another livewell with an aquarium window to simplify bait checks. The lid is gasketed and has a latch so it can be pressurized.

The transom livewell has a capacity of 65 gallons (227 L) and lets the crew rig in a hurry when the bite is on.

A sink is located to starboard in the transom under a lid. This can be changed to another 30 gallon (114 L) livewell. Beneath that is a door to a locker where the trim tab pumps are accessible. On the port end of the transom is a door to the swim platform. It has a flip-over top section hinged on its inboard side and held in place with a bungee latch. It measures 19” (48.26 cm) wide, and is a 9” (22.86 cm) step up from the cockpit and a 2” (5.08 cm) step down to the swim platform.

Clean-up after rigging is easier with a sink right in the transom.

An optional 30 gallon (114 L) livewell can go next to the large baitwell instead of the standard sink.

The transom door is very discreet, and even has a coaming pad across it and a covering board swings down on top to provide security in a seaway. It is gasketed to prevent rattling.

The two-piece design flips the top inboard, out of the way, and the door swings out to make dockside boarding easier. Because it opens out, it makes emergency dewatering possible if an unexpected wave slops aboard.

The swim platform on the SeaVee 340Z is finished in SeaDeck and extends 29” (73.66 cm) from the transom. There’s a walkway along its forward edge for the full width, allowing the crew to get around without putting a foot in the well where the outboards mount.

We would like to see a grabrail on the transom somewhere to allow crew to work here more safely. A pair of zero-degree rod holders are mounted to the transom.

Because the Evinrude E-TEC G2 outboards have internal steering the outboard well is uncluttered.

The E-TEC G2 – because of its standard internal steering gear – allows the engines to tilt 81-degrees and raise fully out of the water.

The E-TEC G2 outboards are direct-injection 2-stroke engines, and they provide far more torque in the low- and mid-rpm range than 4-stroke outboards. All 2-stroke engines have more torque because every turn of the crankshaft is a power stroke.

Evinrude E-TEC G2 outboards use direct fuel injection into the cylinder, not into the intake manifold like all 4-stroke engines in class. That allows the G2 injectors to put the right amount of fuel in the cylinder at the right time, for more fuel efficient operation than 4-stroke engines are capable of.

Clean Running

Direct-injected Evinrude E-TEC G2 2-stroke technology produces the lowest emissions of any 4-stroke outboard on the market, according to information made public by the EPA. When it comes to deadly carbon monoxide, Evinrude’s G2 engines are 95% better than 4-stroke engines and the only one not releasing a potentially lethal amount of CO.

Here we see a computer rendering of the moment the injector adds a fine mist of fuel, and we can also see the exhaust port (indicated by the red arrow) is blocked off by the piston, preventing escape of any of the fuel.

Controlling Combustion

Because the E-TEC G2 has an EMM (or Engine Management Module) with a computer monitoring the conditions and throttle input, Evinrude says it measures out just the right amount of fuel, in the right pattern, at the right pressure up to 800 psi, and at precisely the right time – all go to optimize combustion.

That, together with stratified combustion, the swirl of incoming air scavenging the combustion chamber, and the “plugging pulse” compressing still more air into the combustion chamber, further optimizes combustion for both greater fuel efficiency and lower emissions than 4-stroke engines.

Evinrude E-TEC G2 engines have the most advanced outboard powerheads on the market.

Evinrude says when the throttles are opened wide, the engine switches to homogenized combustion, hitting the optimal 14:1 air-to-fuel ratio in the combustion chamber that delivers peak power.

The E-TEC G2 has a water-cooled EMM, to keep the combustion properly calibrated for the conditions at hand. It is the only water-cooled such unit on the market and can make up to 1,000 calculations a second.

This image shows a cutaway view of an Evinrude E-TEC G2 combustion chamber with yellow arrows indicating the injected spray of fuel and the spark plug.

Built-in steering, trim, and tilt simplify rigging and eliminate hydraulic lines and extraneous equipment, while electronic throttle and shift control simplifies rigging as well.

This demonstration unit illustrates the way the integrated steering works, using a helical gearing system that transforms up-and-down motion to side-to-side movement of the steering bracket (shown at top). The steering pump is compact enough that it all fits within the engine midsection just below the powerhead.

The SeaVee 340Z has a LOA of 34’9” (10.59 m) and a beam of 10’ (3.05 m). With an empty weight of 7,950 lbs. (3,606 kg), 50% fuel and four people onboard, we had an estimated test weight of 11,811 lbs. (5,357 kg).

With the triple Evinrude E-TEC G2 300s, the SeaVee 340Z will reach speeds of 57.9 mph (93.1 kph) and get the crew to the fishing grounds in a hurry.

With the triple 300-hp Evinrude E-TEC G2 outboards powering our test boat, turning 20” pitch 4-blade props, we reached a top speed of 57.9 mph (93.1 kph) at 5800 rpm.

Best economic cruise came in at 4000 rpm and 35.8 mph (57.6 kph). It was at that speed that the 31 gph (117.2 lph) fuel burn translated into 1.2 mpg (1.0 nmpg) and a range of 379 statute miles (329.4 nm).

We started our acceleration test from a dead stop.

Acceleration

From a standing start, the SeaVee 340Z got onto plane in 4.8 seconds and accelerated from zero to 20 mph in 5.9 seconds, and to 30 mph in 8.9 seconds.

The triple Evinrude E-TEC G2 300s pushed the SeaVee out of the hole and on plane in 4.8 seconds.

The SeaVee 340Z is built to get anglers to the fishing grounds in a wide range of conditions. She’s a stable boat with a strong feel. While we didn’t have notable sea conditions to really put her through her paces, crossing wakes showed a solid transition with minimal spray maintaining a dry ride.

She has a high deadrise forefoot which sliced through waves and that warps out to a 23.5-degree deadrise at the transom. That deadrise is one of the deepest Deep Vs on the market in class, and ensures the owner that the ride provided at high speed offshore will be about as good as it gets.

 Her Seakeeper gyro stabilizer is a good idea, particularly with the upper helm.

The SeaVee turns sharply, leans into the turn, and digs her shoulder in thanks to her sharp entry.

The SeaVee 340Z was responsive to the helm and turn tests showed no hint of chine walk or falling off the turn.

Her hull knocked down the spray and threw it far to the side. 

• 65-gallon (227 L) live baitwell with pump

• Integrated platform with transom door

• 2 insulated fishboxes

• Trim tabs

• Dual automatic bilge pumps

• Pop-up cleats

• Under-deck dry stowage

• Lockable rod stowage

• Freshwater and saltwater washdown systems

• Key West-style T-top

• Low-profile second station

• T-tower option for upper station

• Kingfish-style rod holder

• Additional spreader light on hardtop

• ACR remote searchlight

• Lee Sidewinder outriggers

• Captain’s Edition or Supreme leaning post

• Available customizable forward and rear seating

• Flush-mounted transducer

• Windlass including rope, chain and stainless steel plow anchor

• Armstrong or pull-out dive ladder

• Electric head with holding tank and macerator pump

• Rack for six dive tanks

• Pneumatic extend and retract cooler actuator

• Stainless steel towing eye with strike plate

• 2 additional baitwells are available

10-year hull warranty, and 1-year warranty on all factory-installed electronics and accessories.

The SeaVee 340Z has been in production for some years and has proven itself to be a practical fishing boat. Because the 340Z is sold factory direct, and because of the design of the boat, a high degree of personalization can be made. And, since it is factory direct, there are sales cost savings that may accrue to the buyer.