August 21, 2026
The Pursuit S 428: 1,800 Horsepower and a Second Row of Seats
Pursuit's Sport flagship runs quad Yamaha 450 XTOs for 1,800 hp, 60.7 mph and 0 to 30 mph in 8.6 seconds on a 43-foot 9-inch hull, with a po…
Read the articlePursuit S428
Expert Review, Technical Specifications & Market Analysis
The Essentials
| Feature | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Overall Length | 43' 9" |
| Beam | 13' 0" |
| Draft | 2' 10" (motors up) / 3' 9" (motors down) |
| Displacement | 26,519 lbs (with quad Yamaha 450 XTO engines) |
| Engines | Quad Yamaha 450 XTO (4 x 450 HP) |
| Fuel Capacity | 518 US gallons |
| Water Capacity | 70 US gallons |
| Cabins / Heads | Console cabin with forward berth (5" foam cushions and filler); private head compartment to starboard with vacuum-flush elongated marine head, shower and 22-gallon holding tank |
| Max Speed | 60.7 mph @ 6,000 RPM |
| Cruise Speed | 32.0 mph @ 3,500 RPM |
Source: Spec & Photos courtesy of Pursuit. Specs verified by Tony Smith, USCG 100 Ton Master, on August 20, 2026.
Part of the Pursuit Sport series — see how owners step up through the lineup.
Quick Verdict
- Quad Yamaha 450 XTOs make 1,800 hp — 60.7 mph flat out and 0 to 30 mph in 8.6 seconds on a 26,519-pound hull.
- Best cruise is 32.0 mph at 3,500 rpm on 48.2 gph: 0.66 mpg and 315 miles from 518 gallons, less reach than the smaller S 388.
- Three fishboxes total 134 gallons, twin 36-gallon transom livewells flank the cockpit, and a Seakeeper 6 gyro is standard.
Our Take
The S 428 is the boat you buy when the question stopped being what it can do and became who is coming. Every big center console has the same unsolved problem — the people who are not driving end up facing backwards at 40 mph or sitting in the bow taking spray. Pursuit's answer here is a mezzanine assembly that power-slides fore and aft and puts a second row of forward-facing bridge seats under a full-beam hardtop. The yard calls it an industry first; I will just say it is the reason this boat gets used with six people aboard instead of three, and that is the difference between a boat you love and a boat you sell.
The performance sheet is where I want you looking, because Pursuit publishes one and it is more useful than anything a salesperson will tell you. Sixty point seven mph at 6,000 rpm on 154.5 gallons an hour is the party trick. Zero to 30 in 8.6 seconds on 26,519 pounds of dry boat is the genuinely impressive number — four 450 XTOs do not feel like a horsepower figure, they feel like an elevator. But read the cruise line honestly: 32.0 mph at 3,500 rpm, 0.66 miles to the gallon, 315 miles out of 518 gallons. Then look at the S 388 on triples and a 500-gallon tank, and see 352 miles. The bigger boat cruises faster and does not go as far. Quads buy you speed, seating and stability. They do not buy you range, and I would rather you hear that from me.
Here is the honest limit, and it is worth being blunt about. This is a 43-foot 9-inch boat with one berth and one head. The cabin is beautifully done — solid wood, a skylight, 8,000 BTU of air conditioning, a real shower — but it is one cabin, because every square foot Pursuit did not spend below deck it spent on the cockpit, which is the correct trade for a center console and the wrong trade if the actual requirement is sleeping four. If it is, look at the Offshore boats at this same length instead. And budget honestly for the scale: thirteen feet of beam and better than thirteen tons dry is a serious slip, a serious lift and a serious haul-out. Buy the S 428 because you want the biggest, fastest, best-seated fishing platform Pursuit builds, and the standard Seakeeper 6 means the day does not end when the sea builds.
Watch Our Pursuit S428 Reviews
Official Pursuit Premiere: Inside the Pursuit S428
Video courtesy of Pursuit.
Pursuit S428 Photo Gallery
Photos courtesy of Pursuit.
Pursuit S428 Articles & Guides
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Frequently Asked Questions
How fast is the Pursuit S 428?
60.7 mph at 6,000 RPM on quad Yamaha 450 XTOs — the fastest boat Pursuit publishes a figure for. The test was run on 5/1/2023 at 32,107 pounds, with four people, 527 gallons of fuel and full water and diesel tanks, on 16-3/8" x 21" XTO propellers.
Nought to thirty takes 8.6 seconds. For a 26,519-pound boat that is a remarkable number, and it is what 1,800 horsepower buys: the quad package is this hull's maximum rating, and every published figure for the S 428 belongs to it.
Is the Pursuit S 428 too much boat for one person to run?
Not at the dock, which is usually where the worry sits. Pursuit fits a 5.4-horsepower (4.0 kW) bow thruster as standard, with its own Group 31 AGM battery and joystick control at the helm, and the quad 450 XTOs come with Helm Master EX digital control and Yamaha joystick control with full maneuverability, Set Point and autopilot. Between the two, a 26,519-pound boat can be walked sideways into a slip single-handed.
The honest limits are elsewhere. Forty-three feet nine inches with the platform on a 13-foot beam is a serious berth to find, and four engines is four of everything to service.
If you run alone most of the time and the fourth engine is not earning its keep, the S 388 does much the same job on three.
Does the Pursuit S 428 have a berth?
Yes — a proper forward berth in the console cabin with 5-inch foam cushions and a filler, rather than settees that convert.
The cabin also carries solid-wood cabinetry, a hanging locker, a 32-inch LED TV, a microwave, storage drawers with an integrated prep surface and 8,000 BTU of reverse-cycle air conditioning. The private head sits to starboard with a vacuum-flush elongated marine head, a shower and a 22-gallon holding tank.
On deck the S 428 adds what Pursuit calls an industry-first second row of powered convertible seats under a full-beam hardtop. Fresh water is 70 gallons.
What cruise speed and range does Pursuit publish for the S 428?
32.0 mph at 3,500 RPM, burning 48.2 gallons an hour for 0.66 miles per gallon and 315 miles of range on 90 percent of the test-condition fuel rather than the full 518-gallon tank. That is the best-cruise row.
The sheet is honest about what four engines cost at the top end: flat out the S 428 burns 154.5 gallons an hour and range falls to 186 miles.
Most owners will live between 3,500 and 4,000 RPM. The 4,000 row gives 38.9 mph at 63.3 gallons an hour for 291 miles, so nearly seven more miles an hour costs 24 miles of range.