Makai 37 GTS adds center foil, boosting speed to 42.6 knots

The center foil on the Makai 37 GTS did more than add a headline number. In testing off Aigio, Greece, the new setup pushed the cat to 42.6 knots and, just as importantly, dropped fuel burn by 30% to 50% at the same engine speed. That is the kind of change that alters how a fast powercat feels in use, not just how it reads in a brochure.

Makai fitted hull number five with twin Yanmar 8LV370 engines, each rated at 370 hp, plus Q-SPD surface drives and semi-submerged propellers. The foil links the two hulls and starts paying off at around 20 knots, with the sweet spot said to be about 30 knots. That matters because the boat is not being tuned only for a brief top-speed burst. It is being shaped around a usable high-speed cruise band, where the boat can stay fast without treating every mile like a full-throttle sprint.

That broader mission is what separates the GTS from a simple speed exercise. The original Makai 37 was already a distinctive machine, with Eryd Yacht Design’s Z-shaped coachroof and bimini line, plus two asymmetric planing hulls under an 11.10-meter hull and a 4.64-meter beam. The base boat displaced about 8.6 tonnes and originally ran twin 320 hp engines, so the GTS step is not a clean-sheet redesign. It is a deliberate engineering move on a proven platform.

Makai’s own website goes even further, claiming a validated top speed of 45.7 knots and a cruising fuel burn of 2.6 L/nm at 30 knots. That reading reinforces the same point the sea trial made clear: the foil-assisted M37 is chasing genuine efficiency gains alongside speed, which is exactly where the most interesting powercat development is happening right now.

The case for the GTS as more than a niche experiment is stronger because Makai has already widened the story around the model. The company launched the M37 from production in Croatia in early 2023, then sent it on long Mediterranean passages, including a Split-to-Palma voyage and a 3,000-mile return to Croatia. It has also turned the M37 into an award contender, with nominations for European Powerboat of the Year 2025, Multihull of the Year 2024, and the Motorboat Awards 2025, alongside names like Dracan 42, Four Winns TH 36 Foil, Kattum 28, and YOT 41.

The bigger signal is the Makai 42. Makai says the next model builds on the M37’s design and can be fitted with optional foils, larger motors, and sedan or flybridge layouts. That suggests the center-foil idea is becoming part of the brand’s direction, not a one-off trick. For owners, the appeal is obvious: a fast cat that still looks like a serious cruising boat, and one that now has the numbers to back up the posture.