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2005 Southland Southland Horizon 1800 LE Photos
2005 Southland Southland Horizon 1800 LE Test Details
| Category | Pontoon Boat |
| Length | 18ft / 5.49 m |
| Dealers | Contact Southland Boats Dealers |
| Buyers Guides | Search For Southland Boats Buyers Guides |
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2005 Southland Southland Horizon 1800 LE Description
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Pontoon boats usually work best for slow, steady daycruising or fishing on small lakes and rivers, transposing the comforts of your living room to the water. Powering-up may bring enough speed for watersports, but pontoons remain good-time boats, ideal for sunny summer afternoons.
So it was hard to get a real feel for the Southland Horizon 1800 on test day. The St. Maurice River was running even more swiftly than usual past Shawinigan, Que., and rain was teeming down in sheets, the tail end of a fall hurricane.
The real miracle - a testament to the Beauce, Que., builders of Southland pontoons - was that the test boat, an 18-foot Horizon 1800 LE powered by a Honda Four Stroke BF50, was still relatively comfortable. With the Bimini top in place, the helm was dry, at least at cruising speeds.At the boat's top speed of 21.8 mph, nothing short of a full camper top (available as an option) could have avoided a drenching.
Pontoons are all about relaxation, the ultimate in laid-back boating for relatively protected waters. But finding a moderately sized pontoon boat that provides a decent turn of speed, without compromising on comfort, is a real challenge.
Our test boat had the right answers on several fronts.
Performance-wise, the carbureted Honda 50 Four Stroke outboard pushed the Horizon 1800 along at a measured yet adequate pace.The boat cruised nicely at about 11-12 mph (the tach wasn't connected, so that's an estimated cruising speed) but topped out at 21.8 mph.That's fast enough for tubing, kneeboarding or wakeboarding. Acceleration was respectable: 0-20 mph in just over four seconds and 0- 15 in 6.88 seconds.
One of the big advantages of the Honda 50, especially on a boat aimed at relaxation, is quiet operation. At cruising speeds, the engine registered a mere 71 decibels (77 decibels in the aft cockpit). A spirited conversation is louder than that. The top speed only jacked the decibel level to 80 dbA at the helm and 83 dbA in the aft cockpit.
On the design and comfort front, the boat, with the LE-B layout, is also a winner.The two inward-facing forward settees are almost standard pontoon fare, as are the comfortable, swiveling captain's chair at the helm, the narrow sunlounge atop the storage and fuel compartments aft to port, the wide bench seat to port aft of the helm seat and the huge under-seat storage areas.
The difference comes with the table to port and the second bench seat forward of it.That bench, right to the left of the helm, is not as wide as the aft bench, allowing easy passage forward or aft. But combined with the aft bench and table, it makes a comfortable dinette area - fine for midday snacks or full family meals, under cover of the Bimini.As well, its backrest flips back and forth, allowing it to double as extra forward-facing seating.
The Horizon LE has built-in plenty of seating while still leaving lots of open space.With four gates, access is great..
My only complaint on the test boat was the colour of the Bimini top - blue.A sand-coloured top that is available would have better matched the boat upholstery and carpeting. For buyers, that's just a matter of choice.
And if I had a choice, I'd choose to be cruising down a lazy lake or river - sun shining, a soft breeze blowing, a quiet outboard idling along. It's many boaters' secret summer dream, but the Southland Horizon 1800 LE could make it a reality.
2005 Southland Southland Horizon 1800 LE Test Specifications
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Test boat engine: Honda BF50, 50 hp, 967 cc (59 cid)), four-stroke carbureted gasoline outboard engine.
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