For Hayling Island Sailing Club reliability on the water isn’t optional, it’s essential. The club hosts numerous high-level sailing competitions, attracting sailors from around the globe. Last year, the club’s packed calendar included the Suzuki-sponsored ILCA Master European Championships and the IECU Masters & Youth European Championships, as well as annual events such as the RYA Youth National Championships, an international regatta and one of the largest paddleboard events in Britain.
That’s why the club has embarked on a long-term outboard engine replacement programme with Suzuki Marine, ensuring its fleet can meet the pressures of the major national and international events it holds there as well as its intensive year-round training programmes. Over four years, the club is replacing all 17 of its outboard engines with new Suzuki models. Twelve are already in service, with the remaining engines due to be installed early this year. This decision reflects a shift away from the club’s policy of running engines to the end of their life towards a more sustainable, cost-effective approach.
John Message, Rear Commodore Finance at Hayling Island Sailing Club, explains: “The club had used another brand for around 20 years. Many of these engines were around 10 years old and in constant use, approaching the equivalent of 200,000 miles on a car. Maintenance costs went through the roof, and they were breaking down all the time. The cost and disruption just weren’t worth it any more.”
The club decided to explore alternative manufacturers at the Southampton International Boat Show.
“Suzuki really stood out,” John says. “The team were a pleasure to deal with and were genuinely willing to engage with us about what we needed and how a long-term deal could work.”
Performance under pressure
The club operates 11 RIBs as safety boats, alongside training boats for sailing and powerboat instruction and a dedicated youth committee boat. All the boats are used intensively every day throughout the summer.
“Most powerboats are used at weekends,” Chris Rainbow, General Manager at the club, says. “Ours are worked hard, day in, day out, so we rely on every engine performing perfectly.”
The new Suzuki outboards have proven their reliability under the toughest conditions. The entrance to Chichester harbour is well known for being extremely challenging (which is why a lifeboat station is based there).
“That means that if we’re racing in the bay, we must be able to rely on our rescue boats to bring people back in an emergency,” Chris says.
100% reliability
During the 2025 Suzuki Master European Championships, the club deployed its full fleet of RIBs every day to set courses, provide on-water safety and operate a dedicated medic boat, all fitted with the new Suzuki outboards.
“We had 100% reliability, and that peace of mind was huge. With 150 boats racing, international judges and a media boat on the water, our safety drivers and the race officer in charge could focus entirely on the event. We never had to worry about breakdowns, delays or sending mechanics out,” Chris says.
Lower costs, greater efficiency
Switching to Suzuki outboards has also delivered clear financial and environmental benefits.
“Fuel consumption alone was easily 10% lower this year,” John says. “Servicing costs are down, the engines use less oil, and we’re holding far fewer spares. Where spares are needed, they’re cheaper and more targeted. Suzuki’s service packs are really well designed and customisable as we only have to buy what we actually need rather than big generic kits full of parts we’ll never use.”
Reducing breakdowns has cut contingency costs. “If a boat used to break down, we’d have to hire another or borrow a member’s RIB, which costs us time and money. Now we can rely on deploying our own boats all the time,” he adds.
Cleaner performance
“We also appreciate the fact that Suzuki engines are so much better for the environment. They’re the only outboards fitted with a micro-plastic collecting device, so we’re able to remove pollutants from the water just by running our boats.”
More capability
The club’s new ferry boat, Selene, powered by twin DF70A outboards, has been “astounding”, according to John.
“She has so much more capability,” he says. “We use her to ferry members to moorings, get people to other parts of the harbour, take children out for daytrips, or for rescues. We were even able to use her recently to tow a six-ton boat back to its mooring, something the previous ferry would never have managed. The power from her two Suzuki engines is incredible.”
A partnership that delivers
Installation and servicing support have also been key to the programme’s success, with local Suzuki dealer, Fairweather Marine, handling rigging and Suzuki providing training for the club’s in-house technician.
“Servicing has been excellent,” says John. “Having the ability to maintain the engines ourselves, with Suzuki’s backing, is a big advantage.”
Looking ahead, both John and Chris are clear about the value the partnership with Suzuki has brought.
“These outboards have given us real stability,” says Chris. “They’ve helped us cement our reputation as a world-class venue.”
“We would absolutely recommend Suzuki outboards to other clubs,” John adds. “Their reliability and efficiency, along with the support we continue to receive from Suzuki, have been outstanding.”
You can learn all about Hayling Island Sailing Club and keep up to date with their events at www.hisc.co.uk
