Thunderbird Products of Decatur, Indiana owns and builds Formula. The Porter family has controlled the company since acquiring Thunderbird and Formula from Fuqua Industries in the late 1970s.
What types of boats does Formula build?
Formula builds bowriders from the 240 to the 310, Crossover and Super Sport performance models, Sun Sport cruisers, and a Center Console line. All are built in Decatur, Indiana and sold worldwide.
Did Don Aronow start Formula?
Yes. Aronow founded Formula in North Miami Beach in the early 1960s and sold it soon after; the deep-V Formula 233 dates from that first era. The brand later came under Thunderbird Products and the Porter family.
Formula boats come from Thunderbird Products of Decatur, Indiana, an American builder of bowriders, sport cruisers, crossovers, and center consoles. The brand began with Miami powerboat builder Don Aronow in the early 1960s and has been in Porter family hands since the late 1970s.
Don Aronow roots and Porter family ownership
Aronow set up Formula in North Miami Beach and sold it soon after, but not before the 233, the deep-V design that shaped the company's later boats. After spells under Alliance Machine and, from 1969, Fuqua Industries, the brand landed with Porter Inc., which acquired Thunderbird and Formula from Fuqua in the late 1970s. The Porter family has run it since, from headquarters in Decatur, Indiana, where the boats are built.
The current Formula lineup
Production at the Indiana plant covers a Bowrider series from the 240 to the 310, Crossover and Super Sport performance models, Sun Sport cruisers, and a Center Console range, all of it sold worldwide. Recent flagships include the 400 Super Sport and the 400 Super Sport Crossover. The 240 Bowrider took Powerboat Magazine's Boat of the Year award in 2006, and Formula also collected the Mercury Constructor's Cup in 2001 and 2002.
The secondhand Formula market
Formulas turn over steadily secondhand, from small bowriders to 40-foot cruisers. Models such as the 330 Sun Sport, 311 SR-1, 31 PC, and 34 appear regularly in brokerage listings, and GetBoat carries Formula boats for sale and charter.
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★ 4.540FT Formula 2014The 2014 Formula 400 Super Sport Crossover (SSC) is a high-performance, versatile express cruiser that blends luxury cabin amenities with exhilarating outboard power. Its 40-foot LOA, 12-foot beam, and quad Mercury Verado engines deliver top speeds near 61 mph and quick acceleration, while the full-height windshield anRead review →
★ 4.251' TOP FUN, Luxury BIG Yacht. Sunset-dolphin cruise, Parties and more!The Formula Thunderbird 480 is a well-finished 51-foot luxury cruiser with strong day-boat appeal, broad cockpit space, and the brand’s performance-first hull character. It suits sunset cruises and parties better than long-distance passagemaking, and its value depends heavily on engine package and upkeep.Read review →
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