Coast XT

This is a surprisingly reliable foldable kayak that allows for pretty unique possibilities. It's a touring kayak, but especially with the inlet pack, it offers some pretty incredible portability.

• Assembly - I debated giving this review four stars for the assembly portion, but without this folding ability, I wouldn't be able to store or transport my kayak so readily, so I'll keep it at five. What Oru has created is pretty amazing, BUT ... assembly is tough to master at first. Initially, it is not intuitive. I had to watch their instructional video a few times at 0.75 speed to figure it out, and my first successful set up took around 45 minutes. However, after a few more times taking it apart and putting it back together, I can have it assembled in 15 minutes (with float bags and a few other add ons).
• Performance - The first time I set this up, I thought "There's no way this will perform well." The hull seems so flexible and pliable until you get it fully assembled. And it just ... comes together. And it performs incredibly well, just like any touring kayak. I have had zero issues with taking on water, and it handles just fine.
• Portability - This is one of my favorite features. I have the inlet pack, and I store everything I need in there. It can fit in most closets and definitely doesn't take up as much room as a full-sized kayak would. I can also fit the entire pack into the backseat of my commuter car (Mazda Protege), which is pretty fantastic considering it's a 16 ft coastal kayak. No rack needed! The inlet pack is pretty handy - I will say that since the "box" shape it folds into is pretty bulky, it does feel a bit off-balance, even with the straps and waist support. But it is a small price to pay for being able to backpack in a 16 FT KAYAK!!!
• Price - Yeah, it's going to be some sticker shock - especially with some of the add-ons, like the inlet pack or float bags. But, after taking it out on several adventures, I've decided that the price is well worth the benefits! I feel like I'm getting the best of two worlds - a high-quality kayak that can handle coastal trips but can be stored anywhere and be transported by pretty much anything. I can hike it in solo with little difficulty, assemble it on the coast, and push out where others may have a harder time reaching.

Overall, this is a great find. I haven't had any issues with my purchase yet, so I can't speak to any customer support features, but I've gotten a lot of enjoyment and adventure from my kayak and I highly recommend this to those who are starting out with coastal kayaking AND those with a lot of experience.

I owned the original Coast and the newer XT. The XT assembles much quicker, is a bit more rigid, has more space and appears to glide a bit better than the original thanks to the rounder cabin curves. The original cabin was a box. The XT has more folds around the cabin, giving it a better and more efficient glide. The weight of the XT is less than a kevlar equivalent, at half the price. If you complain about the XT, well than you are just a natural complainer.

The kayak assembly is not difficult but the disassembly can be a challenge. Once you get it down its ok. It is not a fiberglass boat so don't expect it to act like one. It is light and travels well. It is overpriced for the lack of customer service. That will do them in if they continue to be slow at service, ignore customer calls or texts to their service department and charge so much for their accessories. Overall it's a folding kayak that won't last as long as a Klepper but costs less. It's tough to skimming over rocks but not sharp ones. It weather cocks and has no skeg. It has a bad deck bungee you have to remake. But it's a portable kayak. Again, it's a good idea and if you travel its easier to take with you. Just buy from a dealer and not ORU due to their terrible customer service.

I own a seeker st and coast xt. The seeker is a bit faster and the coast is a bit more stable and accelerates better. The coast is much easier to assemble and to pack up.

I own the Bay from 2014 which was somewhat improved over the kickstarter version. Three years later, having gone paddling over 30x, I wanted to upgrade. The coast xt is a much better handling boat and allows for controlled edging and advanced turns. Edged rudders are also easy to accomplish. The coast xt is a much tighter fitting boat with good padding around the hips due to the updated seat back.

The coast xt is stable on chop and is an excellent boat for long trips.

I have since purchased a second boat for the wife so that we can enjoy paddling together. She is still a novice and finds the boat stable enough for learning, but is also able to manuvure.

Assembly is easy if one follows the simple instructions. Similar to the Bay, the folds on the coast xt takes some breaking in. Once this period is over, assembling the boat is super quick and easy and is much simpler that most skin on frame folding kayaks.

Pluses:
+ Stores inside of a small car
+ extremely durable (won't crack or split open like a hard shell fiberglass
+ as fast as any hard shell with excellent glide ability
+ incredible acceleration probably due to the light weight and low hull to water friction
+ takes on big waves easily and has very good stability through rough waters.

Negatives:
- Long learning curve to fold and unfold in which mistakes could damage the kayak.
- Gets blown around by the wind fairly easily (probably due to the light weight, low hull/water friction and fairly flat keel)

Overall:
once you get the hang of it to fold and unfold, and with some minor modifications to suit your personal needs, can't find anything bad to say about this kayak.

I found it weather cocked a lot but it tracked pretty well and wasn't too slow and seemed to do well straight into the wind, much better than an inflatable. I found it extremely uncomfortable and was in pain the next day after only a of couple hours messing around in it. The backrest is way too high for real paddling, but easily modified. The footrest arrangement is horrible. You might be able to modify it enough to make it comfortable enough but I just didn't like the boat enough to want to get into that.

All the plastic parts seem kind of toy like, I'm concerned how long this will hold up, the whole concept is still very new. Also I really don't know how you're supposed to be able to access any cargo stowed inside the hull without just about taking apart the whole thing every time.

Oru customer service can be friendly and helpful but not really on the ball, seems like poor internal communication, they say their getting back to you tomorrow and then they ignore until next week. I found them frustrating to deal with though they seem like the try to do a good job, sooner or later, that's good enough I suppose...