Grand Banks just announced that they are building a new 52, a long-range cruiser with a high-tech, slippery, 30-knot hull that will be launched at the Newport, Rhode Island, boat show next September. The GB 52 will be the latest in the newly reinvigorated Grand Banks lineup, coming after the Grand Banks 60 and Grand Banks 60 Skylounge.
Mark Richards, the company’s president and CEO, made the announcement at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show. “The 52 will combine weight reduction, strength and a low vertical center of gravity,” he said. “Of course, efficiency doesn’t matter without comfort, so we made sure the 52 will offer surefootedness in a wide range of sea states, and an interior worthy of extended time aboard.”
The 52 will be available in two- or three-stateroom arrangements, and it will be powered by twin 725-hp Volvo D11 diesels with straight shafts. The company projects a top speed of 30 knots and a high cruise of 27 knots, with a range of 1,000 nm at 10 knots.
The boat will have Richard’s warped hull, which leaves minimal wake, and which carries the same running attitude whether the boat’s running at 10 knots or 30 knots. It has a sharp forefront and uses fully infused carbon fiber for the decks and superstructure to create a low center of gravity.
The interior will be filled with Grand Banks’ golden teak and the craftsmanship and exquisite fit and finish that have been the company’s hallmarks for more than 60 years. In the two-stateroom version, the master stateroom, with en suite head and shower, is amidships on the starboard side. The galley is on the port side, just down from the salon in an open atrium setting with light coming down from the raked windshield. The guest stateroom is in the bow; its head also serves as the day head.
In the three-stateroom version, the master is in the bow with its en suite head and shower. A pair of double guest staterooms are amidships in a side-by-side configuration with a head and shower. The galley is up in the salon on the port side, opposite the helm. The large, elegant salon has an L-shaped settee to port, with a dining table; a pair of small settees with a cocktail table are to starboard.
A centerline door opens to the cockpit, which has an aft settee for lounging and al fresco dining. On the flybridge the upper helm has captain’s and companion’s seats at the helm plus an L-shaped settee and table. The boat deck aft holds a tender and davit.
Specs.: LOA: 59’5”; Beam: 17’6”; Draft: 3’1”; Disp.: 47,400 lbs.: Fuel: 898 gals.; Water: 290 gals.; Power: 2×725-hp Volvo D11 diesels.
