Walking through the salon of the Leopard 53, which just made its debut at the Miami show, I was not surprised by the amount of space inside the new power cat. I had expected that; after all, the boat has a beam of more than 25 feet. But I was surprised by the amount of light that beamed in.
There are panoramic windows all around, and the interior décor is all light in color and modern in design, so that it’s both inviting and soothing at the same time. It would be easy to feel at home on this new Leopard; it’s simply begging to head off on a long cruise.
The Leopard 53 PC replaces the Leopard 51, one of the most popular cruising cats ever made, with 135 sold. And the 53 is not only larger; it’s also more comfortable, more efficient, and more stable.
You can walk on via a large teak swim platform and then go up teak stairs on either side of the transom to the large aft deck, which is meant for relaxing and entertaining. An L-shaped settee and table are on the port side; a sun pad, big enough for two, is to starboard.
Large sliding glass doors open wide to the salon; the aft deck and the salon are on the same level, so the outside and inside spaces flow together. The galley is aft, and it’s split. A home-sized fridge and freezer and a sink are on the port side; the stove and microwave and a generous countertop are to starboard.
Moving forward, lounges are on each side, and the helm seat on the starboard side is wide enough to fit two people. A centered glass door opens to the foredeck; it has large sun lounges on each side.
Up top, the flybridge is protected by a hardtop. The upper helm is to starboard, and it can seat two people. A seat for three people is to port. A bit aft, also on the port side, is a large U-shaped settee and table. A large sun pad is farther aft.
The accommodations deck below comes in two versions. The Leopard 53, for sale to private owners, has three cabins. The Leopard 534, which is placed in charter by The Moorings, has four. In either one, the twin hulls of a cat provide a degree of privacy for the cabins that is not usually found in a monohull.
I walked through the three-cabin boat at the show. It has two cabins, both en suite heads, in the port hull. The owner’s cabin stretches along the starboard side, with the berth and living area aft, the head, with twin sinks, forward, and the separate shower in the bow.
The engine room and machinery spaces on the 53 are aft. Power comes from twin 370-hp Yanmars. They produce a top speed of 25 knots. Running at a cruising speed of 17 knots, the range is 463 nm. But what’s remarkable about this boat is that if you run on one engine, at 6.8 knots, the range climbs to a full 1,995 nm.
All told, the Leopard 53 is an impressive new boat. And that’s not just my opinion. I was on the boat the morning of the second day of the show, and Leopard had already sold three of them.
Specs.: LOA: 53’1”; Beam: 25’2”; Draft: 3’2”; Disp.: 41,070 lbs.; Fuel: 581 gals.; Water: 185 gals. Power: 2×370-hp Yanmar diesels.
