Prestige, the upscale French builder, is doubling down on its power catamaran line. It launched its first power cat, the M48, last summer. Now, it says it’s making a new M8 that’s 65 feet long and has as much room as a five-bedroom house.
The new M8 will have the same semi-planing hull as the M48, with the same profile designed to look like a monohull. Its 19-foot beam is large enough to provide a lot of room inside and outside the boat, but it’s relatively narrow in terms of a 65-foot cat.
The foredeck on the M8 is unusual; it’s really on two levels, with a large sun lounge on the upper part and more protected seating toward the bow.
At the other end of the boat, a transformer-style swim platform can be lowered if the owner wants to launch a tender or access the toys in the lazarette, and it can be raised so that it serves as an extension of the cockpit.
Both the cockpit and the flybridge have free-standing furniture so that owners can arrange it as they want, or rearrange it for cruising or entertaining. The glazed transom gates on both sides of the cockpit do not block any views aft.
Sliding patio doors on either side of a fixed center unit (with a lifting window) open from the cockpit to the salon, with a large lounge area aft and the galley and dining area forward. Owners can have a lower helm station there; they also can have the galley down if they want more social room in the salon.
Below, the owner’s stateroom is full-beam forward, and the cat can have up to four more cabins with extra heads and showers, particularly if owners are interested in putting the cat in the charter trade.
Power comes from two 600-hp Volvo diesels with V drives. Top speed is 20 knots. At a cruising speed of 15 knots, range is 350 nm. Dial back to 8 knots, and the range climbs to 900 nm.
The M8 is scheduled to be launched at the Cannes Yachting Festival in September. Prestige is part of the Beneteau Group.
Specs.: LOA: 65’; Beam: 29’; Draft: 5’5”; Disp.: 90,654 lbs.; Fuel: 978 gals.; Water: 224 gals.; Power: 2×600-hp Volvo diesels. Read more at http://prestige-yachts.com and see a video of the M48 below:
