Boat Reviews

New All-Electric 20-Knot Quadrofoil

By Peter Janssen on February 14, 2023 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Here’s a fun, new, all-electric foiling craft that looks something like a cross between a jet ski and a waterborne sports car. Indeed, the Quadrofoil Q2S from Slovenia can foil, or “fly,” at about 6 knots, and it can cruise for about two hours at its top speed of 20 knots. You drive it with a steering wheel that feels like an Audi, and the cockpit features high-end ergonomics inspired by the European auto industry. The Quadrofoil Q2S is driven by a 5.5kW electric motor that’s powered by two 5.2kWh lithium-ion batteries. You can charge it from a standard 110V…

New Azimut 50: Entry-Level Flybridge

By Peter Janssen on February 14, 2023 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The new Azimut 50 Fly, the entry-level yacht in the Italian builder’s flybridge series, is a family-friendly cruiser with lots of light, style and social areas inside and out. The 50 is designed for an owner-operator, with three cabins and two heads below, plus (primarily for the European market) a crew cabin with its own head under the large sun pad on the aft deck. Most U.S. buyers (the boat is sold by MarineMax here) will probably opt to use this space as a very large lazarette. Power comes from twin 670-hp Volvo diesels, with a top speed of 32…

Scout Unveils 3,000-hp 67 LX

By Peter Janssen on February 14, 2023 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Scout Boats just unveiled its new 67 LX, a long, lean, $5 million, 3,000-hp speed machine. There’s a model of the boat at Scout’s display at the Miami show; the real thing won’t be launched until the spring of 2024. The Scout 67 LX is large enough so you won’t have to leave any friends behind, and its five 600-hp Mercury V12 Verado outboards mean you’ll be able to give them an adrenaline rush underway. Top speed is projected at 52 knots, with a range of about 435 nm at 35 knots. The new Scout flagship (its largest so far…

Nordhavn Launches First New 625

By Peter Janssen on February 14, 2023 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Hull number one of the new Nordhavn 625 series was launched and successfully sea-trialed near the South Coast yard in Taiwan in December. It’s now on its way to the Nordhavn headquarters in Dana Point, California, where it will be commissioned soon and delivered to its owners, a couple from Nevada. The new 625 fits right in with the Nordhavn fleet of long-range cruisers that has only been growing in number and reputation since the company’s 40-footer cruised around the world in 2001 and 2002. Its hull is based on the Nordhavn 60, with a nod to the 55 and…

New Cutwater C-288 Pocket Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on February 8, 2023 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The all-new Cutwater C-288 Coupe is a versatile, trailerable pocket cruiser that’s ready for doing just anything you want to do on the water, whether fishing, cruising, picnicking, or even working remotely on board. The C-288 is powered by twin 250-hp Yamaha outboards producing a top speed of about 45 knots, and a range of about 200 nm at 30 knots. It has a 10-foot beam for stability, and a double-stepped, deep-V hull with Cutwater’s Laminar Flow Interrupters, basically small indentations that help in higher-speed cornering. The boat sleeps two in the forward cabin, which also has an enclosed electric…

New Endurance 590 Blue-Water Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on February 7, 2023 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The Endurance 590, a blue-water cruiser designed to be run by a couple, is the latest member of the Endurance by Hampton Yachts fleet. A sturdy, three-cabin, two-head cruiser, the new 590 is built for comfortable living on board, even on a long cruise. Experienced cruisers will like a lot of its design features, including a Portuguese bridge for weather protection, a pilothouse with interior stairs to the flybridge, and an open plan that offers unobstructed views from the aft deck settee all the way forward to the pilothouse helm. The walkways are wide and protected overhead, the engine room…

VisionF Making New 100-foot Cat with Kevlar

By Peter Janssen on February 7, 2023 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

VisionF, the fairly new Turkish yard, just announced that it’s building a massive, luxurious 100-foot-long power catamaran, the flagship of its growing fleet. The new VisionF 100 will be built out of Kevlar composite, instead of the aluminum used in the previous yachts. The yard is using Kevlar in the new 100 because of its strength and light weight. It’s also strong and rigid. The yacht is powered by four 900-hp Volvo IPS1050 pod drives, delivering a top speed of 22 knots. Its draft of just 3’ 9” means it can safely go in the shallow waters of the Bahamas…

Fairline To Show Sporty Targa 45 in Miami

By Peter Janssen on February 6, 2023 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Fairline will be showing its sporty, prize-wining Targa 45 Open at the Miami show that starts on February 15. The Targa 45 Open will be at show’s Herald Plaza location, with an outboard-powered Fairline 33 and a Fairline Squadron 50 cruiser. A well-respected British builder, Fairline has grown its dealer network in the U.S. in the past two years. The Targa 45 Open has won a Motor Boat of the Year Award in its size range. The company says it has a touch of Riviera glamor with its low profile, huge opening sun roof and sun pads available for some…

Viking Polaris

Coast Guard Investigating Deaths in Antarctic

By Peter Janssen on February 6, 2023 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The Coast Guard and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating a series of accidents involving the deaths of four Americans and injuries of five more on expedition cruise ships in the Antarctic. The accidents all occurred in the two weeks from Nov. 15 through Dec. 1 in some of the harshest marine environments in the world. The Coast Guard and NTSB have sent teams to Ushuaia, Argentina, the jumping-off point for cruise ships heading for the Antarctic. They are working with investigators from other countries where the ships are flagged. Two U.S. citizens died when a RIB from the…

Silent Launches First Yacht from Italian Yard

By Peter Janssen on February 6, 2023 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Silent-Yachts, the pioneering Austrian company, is continuing its growth mode, just launching the first yacht, a Silent 60 solar-electric power catamaran, at its yard in Fano, Italy. Silent bought the five-acre Fano yard last spring. It had been making its yachts in Thailand and Turkey. It launched its first 60 two years ago. But the launch of its first boat at the Fano plant shows how rapidly Silent has grown, and signals the continued growth of the rapidly expanding solar-electric power market. Silent is building several other 60s in Fano for delivery this year, plus its first Silent 62, due…

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