Boat Reviews

Vicem Launching Elegant New 50 Classic Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on August 5, 2020 Boat Reviews

Vicem, the Turkish builder of upscale Downeast-style cruising boats, is making a new 50 Classic that’s scheduled to reach the U.S. in October. Vicem is known as a leading builder of cold-molded wooden yachts, but the new 50, a larger version of the company’s popular 46, will have a fiberglass hull and superstructure and a high-quality wood interior. Vicem is making the new 50 Classic out of fiberglass for faster delivery and for easier maintenance. Overall, the boat is a combination of ageless style, contemporary performance, and old-world craftsmanship. Hull number one will have a single-stateroom layout, suitable for a…

Azimut’s New Magellano 25 Metri: Luxurious Long-Range Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on August 4, 2020 Boat Reviews

Azimut just completed its new Magellano 25 Metri luxury long-range cruiser, an 82-footer with a 25-knot top speed and lots of high-tech touches. The latest Magellano makes extensive use of carbon fiber, it has an active air-sanitizing system based on a NASA patent, and it offers a Hotel Mode option for silent, zero-emissions power while at anchor. And that’s before you get to what the Italian builder calls “artistic fiberglass” in the hull, and brushed Verde Alpi marble, dark walnut wood, polished brass, lacquered wood and ribbed wood in the interior. If you’re looking for a no-frills, bare-bones cruising boat,…

New Entry-Level Ferretti 500: Just Like Home

By Peter Janssen on July 28, 2020 Boat Reviews

Ferretti is making its new entry-level 500, the first in a complete redesign of Ferretti Yachts, and it’s scheduled to debut at the Cannes Yachting Festival starting Sept. 8. The new 500 is the start of a new era the company says, adding “a domestic dimension” to life on board a traditional cruising yacht. The idea is to make living on board feel just like living at home – that is, if you’re living in luxurious home with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and extra social areas upstairs, downstairs, on the front porch and out back. Not to mention the swimming…

New Protector 410: Redesigned Inside and Out

By Peter Janssen on July 27, 2020 Boat Reviews

Protector has launched its new and improved 410 Targa flagship, with a fresh hull design for better performance and a new cabin for more creature comforts. With three 450-hp outboards, the new super-strong RIB tops out at about 70 mph, while maintaining Protector’s reputation for superb rough-water performance. For the new 410, the New Zealand company has widened the hull by 14 inches, using a winged flare to increase the interior space and improve the walk-through area. It extended the deep-V hull all the way aft for cutting through the rough stuff; it has an 18-degree deadrise at the transom.…

Mazu Launches New High-Tech 82 Flagship

By Peter Janssen on July 26, 2020 Boat Reviews

Mazu, the high-end Turkish builder, just launched its new low-profile 82 flagship with aggressive styling, a “bulletproof” windshield and a custom terrace out back. Powered by three 1,000-hp Volvo IPS1350 diesels and pod drives, the new 82 tops out at 40 knots. At its cruising speed of 33 knots, the 82 has a range of 400 nm. The new Mazu is nothing if not high tech. The hull is made from a light, carbon composite sandwich. The windshield is tempered and laminated. Custom glass windows surround the salon, providing almost 360-degree visibility; they also are cut into the hull sides…

Tiara Building New 43 LE, First in Luxury Express Series

By Peter Janssen on July 22, 2020 Boat Reviews

Tiara is building a new 43 LE, the first model in its Luxury Express series, with sports styling, upscale touches, and outboard power. The 43 LE is scheduled to be launched later this summer. The new boat has an innovative seating arrangement up top, and two staterooms and one head with shower below. The master stateroom is forward with an island queen berth, and the guest cabin is amidships with a double berth. The 43 LE is a sistership to the popular 43 LS that was launched at the Fort Lauderdale show in 2017 with a first-of-its-kind 360-degree rotating seating…

New Saxdor 320: A Blend of Looks, Pedigree, and Price

By Peter Janssen on July 22, 2020 Boat Reviews, On Watch with Peter Janssen

Here’s a new boat that’s bound to get a lot of attention at the boat shows this fall, because of its looks, its pedigree, and its price. Take a first look at the head-turning Saxdor 320 GTO from the new Finnish company, Saxdor Yachts, founded just last November by Sakari Matilla, who previously was a founder of Axopar and several other boat companies. The Saxdor 320 GTO also is a product of the award-winning firm of J&J Design, which has worked on some of the best-selling sail and power boats for the past 36 years. And the Saxdor 320 GTO…

Sunreef Launching New 70-foot Luxury Power Cat

By Peter Janssen on July 15, 2020 Boat Reviews

Sunreef Yachts, the luxury builder in Gdansk, Poland, is filling out its power catamaran fleet with the introduction of a new 70 footer. Its lineup already has 60-, 80- and 100-foot models, so the new 70 fills a gap. Like the previous models, the 70 is elegant, comfortable and seaworthy. The new cat also takes full advantage of its more than 37-foot beam to create enormous spaces for entertaining and living on board. The foredeck, for example, runs full beam and includes a “terrace,” a protected lounging area with sofas, and then an open area all the way forward for…

Invictus Unveils Highly Styled Flagship TT460 with IPS Drives

By Peter Janssen on July 12, 2020 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Invictus Yacht in Italy just unveiled its new, highly styled, TT460 flagship with a large amount of livable space on deck that can be made even larger with a fold out platform from each side. The new 46-foot boat also has Invictus’ signature “half-reverse” bow and a futuristic black carbon fiber hardtop with lines that curve forward to embrace the sun lounge on the foredeck. The TT460 is powered by twin 480-hp Volvo IPS650 pod drives, providing fuel efficiency, dynamic boat handling, and joystick control for easy docking. Built in Borgia, the boat will be launched later this summer. The…

New VQ80 Vanquish Sportfish: Just a Chase Boat

By Peter Janssen on July 11, 2020 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The new VQ80 Sportfish from Vanquish Yachts in the Netherlands certainly isn’t the typical cruising boat that we usually write about, but it’s so over the top that I couldn’t resist. Consider this: The 79-foot Vanquish (top picture) isn’t the owner’s main boat: It’s just a chase boat for SkyFall, his 194-foot superyacht (above picture), now under construction as Heesen Yachts, also in the Netherlands. For its part, the Vanquish isn’t too shabby. It’s the most powerful Vanquish yet, with state-of-the-art C32 Cat diesels producing 4,800-hp paired to two surface drives. Top speed is expected to be 51 knots. It…

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