lup p d in robu t, - boatquest reviews and...
TRANSCRIPT
lUp P d In robu t, open-ocean
.ondltlon : 44.8 mph. Primarily
I bed nd stringers give
lid, wholly Integrated ride.
June 2004 Power & Motoryacht 65
short orthe sea buoy. "Now this is boat testing," I CIl OIII ('d,
hasking in the steady thrum of power plants wort I" of III!"
11 <I 111 ('-a match e d set of 1 ,050-hp MA diese l illi>o.1I d"
whil"iil1 g beefy Temet shafts, and big, five-bladed , S-dl" ( I R
props . For added grins, I popped a swilch on 111(' d,,,11 .1
nH lpl t' or tillll's ,.iusi. to sce how effcc livc and bSI Ih(' 1\\ '111\('11
66 Power & Motoryacht June 2004
lacquered natural-cherry joinery in the saloon/dinette area (above) is
lIawle Iy finished. A "cocktail cabinet" (opposite the dining table) offers
boUI towage and a Bose entertainment center. The midship galley
(left) Is almost invisible-appliances are concealed behind the joinery.
I.ti), 1\'(,1 \'. "Groovy," I noted in shortorder,just beforc Icveling
h,l( J.. (HII <l nd spinning thc wheel hard over to starboard.
111 (' \ '!iH banked like a sea-stompil1g offshore raccr. Both
III d 1,lltli(~ a l1d e ngine-drive n power-assist had to be at the
h01l1l1l1 orlhc fingertip sreering control I was currently expc
III 'IH Ill g, I suggested to Can-oil. He noddcd as I straightcnccl
III(" ho,ll 01 11 a nd , withjust a lad more throttle, began bee-
1il11l1g ,oll ih at 3D-some m il es pcr hour, wit ll wavcs and
\\1 '01 1111'1 over the stern.
\\ \" 1\ ' lalkin' a drive r 's boat here, fo lks! Visibi li ty from th c
( IIlll h , ho lster-type helm seat I was squcezed into was supcrb,
10" '"11 ' t'xtc nt due to th c whopping size of the panels in thc
\ ",K', I;RP windshield , but to an evcn larger extcntto th c
opll llllllll , f(Hlr-degree running angle thc vesse l assumes upon
,l< llinil1g plane and steadily mainta ins a ll the way up 10 he r
W() (' ' IHTd of" 44.8 mph. or course, numcrous factors COIl-
The master offers a double berth, opening ports, cedar-lined
hanging lockers, dressing table, and individual reading lights.
tribute to this polished, punch-packing behavior, not
the least of them being a slippery, deep-V hull form
drawn by famOLlS powerboat designer Bernard
Olesinski. Th e re 's no beating an array of nicely
blended design elements, like prop pockets f<lr de
creased shaft angle and draft; broad, slightly-reversed
chine flats for increased lift and transverse stabili ty;
and a comparatively narrow, rocket-shape footprint
[or enhanced speed and turn-canring agi lity.
But balance is the key co ntributor to the V58's
sinewy poise, at least in my opinion. The ex planation
is simple. Certa inly Marine Projects, th e oUlflt that
builds Sport Cruisers for Vik ing Yachts in Engl<lnd,
might have added extra room to the V58's interior by
installing her main engines farth e r aft, an approach
favored by exp ress-boat manufacturers who don 't
mind overly high running angles, as we ll as limited
visibi lity frolll the helm , as long as they can cra in in a
few extra television sets and c urvaceous lounges .
Marine PrC!jeCls took th e high road on this score , however:
They sacrificed some of the V58's interior SP,ICC and installed
th e mains f~lr enough forward to guarantee optimllm, ni ce ly
balanced running angles and superb drivability.
A good idea? Nope, a great idea! Whether I was learin g
south towa rds 80yn ton In let or whom pi ng across cigh t-rooters
northbound , our test boat offered a soft, enjoyable , bulle l-like
ride. Moreover, transitioning between up-sea and down-sea ori
e nlalions was smoother than a hound dog's nose-Ihe bO<l1
kept her bow up in the troughs, and I never once felt like I was
losing COil t 1'01. VDO gauges and other instruments on Ihe dash
we re readable al <I glance. And on top of everything e lse, as we
appro'iclied 01 11' slip at Viking
tops, alld opelling-port v(,lltilalioli . Tile level of lit and finish
was gCllerally high cvcl)""herc, wi lh lillcly 1lI0ldcd, slrip-Iami
nated , pill-muted door casings and c,lpr,lils I hroughout-no
mitered or scarf'cd .joillls hcre-,Incl flawlessl y app lied
polyurelhane varnisli on the modltiarly buill hlrnishings.
Descendillg Ihe ladder illl o Ihe lIlachillel), spaces through
<I ha tch in lh e cockpit sole cngcndered a ilush of mild sur
prise. Tlte engine room is nOI wide, hili il is long and reasoll
ably roOllly, parliCitiarly in lighl orlhe narrowness Oflhc hull
rorm , the bulk orlhe V-8 MANs, lite presence o fvolumill ous,
saddlc-tYlx' hil'I tanks outboard orlltelll, and a ga rage large
enough 10 hold all I l-f(lOI RIB IVc ll arIon the sLarboard \iclc.
I kadroom was (1\-('1'111 al
Yach ts Service Ccnter ill Rivi- Heads onboard have teak-and-holly soles and separate stall showers. 5' I 0" , and th c Cc III r,tI ,tlll -
era Bcach afkr our wringollt,
Carrolln o led lhat th e rore
cl ec k and windshie ld were
darn lIear bone-dry. Cool!
I began exam ining Olir test
boat dockside as soon as we
we re ti cclup. The American
c h erry inLerior kaLured a
th rce-staleroom la yo ut (a
two-slaLeroom version is avai l
able), wilh a maste r and guest
afL, VI P forward , and a teak
sole ga ll ey, din e tte area, and
saloon area in between. Both
the maste r and VIP have en
su ite heads wiLh separate stall
showers, Avon ite counter-
minum diamon<i-pl.llc lI'a lk
lVay was as uscahl\-.I'.1 eil),
sidewalk: I cOlild 1I.I\t ' I'V il
lV ith SIllOOlh , 11I11t.llllpl' ITd
ease . M'lilllt'II.lII( (' ,1(Tt'SS
cOnlillll('cllll( ' III( III<' I had
ahsollllt '" 1101 cltllit Itll\ gel
lill g 10 III( clllplt' '">(,P,II ruel
W,ilt ' l Itllt 'l' tIll Iltv ,d'l rire
\\.111 lIlt' c 10" (olllieCled
Ilelc ', \I ,IIIIIl ' e1llpk~~ sha ft
log, hc I()\\ Iltt ' lli , or a ll )' of
till \ .IIIIIII,,( ·l\i«· points on
III( c'lI glll(' ,
\\ 11.ll I (C)Jtld 'IT or con
,IIIH 110111111111' t'ngill e room
\\,1' .I' illlpi ('ssi\'(.' as th e
June 2004 Power & Motoryacht 67
The sunpad astern lifts to access a waterbike or tender
that can be handled via electric winch. Farther forward,
cockpit amenities include a wetbar and electric grill.
m ec h a ni ca ls. Th e V!)H is it hi g hl y inLegra te d
boal, wiLh an egg-cra le-type la LLice o rfoam-cored
sLre ng Lh c ll C'rs prim aril y bo nded into a so lid
g lass hull ; a h OS l o r modlil a r interio r co mpo
ne n ts and f"tlrnishillgs Lh at fiL inLo it gianL, unde r
lying, FRI' "Lray mo ld" seconda rily bo nded to
lhe hull sides, sLringe r LOpS, a nd the unde rside
or t he d eck; and a hull-LO-d eckj o illl Lh aL's bo th
bo ll c d a nd fib e rg lassed , a ll th e way a ro und.
I laving a ch an ce LO see aspects o f Marine Pro
j ecLs' a p p roach LO boa Lbuildin g, b OLh in Lh e
e ng ine roo m and the laza re tte a bafL iL, handed
m e a clea re r unde rsta ndin g o fLh e securiLy ('d
fe ll while driving the V58 o ffsh o re .
\IVhi ch, by way of conclusio n , brings me back to some thing
I've a lready cove red ra th e r eXLe nsive ly-the Lrue esse nce o r
Lh e boa l. Whil e Lh e re's no d o ubL th e Vikin g Spo n Cruise rs
V58 Ex press YachL is a solidly builL, fin e ly finish ed pe rformer,
Lhe re 's also no ques Lion LhaL he r fo n e is zooming a ro und th e
high seas WiLh th e ve rve o f a Lh oroughbred.
Fun LO dri ve? Oh yeah . And th e bi gge r th e seas, Lh e
be LLe r! •
Viking Sport Cruisers" (609) 296-6()OO. www.vikingsl)(Jri
{'misers. com.
For odditionol photos, visit our Web site at poweranrlmotoryacht.com/webfeatures. Q
pmv leSled: Viking SC V58 Express Yacht
RPM MPH GPH MPG 1M NM OEOBElI TRIM (KNOTI) (NMPG) RANGE IlANGE (OEGREEI)
1000 14.2 (123) 8.0 1.78 (1.54) 1,054 917 72 2.5 1250 19.4 (16.9) 20.0 0.97 (0.84) 576 501 76 4.0 1500 26.4 (23.0) 34.0 0.78 (0.68) 461 401 77 4.0 1750 32.7 (28.4) 50.0 0.65 (0.57) 388 337 81 4.0 2000 38.4 (33.4) 68.0 0.56 (0.49) 335 292 86 4.0 2250 44.8 (38.9) 100.0 0.45 (039) 266 231 86 4.0
Conditions: lemperoture: 80'; humidity: 47%; wind: 20·25 mph; seas: 6'-8'; load: 160 gal. fuel, 125 gal. water, 2 persons, 200 Ibs. geor. Speeds ore two-way overages measured w/ Stolker radar gun. GPH mcosUlcd with MAN fuel-monitoring equipment. Range: 90% of advertised fuel capacity. Decibels measured on A scole 6S dB ~ the level 01 normal conve~olion. All measurements token with trim tabs fully retrocted.
50 45 40 35
2 30 =-S 25 -= 20 Q)
Q)
15 =-V'l 10
5
.-/' -
/' ,--
/ -_.-
V _.
L / -
1I o 10 20 30 40 50
Time (seconds)
Acceleration based on overage of 4 reciprocal runs using Stalker ATS radar gun and OceonPC laptop.
68 Power & Motoryacht June 2004
Bose price: $1,247,000 with 2/715-hp Volvo Pento 012·715 diesel inboords Optional power: 2/ 1,015-hp Coterpillor (18 01
2/ 1 ,050-hp MAN 02840lE403 diesel inboOids Standard equipment: Trend Morine opening ports; Lewmor windloss w/ remote controls; 8-hp Sidepower bow thruster; Ritchie composs; VOO onolog engine instlUmentotion; Furuno Novner, Simrod AP20 outopilot; FUlUno RD-30 depthsounder; leom IC·M602 VHF; Force 10 cook top; ShOlp microwove oven; MONel refrigerotor; Neff grill, ROIiton refr igerotor/ ice moker ond sis sink in cockpit; duplex Sepor SWK 2000/ 18 UKO fuel-woter seporators; Tides Morine dripless shoftlogs; Reverso oil· chonge system; Gionneschi & Romocciol1i enginwoom blowers; 90iJmp Moss 24/ 75 bonery chorger; 13.5·1<.W Onon genser, 10 Oelco Freedom boneries (4 storting, 6 house, ond 1 genset); 38,000·81u Cruisoir A/C; 2/5Domp shore-jlower hookups; 2/ Chorles Morine Is0-800st isolotion tronsfOimers; Seo-Fire FM 200 outo. fireexnnguishing system
SPECIFICATIONS Length overall: 58'11 " Beam: 15'5" Dralt: 3'8" Weight (dry): 44,800 Ibs. Fuel capacity: 660 gal. Water capacity: 125 gal. Test engines: 2/ 1 ,0SO·hp MAN 02840lE403 diesel inboords Transmissions/ratio: ZF 5S0A/ l.97: 1 Props: 30x46 S-{Ioss S-blode UR Steering: Telenex Seo-Stor hydroulic w/ Hypro Morine powerllssist Controls: Rexroth Mecmon electronic Optional equipment on test boot: hordtop w/ eleclric sliding roof; 16,00D-81u (lUisoir cockpit A/ C Price as tested: $1 ,512,000