Maritimo S70

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Maritimo S70

New Zealand couple Brian and Cath Carran are partners in everything they do so when it came time to design their dream boat, from the keel up for their retirement enjoyment, twin helm seats were a pre-requisite.

 

“We are like partners in everything, so a sole helm seat wasn’t an option,” said Brian as he and Cath recently prepared their new boat, a Maritimo S70 motor yacht for an extended cruise in the Whitsunday Islands.

“I have been in working in supermarkets since I was 19 and three years ago, knowing my retirement plans were looming, we started our journey to secure our dream boat to enjoy life after years of hard work,” he said.

“Up until then we didn’t have the time to spend extended periods on the water and apart from annual trips to the Med, where we would cruise with friends, most of our boating was on our Beneteau 473.”

The journey to find their ideal boat saw the Carran’s, who were long term yachties, look at trawler style vessels from the Fort Lauderdale Boat Show to the Sydney International Boat Show and they even considered a possible purpose built vessel at a yard in New Zealand.

Their worldwide search saw them also look at a Maritimo M70 cruising motor yacht and a trial run in big seas off the Gold Coast had them convinced that this was the sort of boat that would suit them. However, they did not want a flybridge vessel.

“We were very impressed with the way the Maritimo handled the rough conditions and said to Maritimo that we would be interested if they could produce a single level sport cruiser model,” said Brian.

“That started the whole process and now our magnificent four cabins, single level sedan called Waka Tete is a reality. Maritimo put together a mock-up of the boat originally and nothing was too much trouble for them, so the whole process has been relatively hassle-free.”

The couple poured over every inch of the boat in the design and build phase, changing and adapting various things to end up with a bespoke vessel that suits them to a tee and is very much personalised.

They took delivery of their new boat from Maritimo in July 2017, three months after Brian officially retired, which was exactly according to the plan that they had laid out three years ago.

Bill Barry-Cotter, Maritimo’s founder, aptly describes the S70 as a big volume, serious passagemaker, that delivers all that the M70 does and more on a single level. Since taking delivery of Waka Tete, (Maori for fishing canoe), the Carrans went North to the Whitsundays, before the boat was delivered across the Tasman to Auckland in time for the summer season.

Same But Different

While Maritimo always planned to offer a sedan version of the M70 in their range, it was subject to obtaining an order. When Brian & Cath signed up for the first S70 in June 2016, tooling began almost immediately and the boat was delivered 12 months later. S70 #2 is now well underway for a Gold Coast client.

Common between the M70 and S70 are the accommodation areas, including the full beam master and bathroom. There is a VIP cabin to port with its own ensuite, bunk room to starboard and another double forward with a shared bathroom which doubles as a day head. The four cabin three bathroom layout is essentially the only option, although depending on what an owner wants to change, there are some variables available. This also extends through to the saloon layout.

The galley, for example, is open to a variety of equipment options and it is in this area that changes are common. Steam oven, speed oven, convection microwave, full height fridge or plate warming drawers, they are all available. Maritimo even suggests to their clients that they visit a local Miele store and pick exactly what appliances they want.

The saloon is very similar, except where the wraparound lounge was on the starboard side of the M70, is now the helm for the S70. The galley and port side lounge and table are the same in both the M70 and S70, but where the internal staircase was in the flybridge, it is now replaced with more cupboard space, an area for a coffee machine, storage and the twin electrical panels.

Outside, Maritimo has made no changes to the cockpit, lazarette or foredeck and of course both boats are based on the same Maritimo designed hull. The hull is essentially the well-proven M60 on steroids! Naturally with the flybridge structure removed, the S70 comes in a little lighter, with a dry weight of 42,000 kg, compared to the M70 at 43,000 kg. All other engineering and tankage systems are mirrored in both boats.

The superstructure to the top of the windows is the same on both models, but there is more rake on the windscreen of the S70 and extra head height. Without the height restriction of the flybridge, Maritimo designers were able to add some more height inside.  Not that the M70 is lacking any, but you might as well make use of the space available. This also has allowed the helm to be raised 200mm to provide better vision when driving. With an on water height of 5.23m, the Maritimo S70 has been crafted with the ability to pass under low clearances such as the fixed bridges.

The twin-seat helm is undoubtedly all new as is the side door, which with the controls positioned aft, means you can stand in the coaming and dock the boat. There is also a second docking station in the cockpit. From the helm, the S70 offers 360-degree sightlines and radiates a feeling of openness. The sedan configuration keeps everyone on one level, with multiple entertaining and living spaces seamlessly working together.

Overhead is a massive 2m wide fibreglass sunroof, which uses all Webasto control mechanisms. Bug screens are provided for those who are going to do their boating in the hot climes of summer.

Electronics are customer choice, with Waka Tete fitted with a pair of Simrad 19 MFD screens, flanked by  Simrad autopilot and  VHF, armrest controls, ZF joystick and Vetus hydraulic bow and stern thrusters. In the next S70, the dash will be a little larger so it can accommodate the Simrad 22” MFDs.

900 HP Plus

Standard engines are a pair of Volvo Penta D13 900, with our boat running Scania D16 900s. These are the same engines that Maritimo use on their M73 and according to Greg Haines, marketing director for Maritimo, are quieter, smoother and more economical and give more top end speed than other brands of a similar horsepower. The fact they also are cheaper to buy and don’t need their first service until 500 hours and the parts, such as filters are reasonably inexpensive, is also a bonus for the owner.

Other options are twin 1000hp Volvo Penta, Scania 1200s, Caterpillar 1150 ACERTs and 1200 MANs. If you really want some power, then you can fit four 725hp Volvos, (the only Maritimo to be powered by four engines).

We recorded 26.28 knots maximum with a fuel burn of 12.80 lpnm and a range (based on 90% fuel load) of 532nm. Drop that back to around 18-20 knots which is a very common cruise speed for a boat like this and the fuel use decreases to approximately 10.4 lpnm and the range jumps up to 655nm.

If you did want to tow lures or plan an extra long passage, such as to PNG, Fiji or New Zealand, then you have enough fuel in the tanks to go over 1300nm @ around 10 knots. The delivery trip from the Gold Coast to Auckland saw a fuel usage of 8000 litres for an average 12.4 knots. The 1178nm trip took 100 hours to complete.

Maritimo doesn’t build pod drive boats, so all engine packages run through shaft drives. Waka Tete has twin Onan generators, a Seakeeper SK16 gyro and Vetus thrusters.

The S70 is also an incredibly nimble boat for its size with the two-and-a-half turn, lock-to-lock steering system. It is an extremely manoeuvrable hull with an instantly responsive helm and with minimal heel in the turns. The boat runs very flat with a low wash and transits onto the plane with little bow up attitude. No tunnels, a shallow shaft angle and more running surface mean the boat is slippery in the water.

When we came back into the Maritimo Marina at Hope Harbour, I was impressed with the ease at which Greg reversed the S70 into a very tight docking space, all on the throttles with no thrusters. Not sure I would have done it in on the first attempt!

Cruising off the Gold Coast in a short chop and the usual 1m swells, the S70 was a pleasure to drive. I stopped sideways in the Seaway and experienced the amazing benefits of the Seakeeper gyro, which in a boat of this size should be a standard item.

It was interesting to see that the S70 has no tender garage, something that Greg says some of their existing Maritimo owner’s have said they wouldn’t have one in their next boat as they are cumbersome to use and restrict the size of the tender. Because of this, the cockpit sole is lower and the tender is stowed on the rise and fall boarding platform. There is still copious storage space in the lazarette and storage lockers around the cockpit. The lazarette also has rear access from the platform, which leads through to a washer/dryer, day head, watermaker and dive compressor. One of the options for this area is a crew bunk.

Equal to All

One of the obvious benefits of a sedan boat is the one level living, which means you don’t have stairs to climb, something that anyone getting on in years can well appreciate, especially when docking. The low profile of the boat also suits places like America’s Great Loop, Mandurah, the Gold Coast and even Auckland’s OBC, where low bridges necessitate low profile, none flybridge boats.

The S70 sedan cruiser is the largest single level vessel that Maritimo has created and joins the S51, S54 and S59 in their Sedan Series fleet. Maritimo references it as a penthouse on water and they are right on the money. This is one very luxurious boat that delivers in every area, be it performance and handling, quality or finish. Internationally this sector of the market is very competitive, especially from European brands, but what Maritimo is offering in the S70 is equal to any of them.

  • Boat Design Name: Maritimo S70            
  • Year Launched: 2017
  • Builder: Maritimo       
  • Designer: Maritimo
  • Interior Designer: David Stewart                       
  • LOA: 21.51m
  • LOH: 21.21m
  • Beam: 5.67m
  • Draft: 1.5m
  • Displacement (Dry): 42,000 kg
  • Max Speed: 28 knots
  • Construction: GRP
  • Fuel Capacity: 6300 Litres
  • Water Capacity: 1400 Litres
  • Engines Make/HP: 2 x Scania DD16 @ 1150hp
  • Drive Train: Shaft
  • Generator: 2 x Cummins Onan 22kW & 17.5kW
  • Gyro: Seakeeper SK16
  • Underwater Lights: Aqualuma
  • Thrusters: Vetus
  • MFD: Simrad 19                 
  • Base Price of Boat: $AUD3 million
  • Price as Tested: $AUD3.5 million 

RPM

KNOTS

LPH

L.P.NM

RANGE

350

6.90

12.00

1.74

3913

900

8.80

26.00

2.95

2303

1100

9.85

49.00

4.97

1368

1300

10.90

87.00

7.98

853

1500

12.30

135.00

10.98

620

1700

16.40

170.50

10.40

655

1900

20.60

214.00

10.39

655

2100

23.80

281.00

11.81

576

WOT

26.25

336.00

12.80

532

Range based on 90% fuel capacity

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