2020 Sunseeker Project 8X sets a new course for luxury yacht maker

The British luxury motor yacht maker’s newest boat comes in the wake of the announcement that Sunseeker will build its first aluminium motor yacht, a 49-metre vessel built by Icon Yachts and due on the market a year later – the first of a number of metal models the boatbuilder has hinted it will roll out.

Only a few tantalising details of the stunning looking Sunseeker Project 8X have been revealed. However, Sunseeker says the new motor yacht will have “striking lines, incredible volume, a sophisticated open-plan interior and a new beach club concept offering four times the area of a traditional bathing platform design”.

That design appears to be an open transom replacing a significant portion of the cockpit, with an in-built davit doubling up the space as a tender garage.

Below, it appears to have a full-beam master cabin mounted amidships, and at least three levels topped by a carbon-fibre targa-top flybridge with a barbecue and wet bar just behind the two-seater bridge, and a reclining sunblind. You can even option it with a hot tub.

The bow, meanwhile, is fitted with a large sun lounge area with pop-up sun awnings and a cinema-style 140-inch projector screen.

“A key feature to be found throughout the yacht is the ample exterior space; designed with entertainment in mind, she offers plentiful seating, dining and sunbathing options across multiple spaces, all with new recessed ambient lighting central to their appeal,” Sunseeker said.

"Stepping up to the cockpit with glazed balustrade and powered mesh privacy blinds, the cockpit seating will be configurable to the owner’s wishes whilst a secondary wet bar complete with sink, fridge, icemaker and preparation surfaces creates a self-sufficient aft entertaining space.

“The optional side access ladder with dedicated stowage provides easy access to port or starboard when moored alongside.”

The “penthouse-style” main saloon measures 8.8 metres by 5.6 metres, with space for modular lounge seating and a chaise longue to port. Occupants will take in the view via floor-to-ceiling windows, and “his and hers” pivot hinge wardrobes.

“Sunseeker prides itself on producing the world’s finest luxury performance motor yachts and the design and engineering behind Project 8X epitomises our next generation of larger models,” Sunseeker sales director Sean Robertson said. “Whilst each new model is still quintessentially and unmistakably a Sunseeker, this exciting new yacht will, without doubt, reinvent the market when it launches next year.”

The new-look Sunseeker could also be the brand’s first model to feature a new Rolls-Royce hybrid drive system that can switch into a full electric mode, allowing silent and emissions-free escapes from the dockside. Like the Sunseeker Project 8X, it is also due next year.