Cobalt A25: Review

You pay a premium for the prestige and cachet of the Cobalt badge, but this big A25 bowrider repays your investment with hot handling, a faultless ride, great comfort, top build quality, and air of supremacy as you power along the waterways. The lusty combination of pedigree, performance and prestige, plus a big V8 in the tail, creates an all-American wow rider perfect for bis Sundays afloat.

OVERVIEW
- This is what Cobalt does best
Cobalt says it returned to its roots to make the A25. The Kansas-based boatbuilder has teamed an aggressive deep-vee hull with high sides and freeboard with plush seating from bow to stern, stepped up the storage in more accessible ways, and mounted a V8 inboard with power steering for driving pleasure.

There’s a lot of attention to detail and the ergonomics, from the helm layout with stitched brow and the latest electronic Garmin Glass Screen dash, to the robust stainless steel fittings and sweet finish.

In profile, the all-white A25 looks pure and purposeful. But the sporty lines conceal a wealth of room in this big bowrider backed up by a hot drive.

With extras including folding tower, your days can be spent having a bundle of fun from wakeboarding and tubing to high tailing it to a top anchorage or waterfront eatery. But even an aimless Sunday drive with that sense of open-boat freedom will be highly enjoyable.

PRICE AND EQUIPMENT
- A loaded boat for a first-rate local experience
Cobalt dealer Brett Thurley has been intimate with Cobalt since his competitive water-skiing days on the US circuit. He recently opened a showroom at Gold Coast City Marine for his impressive new Cobalt dealership. Local boating experience also had a lot to do with the way this A25 test boat was set-up. The idea was to build the boat up to a standard rather than down to a price. We like that.

The base A25 is priced from $159k with the standard 300hp 5.7L Volvo Penta engine sans trailer. The test boat has an upgraded 350hp Volvo Penta V8 and that pure white hull with clean white upholstery and a navy stripe. Seagrass clip-in carpet and floor mats and Seadek foam-covering on the swim platform add to the sensory experience.

The boat had a folding white wakeboard tower with integrated bimini. There were docking lights, LED interior lighting and transom lights, plus transom shower and transom speakers for the upgraded premium Rockford Fosgate stereo. Up front, a windlass with self-stow anchor, bow cushions, and a teak dinette table add to the lunch setting. When you feel like getting wet, the boat had an air compressor with holder for inflating your tubes, SUPS and toys.

Priced to go, the loaded A5 with upgrades cost $199k sans trailer. Whil the boat with 2.59m beam is easily trailerable with the usual permit, it would be right at home on a floating dock out the front of you waterfront or in a dry stack.

DESIGN AND LAYOUT
- Great attention to detail and quality all the way
The A25 doesn’t break the bowrider mould; it refines it for a better experience. The bow seating is deep and safe, with stainless grab rails and a concealed anchor winch. Neat flip-out hinged infills create more seating or full-length seating to stretch your legs if you want it.

Storage is a feature, with flip-up backrests on struts granting easy access inside the helm and co-pilot consoles, along with a garbage chute. The drop-in teak table is classy, while the drink holders and folding wind-dam door are expected on a premium US bowrider.

Cobalt’s lockable windscreen catch typifies the deep level of thought and extra safety measures on this boat. You can drive with the windscreen locked open and not worry about an accident from an unexpected gust.

The co-pilot and helm consoles are car-like, with sculptured armrests, stitched  upholstery, aluminium dash panels, leather-bound grab rails, nooks for personal effects, and full seat adjustment.

Dubbed the Cobalt Touch Tech, the latest interfaced Garmin/Volvo Glass Screens relay key data from the 350hp V8 and more to twin 7in touch displays. Stainless steel switches, a premium black leather steering wheel, and the upgraded sound system — not to mention the V8 note — added to the driving pleasure.

The convertible seating is very well designed. At rest, the helm bucket seat swivels to abut an adjoining seat cushion, which has an icebox below, allowing the driver to stretch out. The co-pilot seat has a backrest that tilts forward to create a bigger crew lounge, while the backrest of the aft sun lounge also flips across for forward-facing seating when running or an aft-facing position when towing or swimming.

The piece de resistance is a push-button electric swim platform that enhances water access and creates a semi-submerged play area for kids. The integration of this robust stainless-edged platform is a Cobalt master stroke.

With an unhindered walkway from bow to stern, and the focus very much on ergonomics, the A25 is an accommodating boat with a 15-person listed capacity and loads of seating and storage.

HULL AND ENGINEERING
- Big warranties for a premium product
Every Cobalt sold in Australia comes with a five-year engine warranty, a 10-year hull warranty and three-year stem-to-stern warranty. The dry weight of 2325kg hints at the solid build, yet it’s not slapped up with just fibreglass.

The simple five-part mould for this boat includes fibreglass cockpit liner and stringer system, reinforced with Kevlar, and with a composite floor and transom.

You can get around all sides of the V8 Volvo Penta thanks to an electric engine-bay lift, while the local Cobalt dealer upgraded the battery system so you can blare the premium Rockford Fosgate stereo with transom speakers all day long.

As touched on, a lot of thought went into the integration of the extended swim platform and the whole boat — from stainless bow scuff plate, to push-fit fender clips with lines, and sturdy stainless windshield struts — is a statement of quality.

Casting a critical eye over the fit and finish, the out-of-the-way wiring and the engineering leaves you impressed, as indeed I have been after 15 years of testing these boats.

ON THE WATER
- Go-to-whoa performance and comfort
With 21 degrees of deadrise at the transom and the upgraded 350hp Volvo Penta V8, the A25 will sluice through choppy waterways like Sydney Harbour, Moreton Bay and Port Phillip Bay.

The sporty top speed cracks the benchmark 50mph speed or 44 knots. Hole shot is hot, but watch that 189lt fuel capacity if you plan to plant it all day.

The predictable motion at mid-30 knots cruise speeds wows you just as much, with the roar of the V8 adding to the sensation.

The grunt means you can sit on those low-20 wake speeds and tow till your arms are stretched. Or just cruise right on through the Sunday parade and slop with a drink in hand looking very cool.

With leg trim alone, you can crank the boat around in the tightest turns and the Duoprop won't let go. There are also trim tabs to keep you on an even keel when beam-on to the summer breeze or carrying an offset crew load.

Either way, driving pleasure is a huge part of the A25's appeal so take your test drive with the caveat it will likely clinch the deal.

VERDICT
- One of the best American bowriders in the game
From the abundant lined and accessible storage to the first-rate upholstery, from the push-button swim platform to push-button windlass, this 25ft bowrider offers a beautiful day-boating experience at rest and underway.

Built in America to that favourite formula of go-fast hull and grunty V8 petrol engine, the A25 offers genuine performance. Knowing your family and friends are safe and comfortable at smooth cruising speeds adds to the boating pleasure.

With more boaters looking for easy turn-key solutions, and plenty of new waterfronts on the Gold Coast along with rack-and-stack storage in most big cities, Cobalt's A25 shouldn't be lost for a home. It's a class act.

LIKES
>> The hull and V8 performance
>> The helm with Glass Dash
>> Five-star fit and finish
>> Innovative seating and storage
>> Submersible swim platform
>> Prestige brand built on quality

NOT SO MUCH
>> No head on this 25-foot bowrider
>> Big ticket and tow on a trailer

Specifications: Cobalt A25
Price as Tested: The loaded A5 with upgrades cost $199k including 350hp Volvo Penta V8, folding white wakeboard tower with integrated bimini, docking lights, LED interior lighting, transom lights and transom shower, transom speakers with premium Rockford Fosgate stereo, a windlass with anchor, bow cushions, teak dinette table, an air compressor and more (excluding trailer).
Price From: $159k with the standard 300hp 5.7L Volvo Penta engine (excluding trailer).
Length Overall w/ Swim Platform: 7.77m
Beam: 2.59m
Interior Cockpit Width: 2.26m
Deadrise at Transom: 21
Fuel Capacity: 189lt
Freshwater Capacity: 38lt
Bridge Clearance w/o Bimini: 1.50m
Bridge Clearance w/Arch or Tower: 2.49m
Draft Drive Up: 0.76m
Draft Drive Down: 0.99m
Dry Weight: 2325kg
Boat Certified Capacity: 15 persons
Boat Certified Capacity w/gear: 937kg
Engine on Test: V8-350CE-G DP EVC-350hp
More from Cobalt of Australia, Managing Director Brett Thurley. Phone: (07) 55194 019.
Email: brett@cobaltqld.com.au.
More at Cobalt boats.