Fairline Targa 40

On a Fairline motoryacht - one of the big suckers around 20m in length - the silverware and crystal glasses, bone-china dinner plates, quilted bedspreads, timber wardrobes and dressers, leather lounges, cabinets for the heirlooms, even the maids' quarters back aft, come gratis.

With million-dollar price tags and everything but the decanters for the Dewars, one might suppose England's most established luxury boating marque is built for the establishment. But this is not the case with Fairline's sportscruisers.

Contemporary and exciting, the Targa range is a demonstration in new-age boat design. While the Targa 40 seen here flaunted an unbreakable 30-piece crockery set, 42-piece cutlery set and Montgomery cream bedspreads, one look suggests this boat isn't for the toffee-nosed set.

Low-profile lines, a big wrap-around windscreen, raked targa arch and performance under power with steering as direct as a Churchill retort, create a sporty boat for sporty people. While the navy hull, teak decking and chic blue-and-white striped canvas sunpads are dapper touches, below is where you will find a different atmosphere altogether.

Fairline's Targa 40, the latest model from the celebrated English boatbuilding yard, was launched overseas around 12 months ago. The spiffy sportscruiser blends English seafaring heritage and engineering with dashing design for with-it boaties.

The galley is a good example of this. It has brushed stainless facias and splash-backs, modern appliances and architectural touches, lit-up by halogen downlighting with mood enhancing strip-lighting in a ceiling feature nearby.

The entertainment centre alongside the galley sits in a modish - not manorial - moulded capsule. It in itself is a futuristic demonstration of where contemporary sportscruisers, even those made by Fairline, are heading today.

CLEARING THE DECKS
On the morning of our outing, the Fairline Targa 40 sat at the marina with a full head of canvas covers. Given the encroaching black clouds and the brisk wind, it may have been more sensible to leave the tent in place. But a modern sportscruiser deserves to look the part and, except for boating in driving rain, you're best popping the top of a convertible.

We did just this with the Targa 40, removing the covers to let the boat flaunt its sporty lines, before setting out for the harbour. Removing the covers took all of 10 minutes. The task was made easy by the lack of press studs. Instead, the covers are kept in place with simple grommets and slider bars that slip into or out of tracks.

The sunpad on the foredeck was no less snappy to put in place. I slid the foot of the mattresses into sleeves, zipped the two beds together and tied them down using the firm little fasteners supplied. This ensures, even when coastal hopping, that the cushions stay put. Only the other day on another brand of sportscruiser, which had its sunpad anchored with press studs alone, the darn thing got airborne and flew overboard.

Such is the attention to detail on the Fairline Targa 40. Outdoors, the decks are made for cruising comfort. The teak-laid transom comes with a central boarding ladder in a locker and a handy aft sunpad. There are dedicated storage holds for the fenders and a wide hatch into the engine room. I stepped below and easily checked the fuel filters, noting plenty of space around the twin Volvos, generator and hot-water assembly.

TENDER MERCIES
The garage was a surprise. Lifting on a hydraulic strut, the sunpad reveals a hold where you can store a 2.7m tender. The RIB on the Targa 40 had the Fairline insignia, of course, with the outboard stowed alongside. Single-handed launch and recovery is made possible thanks to an electric winch and keel rollers.

With the tender at your disposal, shoreside facilities and eateries can be reached in a jiffy regardless of the availability of marina parking.

Lunches aboard are also made easy by the big U-shaped lounge with firm foam top and thick white vinyl upholstery. A dinette with a folding leaf on the starboard side of the cockpit has a folding backrest, which makes a headrest for the aft sunlounge.

Behind the skipper's seat on the port side is an outdoor amenities centre. Under the lid of the moulded unit hides a sink and an electric griddle so you can do the prawns-on-the-barbie thing. Below is a fridge with room to chill wine bottles, bubbly and beers.

The skipper gets to ride on a neat little bench seat with a folding base, so he can drive standing up. Co-pilots get to share a three person lounge to port. All up, there is seating and facilities in the cockpit to cater for at least eight people.

Access to the foredeck is made easy thanks to moulded steps, non-skid decks, a bowrail which traces the wide and flat sidedecks, and low-profile grab rails alongside the foredeck sunpad.

Anchoring is taken care of by a push-button windlass with aftermarket chain counter. Dispense three times the depth of the water in rode and your Targa 40 won't be going anywhere.

SPORTSCRUISING IN SYDNEY
Covers off, clouds looming ominously, we made a hasty exit from the crowded Sydney marina. A man rigging a yacht alongside cursed the building wind, but it posed no problem to this low-profile sportscruiser. The Volvo engines were warm and in any case the Targa 40 comes with a standard-issue 4hp Sleipner bowthruster.

Vision to all quarters of the 40-footer is unobstructed with the covers down and you get a clear view over the wrap-around windscreen when standing, with just enough protection from the wind while seated.

The split-level dash places the engines' gauges on the farthest brow, switch panels and controls alongside the wheel, with a facia for flush-mounting the Raytheon Tridata and plenty of room for a chartplotter, sounder and radar.

Despite the fact the clouds had now parted, there weren't many brave souls on the harbour. It was more the biting wind which had people scurrying for cover. Onboard, we were nicely protected at both the helm and on the cockpit lounges. From either vantage point, I spotted no bronzed bodies to speak of at Nelson Park, Vaucluse or Lady Jane beaches. No matter, to sea we go.

SPORTSCAR RESPONSE
Steely water and a pitching swell provided a great test for the trademark Olesinski hull. With aggressive reverse chines and prominent strakes, the boat pushed the water to the sides and also derived a lot of lift. It rode high, quite flat, turned remarkably with just a few tugs on the wheel and shifted to planing speed smartly.

Optimum trim on the Volvo legs had the gauges reading +1. This was fine for the harbour, but into the headsea at 20kt-plus the boat got a little flighty. I shifted the legs in to -1 on the gauges and the boat buttoned it bow down and sliced the swells. This produced a smooth ride and we could have run to a neighbouring port without breaking anything. Quartering the sea, the odd lashing of spray landed on the windscreen.

Top speed runs showed the Targa probably needed a scrub. When it was fresh off the freighter, the twin 260hp Volvo KAD44/DP diesel engines reportedly drove the hull to a top speed of 33-34kt. Fairline quotes a top end of 36kt, but the Raytheon Tridata recorded a top speed of 30kt at 3500rpm (top revs were 300rpm down).

Offshore where it counts, however, I could maintain mid-20kt in the lumpy winter conditions. Inshore cruising was comfortable at 28kt and vision was such that I only needed to stand up to run a check on where the occasional marker was hiding.

In any case, the boat's responsiveness was reminiscent of a sportscar, so late changes of direction were no problem.

The Volvo EDC electronic shifts and bowthruster made inner-city parking a snap. The whole thing was just a joy to drive and carefree to partake in the fun of sportscruising.

INTERIOR COMFORTS
This particular July day was an occasion when a big interior would be most appreciated. Sleeker boats with open-plan layouts offering little in the way of privacy can't compete with the swish accommodation on the Targa 40, which seemed especially warm and inviting on a day like this.

The opulent saloon, with its big leather lounge around a dinette opposite a stainless steel galley and entertainment centre, can comfortably charm six people. Food, music and movies are at your finger tips. So, too, are soft-touch China blue Novasuede furnishings, sand-toned berber carpet, high gloss American cherry joinery, wonderful lighting plus natural light from a skylight to the aft cabin.

At night, the accommodation in two cabins separated by the hospitable saloon offers privacy and room to sleep well. The aft cabin has twin single berths - an infill can be used to create a double - a hanging locker, plenty of hatches for cross-flow ventilation, as well as air conditioning.

A cut above many pokey cabs set back under helms, the Targa's guest cabin boasts a useful amount of standing room at the entrance, where there is a lovely cuddle seat and a bench with a private sink. This way, couples can brush the pearly whites and remove the make-up before bedding down.

At the point end is a masterly master cabin with a big island double bed fitted with a quilted bedspread, surrounded by cherrywood lockers and a hanging locker, with 'Symphony Putty' curtains over portholes. Blue Novasuede bed surrounds carry the theme set in the saloon. A safe hides somewhere safe.

From the master cabin, a door leads into the boat's single head, which can also be accessed via another door leading off the saloon. A separate shower with standing room, electric loo and Avonite vanity with moulded sink and designer fittings make for a boat you can step off looking a million dollars and head straight to work.

TWO SIDES
So there is nothing conservative about the Targa 40. It's a lifestyle family boat that can sleep four or even six people if you convert the dinette, with a first-class finish, style and pizzazz, and a swish stainless galley with all the mod cons.

On this brisk day, when there were better things to do than risk exposure on the harbour, the Targa 40 was a retreat. After removing the covers and cruising offshore for a quick blatt, the sportscruiser showed its other side.

Set the anchor and the anchor alarm, head down below and you'd never know you were in a boat made for sun-worshippers. The interior is what you will find on a Fairline motoryacht, minus the conservatism, and is in no way stuffy.

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