New four-cabin M58 Maritimo

Townsville automotive identity Adam Carmichael is a bluewater boating aficionado and the owner of his third Maritimo in four years. But he's never been more thrilled than with his new boat, the first ever M58 four-cabin motoryacht, which he and his family have recently been cruising aboard on the Great Barrier Reef.

Mr Carmichael, whose family business is Key Motors which is one of North Queensland's most successful car dealerships, has previously owned a Maritimo M48 and a Maritimo M50.

"The M48 was a great boat but we wanted a bit more space so we purchased the M50 which was brilliant," he said.

"It was just one of those things where in a short space of time someone came along and wanted to buy the M50 off me, so we sold and then I was heartbroken and lost with no boat to mess about on.

"I have been talking to Maritimo about the possibility of designing a four-cabin M58 and then they sent me some sketches of the new design. They offered me the chance to be the owner of the very first one and I jumped at it," he enthuses.

"The boat is brilliant and while it is much larger all over than the M50 it is a piece of cake to manoeuvre and handle.

"While the increase in length doesn't sound much, the reality is that overall the whole boat is massive compared to the M48 and the M50. We love it."

Wife Daniella and two sons Drew and Ayrton have been enjoying the waters off Magnetic Island, the Great Barrier Reef, and the islands in the Palm Group aboard their new four-cabin M58.

The family boaters are often on the water with friends who usually have children around the same age. With the four-cabin layout, the adults are adequately accommodated in spacious cabins with queen-sized beds while their two boys and their friends have their own cabins with bunks.

"It is perfect for our lifestyle now as we can take our friends and their kids and no one is tripping over themselves," Mr Carmichael said.

"The amount of space in the boat is incredible and there is even full stand up headroom in the engine room. which my boat maintenance guy describes as 'the best he has ever seen.'"

The large dining table in the main saloon and the Euro transom, with the built-in barbecue, make the M58 the perfect entertainers' boat, Mr Carmichael says.

He will also tell you he was surprised to find that, despite the additional size of the vessel, it performs as economically and as fast as the M50 with the same-sized motors.

"I rang Maritimo's Greg Haines and said: 'Greg this cannot be real.' But he assured me the performance figures were correct and the new M58 was as fuel frugal as the older M50.

"It is a cracker product and the guys at Maritimo never cease to amaze me with the performance and fuel efficiency they are able to extract from these new hulls."

Maritimo's Sales and Marketing Manager, Greg Haines, whose owns this M58 Cruising Motoryacht as we tested it here, was responsible for sparking Adam's interest in the vessel initially and says the four-cabin layout is attracting considerable interest.

"By having the fourth cabin to starboard we are able to open up a lot of potential for larger families or those who like to go boating with groups of friends and relatives," said Haines.

"Adam's boat is powered by twin Volvo D13’s 800mhp and we can produce the vessel with a range of engines varying from Volvo's D13 800s to CAT C18 1150s.

"Our skipper Russell Flemming delivered the boat to Townsville for Adam, as he was too busy with his work, and Russell was very impressed with the fuel efficiency as well," adds Haines. More at www.maritimo.com.au.