Riviera 52 Enclosed Flybridge: 2015 Model Review

Refined and redefined, repowered and rebadged, the Riviera 52 Enclosed Flybridge is an exemplary luxury cruiser that underscores the considerable finesse, lifted finish and improved functionality of today’s new-breed Rivs. Based on the 50 that it supplants, the ‘new’ 52 embraces today’s boating smarts, with common-rail electronic 725hp D11 Volvo Penta engines with IPS2 pod drives, a Dynamic Positioning System (DPS) which is a GPS virtual anchor, joystick docking from various stations, digital switching, and integrated Garmin Glass Helm electronics, for example. But there’s another thing: sizing. The 50-footer owner/driver class has always been a big hit for Riviera. There were more than 160 Riviera 51 Opens built and the pod-driven Riviera 50 launched in 2013 had already accounted for 25 boats when this 52 #1 hit the water with your crew and the owner aboard.

OVERVIEW
- Faithful Riviera owner seeks a serious liveaboard coastal cruiser
Michael Bolton and his wife are great ambassadors for Riviera. A successful businessman, he seems relaxed and ready when we meet him aboard his new Riviera 52 Enclosed Flybridge. It’s almost as though he’s arrived at the stepping off point in his life, where he and his wife can cast the lines, realise their (motor)cruising dreams and leave the thrust and parry of workaday life at the dock.

Not that journey along the way hasn’t been a celebration. A faithful Riviera owner, Bolton has stepped up from a 40 to a 47 Flybridge and now into this bigger owner/driver 52. En route, he’s gained considerable cruising experience and, he will tell you with great sincerity, met genuine likeminded boatowners and best friends through Riviera owners’ events or “Experiences” as they are known.

Pigging backing his way north with those dealer-led Riviera fleets, the Boltons have been all the way to Lizard Island and back to the Gold Coast. They are about to head north again in their new, considerably bigger, even more comfortable cruiser with the works. But thanks to the latest driver conveniences, he’s certain the new 52 won’t be handful for the two of them.

A keen cruising couple, the Boltons arrived at the 52 after forming a wishlist from their previous Riviera experiences. Michael says he had a terrific run with Riviera. At the same time, Riviera collated a lot of feedback from its existing 50 and previous 51 owners and applied it to the refined new 52 Enclosed Flybridge, CEO Wes Moxey tells us during the boat’s launch at the 2015 Riviera Festival.

The resulting 52 footer answers the call of the Boltons, whose demands in their new boat included such things as internal stairs, a forward helm and pod drives. As is wont to happen, they also went to town on the options list to create their own personal home-away-from-home for serious passagemaking and liveaboard boating for weeks at a time.

Based on the 50 Enclosed that it supersedes (tested in October 2013 here), and which originally ran a pair of 600hp Cummins QSC-8.3s with Zeus pod drives, the new 52 Enclosed now boasts a pair of Volvo Penta IPS 950s with IPS2 drives as standard (as tested on the upgraded 50 model in June 2014 here).

This 725hp engine pairing is a great match and in our view this is Riviera’s best pod-driven combination in the fleet. With an increased 3500-litre fuel supply, the boat’s range has been extended to 378nm at 25-plus knots cruise speed or 400nm with a bit of trolling. That’s Gold Coast to Sydney in one leg, but it’s not just range that matters to the owners of today’s high-volume Rivieras.

"I think it's the manoeuvrability first and foremost," says Bolton from the 52’s new fixed transom lounge as DPS ‘anchors’ us off Stradbroke Island in the tide. "A  lot of the time we’re manoeuvring this big boat with just my wife and I, and the pod drives [with joystick docking stations and the station hold feature] give us the flexibility to do that."

With that latest pod-drive system, a whole lot of cool kit, and itchy feet, the Boltons were preparing to head to Whitsundays and then cruise to Cairns before heading south to Sydney for Christmas. They were intending to cruise NSW waters extensively, perhaps all the way south to Eden, then hook it back to Queensland at 25 knots before Easter in their brand new boat over a six-to-nine month period. You can hear Michael Bolton share his plans and thoughts on youtube here.

Meantime, Riviera is confident the new 52 Enclosed will be a big hit globally. Certainly, the five-star fit and finish and build quality eclipses that from some hugely popular European and American production-cruiser brands. Riviera owner Rodney Longhurst, a cabinet-maker by trade, has a critical eye for detail and it shows. He realises Europe is the trendsetter and standard for all things design and his penchant for luxury cars is reflected in the new automotive-inspired dash of the 52.

Indeed, the Riviera 52 is the culmination of a lot of little things. To paraphrase Aristotle: this is a boat that comes together in such a way that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

PRICE AND EQUIPMENT
- You get what you pay for with a high-end luxury 52
Even in the 50-footer market we’re seeing a lot of customisation and increased options to cater for various owner’s needs. In fact, no two Rivieras are the same these days. Having said that, this 52 struck us as being an exceptional and exemplary new-generation model. There’s a new specification and more extensive standard-equipment list, but also increased scope for creating your own personal boat.

For close-quarters manoeuvring, the boat had extra upgraded docking stations in the cockpit and aft flybridge, with joysticks and engine start/stop switches. Low-speed mode and DPS come standard with the IPS 950s, as do the IPS2 drives paired with the 725hp D11 engines using carbon jackshafts. The big pods and forward-facing Duoprops certainly have a lot of purchase and control over the high-volume hull.

Power needs are handled by a 13.5kW Onan, now mounted aft in the engine room to dampen operating noise, plus a 2.5kW inverter and accompanying battery bank that operate the AV system, a galley GPO and icemaker while in ‘silent ship’ mode. This is standard.

An optional but must-have watermaker was fitted with a commercially-rated prefiltering system, and there was a spare switchable freshwater pump on the boat in case. The boat also had a washer/dryer in the engine room and a must-have dishwasher as an appliance upgrade.

The air conditioning was upgraded to the flybridge and included a demister function. There are supplied opening windows, opening hardtop hatches and the three-sided enclosure with rear clears means plenty of natural ventilation. But we have experienced oppressively hot enclosed flybridges before and many windscreen fog-ups, too. So climate control is a smart thing.

With carpeting underfoot, the new flybridge on the 52 is certainly a comfortable, commanding, self-contained cruising, driving and entertaining station. The triple Garmin 17in glass screens (two come standard) interface with the Volvo Penta engine system and relay engine instrumentation and vital range and cruising data at your fingertips.

The boat comes with digital switching for its AC and DC electrical systems, which also relays your power consumption and shows fluid levels via an 8in LCD touchscreen display. This is located handily near the saloon door as well as via a 3.5in display repeater at the helm.

There are new modular layout arrangements in the excellent  9.90sq m Australian-sized cockpit. This boat, 52 #1, had an inbuilt transom lounge and transom icebox alongside, with the amenities centre including twin barbecue, icemaker and sink located under the flybridge overhang to starboard where it’s sheltered. This way you get an all-weather outdoor cooking centre nice and close to the aft galley.

But you can have the barbecue in the transom if you wish and there are hardcore fishing arrangements with live-bait tanks and so on. Bolton is a keen fisher, nevertheless, and coral trout and red emperor are sought-after for dinner during his travels. As with the 50, the swing-open twin transom gates integrate the swim platform with the cockpit to extend the outdoor space and, with aft rails and cutting board, it’s certainly creates a nice place from which to reef fish. Up front, a 350kg davit with slewing function launches the RIB for island exploration.

Riviera is pretty strong on that other cruising essential — refrigeration — with the galley and wet-bar opposite jointly boasting five drawer fridges and freezers. The boatbuilder also realises that cruising buffs like freezer space and there’s a new enlarged cockpit freezer with 24V plate behind the mezzanine lounge near the galley window.

From a base of about $1.674 million, our test boat Riviera 52 #1 had a driveaway price of about $1.864 million with all the kit, docking stations, tender and davit options including things like dedicated drinking water tap and soft furnishing upgrade, galleyware and more. But you get what you pay for and world-class quality and Australian utility intersect on the Riviera 52 Enclosed Flybridge.

LAYOUT AND EQUIPMENT
- Redesigned flybridge and modular cockpit arrangements
The flybridge and cockpit in the 52 Enclosed are the biggest areas of change and refinement over the 50. The bridge has a completely redesigned dash, with a lowered profile to improve vision, increased mounting space for three 17in glass screens, a new flat mounting tier to reduce clutter and put things like marine radios close to hand.

There are some smart auto cues in the dash, particularly with the air-con vents, the stitched upholstery and the curves of its leading edge. The amenities centre behind the helm seats has been enlarged and improved with a bigger sink and easily accessed garbage receptacle, more servery space, and handy integrated fridge.

The new fully moulded storage bins under the aft lounge seats, which were formerly mounted on stainless framework, are another great improvement. You can now stash you safety gear and lifejackets without them being on show and could probably convert a lined sub-seat storage into extra freezer space if you wanted.

Access behind the helm dash and under the flybridge brow has been vastly improved via two new hatches. The former aft-facing L-shaped lounge alongside the helm has been turned into a two-person settee running longitudinally, which is all you need here really.

The improved access means you can stick your head inside and behind the dash and get to all the wiring, while the rubber-backed flooring adds to the serviceability and increased storage some more. Such are the refinements.

The internal staircase, so coveted by Bolton on his boat, certainly makes access back down below, even in a seaway, safe and practical. Back in the cockpit, the twin transom gates in lockable opening positions add to the bow to stern, bridge to beds, flowing access on this boat. As Riviera owner Longhurst is tall in stature, head and shoulder room are strongpoints throughout the 52.

Seating has been boosted in the 52, with the aft inbuilt lounge standard, facing the cockpit mezzanine lounge, which gains weather protection under the flybridge overhang. With the side clear curtain upgrades on this boat, you should be able to dine here in comfort most days. A teak folding table adds to the amenity, as does that protected barbecue and amenities centre opposite.

The saloon layout with aft galley, big opening awning or hopper window, and hard-wearing Amtico vinyl flooring has proven a winner for Riviera. The digital switching near the door from BEP is now proven, too, while the galley comes loaded with a full spread of amenities from cooktop to combi oven. The drawer-style dishwasher was an option but we can’t see why given their efficiency.

As the accommodation plan remains unchanged, you can read about the 52’s interior layout in greater detail in our previous 50 test here. That said, the photos of 52#1 hereabouts show the beautiful styling of the Boltons’ dressed boat, a star attraction at the 2015 Riviera Festival and looking great on test (we didn't slip under the doona though)

The 52 has a three-cabin and two-bathroom layout, but without a full-beam stateroom. But all three cabins are first class and, argues Riviera, you get more genuine accommodation this way. Certainly the third cabin with twin single beds is a beauty compared to some pokey spaces with bunks.

The soft furnishing choice was a credit to the owners and Riviera, with the light oak timber and aquamarine bedding illuminated by big portlights for what this writer labelled an upmarket Noosa penthouse effect. It was inviting and luxurious, the joinery just impeccable and world-class, reflecting the rejuvenated Riviera that’s back kicking goals globally.

HULL AND ENGINEERING
- Proven hull with small keel and big reputation
Built in Australia for our rugged coastal waterways, Riviera’s enjoys a strong following overseas where more than 50 per cent of production is sold these days. The 52 has solid glass below the waterline and cored decks and superstructure and you don’t hear of any breaking.

There’s a small solid GRP keel to assist directional stability, which also reduces the boat’s drift rate and, a point not often mentioned with pod boats, might help reduce skating on the anchor. The hull, a derivation of the Belize (designed by Wes Moxey) that Riviera now owns, also carries its beam well aft at the chines and has an innate ability to carry a big load.

Engine vents are inboard and Marine Air Flow devised the ventilation system, with positive (24V fan) forced-air supply, passive extraction and two-stage mist eliminators. Think long engine and engineering life.

Engine room access is via a conventional cockpit hatch and the layout is logical, serviceable, owner-friendly, with standing room forward. Some owners have mounted work benches on their 50s. With the generator moved back aft, it’s going to be a quieter boat in the aft cabins, too.

The fuel tank has sight gauges and remote shut-offs, twin fillers and filters per engine, and stainless-steel fuel lines. There are two bilge pumps and a high-water alarm, plus fire-suppression system. Twin battery chargers ensure quick-response charging.

The owner mounted the washer/dryer in the engine room, along with the watermaker, and we noted a nice big bank of Cruisair compressors for the tropical-strength air-con. Certainly, the wiring, plumbing and engineering has been tidied up on these new generation Rivs.

A lot of Volvo Penta IPS boats tend to burble and bobble at idle. But underway, their smooth operation is part of the attraction of the pod-drive system and, on this Riviera 52, it’s testimony to the quality engineering and installation.

Once running along, this is a very quiet and smooth boat, there’s nothing rattling or moving independently, and with a fresh focus on the driving ergonomics it’s a very reassuring boat to drive.

ON THE WATER
- Established IPS-950 performer with boosted range
We have spent time offshore in the 50 Enclosed Flybridge boats that preceded this 52, ranging offshore from the Gold Coast in albeit flat seas. By far the best engine pairing is with this IPS-950 setup, with the bigger pods and props offering better performance and control over the base 600hp Cummins QSC-8.3 setup on the early 50s.

As the new Riviera 52 has the same running surface and the same IPS-950 engine setup as the last 50 we revisited, we can extrapolate the data across to this boat as Riviera has done. Only the cruising range gets a welcome boost due to the fuel capacity increasing from 3000 litres to 3500 litres as standard on the 52.

In the cruising groove of 25.3 knots at 2200rpm, the 725hp IPS-950 engines give this 52 a safe cruising range of 378nm (up from 324nm with 3000 litres of fuel in the 50), which equates to 8.34lt/nm. You will see 340nm range at 16.5, 20 and 22 knots cruise speeds, according to the supplied seal-trial data, and 360nm ranges anywhere from 26.8 to 32.5 knots WOT of 2560rpm. So the boat performs very well at faster cruise speeds of 27-28 knots should seas allow.

With a good trim range to cover all sea conditions, and increased range to go from the Gold Coast to Sydney or vice versa on one tank, the 52 Enclosed Flybridge is a very nice coastal boat. The high freeboard in the hull means displacement-speed boating and trolling won’t displace too much spray, while agility is another strength of IPS pod drives.

VERDICT
- Upgraded 52 with more kit, driving pleasure, range and luxury
Yes, there’s a bit of rebadging going on here. The 52 Enclosed has the same layout, engines, drives and set-up as the 50 is supplants. Part of the reason for the rebadging is that the previous 53, now relaunching at the 2015 Sydney International Boat Show as a 57, was such an enormous ‘beast’ it needed truer sizing.

Riviera says the new badges more accurately reflect a nomenclature based on the International Organisation for Standardisation’s ISO guidelines as well as the European Union’s CE mark. While that may be the case, the new 52 Enclosed has undergone some real refinements.

The tweaks mightn’t be obvious to the untrained eye or the opposition, but they are all part of the evolution driven by Riviera’s owner Rodney Longhurst. Certainly during our factory visit there was a noticeable spring in the step of everyone at Riviera, where sales for the 2014-15 financial year are up to 70-dd boats from 50-odd previously.

Meanwhile, Bolton and his wife will be out there, cruising north, swinging on the hook, cooking fresh reef fish fillets on the barbecue, and toasting the sunsets after another day of motorcruising somewhere between the Gold Coast andn the Great Barrier Reef, Sydney and beyond.

LIKES
>> New improved flybridge and cockpit designs
>> Excellent performance with IPS 950s and IPS 2 drives
>> Deep level of thinking and considered design
>> Three very comfortable cabins in a boat that can sleep 6/8
>> Loads of Riviera utility, lifted finish and style
>> World-class luxury boat with excellent global support

NOT SO MUCH
>> Some would-be buyers might still covet a full-beam stateroom
>> Some would-be buyers still prefer traditaional shaft drive options (see new Riv 57)
>> The price of new boats for those hoping to upgrade is getting away

Specifications:
Price as tested: $1,864,619 with twin 725hp Volvo Penta IPS 950s with IPS 2 pod drives, second flybridge and cockpit docking stations, Garmin electronics, upgraded air-con, teak-laid cockpit, upholstery upgrade, carpet upgrade, galleyware kit, and more options.
Priced from: $1,674,800
LOA: 17.26m
Hull Length ISO8666: 16.15m
Beam: 5.01m
Draft: 1.18m (max)
Weight: Around 26,750kg (dry w/standard twin 725hp Volvo Penta IPS 950s) 
Sleeping: 6+2
Fuel Capacity: 3500 litres
Water Capacity: 750 litres
Holding tanks: 400 litres
Engines: Twin Volvo Penta IPS-950 turbo-charged, fully electronic, six-cylinder common-rail diesel engines with IPS 2 pod drives

Supplied by:
The Riviera Group,
50 Waterway Drive
Coomera, Qld, 4209
Phone (07) 5502 5555
See www.riviera.com.au.