David Lockwood•15 Aug 2014

REVIEW

Riviera 6000 Sport Yacht

Name: Riviera 6000 Sport Yacht
Brand: Riviera

A refined flagship Sport Yacht that propels Riviera to hitherto new heights

No mention of Riviera’s new 6000 Sport Yacht would be complete without reflecting on its predecessor. Released in 2009, the high-volume 5800 Sport Yacht with a $2 million price tag accounted for 35 sales in five years. With the same Euro design lines, the new 6000 SY refines the concept, incorporating customer feedback for greater functionality, with smarter finishes inspired by the company’s motivated owner, and twin-engines with pod drives plus a keel for improved performance. The result is Riviera’s ultimate entertainer.

OVERVIEW

- Refined Sport Yacht has greater user input for improved usability and sociability

Riviera’s 5800 SY, the forerunner to this new 6000 SY, was always a big boat. We have viewed them often, from afar as they idled down Sydney Harbour, nearby as they dropped anchor, and up close as we paddled or swum past. There is a lot of volume and a lot of luxury in this Sport Yacht geared from the word get-go for entertaining. There are six 5800 SYs on Sydney Harbour alone, including three in boat-share syndicates doing the rounds.

“The market here in Sydney Harbour is for big Sport Yachts and the new 6000 has evolved with customer feedback to create a package that answers everyone’s needs. And the vision is like that of a flybridge boat thanks to its height off the water… it’s just a great boat to drive,” explains Mike Joyce, the principal of R Marine Sydney, which had three 6000 SYs (sold off the plan) in build at the time of writing.

At the 6000 SY launch at the 2014 Sydney International Boat Show, Riviera CEO, Wes Moxey, said the Sport Yacht range has always had European styling that distinguishes it from the SUVs and Flybridge platforms. He also made the point that 50-60 footers are the “engine room” for Riviera right now in terms of sales.

Moxey’s sabbatical building Belize boats in Taiwan, a brand Riviera now owns, is reflected in the lifted two-pack finishes on the new 6000 SY. The interior design is also a result of input from Giorgia Drudi, an Italian born designer who has worked with Ferretti and Belize in the past.

That said, the DNA of the 5800 SY — which those close to the action believe was influenced by Princess Yachts in the UK — remains in the new 6000 SY. The lines are essentially the same as its predecessor, only there’s a superyacht-style radar arch, increased hull glazing, and fresh cockpit and saloon layouts with new lids that modernise the new flagship’s appearance.

?But while the Riviera 6000 SY doesn’t break the mould visually, the fresh layout and seating orientation will have a profound effect on your enjoyment. There are also new power plants and a keel for improved performance. And with a stack of refinement, this is a very agreeable Sport Yacht for entertaining, executive cruising and family holiday boating.

PRICE AND EQUIPMENT

- In the $2 million club you can design your own boat

From a base price of $2,129,600, this first 6000 SY was a $2,257,600 drive-away Sport Yacht. While the standard build list reveals you get a lot bundled with the 6000 SY, this showcase craft was destined for American boat shows. To lift the wow factor there were upgraded leather upholstery and solid counters throughout, an Amalfi Silver painted hull that also reduces visual bulk, smart walnut joinery with satin finish, and electric saloon blinds.

The twin (725hp D11) IPS 950s are a great standard match, enhanced with the upgraded Joystick driving option that lets you alter course with the flick of the stick, as well as the autopilot buttons and, oh yeh, by using the wheel. The Glass Screen Volvo navigation package included three cameras, CHIRP sounder, radar, plus there were underwater lights.

Other factory options ranged from the convertible saloon lounge with ottoman and concealed table (a must-have) to the lower-atrium layout, with lounge that converts to single bed and a TV with X-Box/Blu-Ray player. A three-seater lounge and 22in flat-screen television add to the liveability of the stateroom.

“Everyone these days wants to select their engines, electronics, entertainment systems, hull colour, interior timber and finish, floor coverings, soft furnishings design… and then they want to apply some custom work or fittings as a result of the way they like to ‘boat’. So it is fair to say that every Riviera is individually crafted to suit the personalities of its lucky owners,” explains Stephen Milne, Riviera’s Director of Brand and Communications.

?Of course, value is a rather subjective matter in this league. But with this $2 million-plus Riviera you get excellent local manufacturer and dealer backing, strong proven resale value relative to other brands and, moreover, a design with European styling that reflects local boating usage and, thus, makes a lot of sense.

LAYOUT AND ACCOMMODATION

- Thinking man’s Sport Yacht with lifted utility

Step aboard and the transformation is compelling, with greater functionality for enjoyment on the anchor. The aft garage for a 3.2 metre RIB remains as a legacy, with the hydraulic swim platform (350kg capcity) facilitating your tender’s launch and retrieval, that of your other water toys, perhaps a jet ski, plus the family in summer.

But unlike so many European sport yachts there’s not a sun pad atop the garage that Australians may find of little use during harsh summers. And the old inbuilt fixed transom lounge on the 5800 SY has been dropped in favour of a new inboard seating arrangement with greater weather protection.

Across the transom instead is a new brilliant amenities centre with barbecues, grill, sink and more. The cockpit seating orientation has changed, with increased aft-facing lounges. There’s a dinette to port — which converts to a daybed — and an L-shaped lounge opposite that encourage banter and relaxation, when not distracted by the excellent views from the elevated cockpit, which gains 300mm in length to 10.5 sq. m.

With a few casual chairs you can seat a couple of families for an al fresco lunch aboard the 6000 SY. The setback seating under a new cockpit sunroof with clear side curtains gains excellent weather protection, a factor some 5800 SY owners wanted.

With a wide sliding saloon door and awning window, you have the option of either all-weather outdoor or indoor room on the 6000 SY. And it’s this new and improved entertaining arrangement that has won-over buyers.

The excellent walkaround deck access remains, with a dedicated two-couple foredeck sun pad with flip-up backrests, drink and bottle holders, and separate AV/iPod dock controls.

But the old saloon layout has been flipped (and upgraded). You lose the breakfast bar and stools fronting the galley on the 5800 SY, which takes up a new aft portside location, with a bigger integrated wet bar and servery opposite including an icemaker and freezer drawer.

With drawer fridges and a dishwasher, induction cooktop and combi Miele oven there’s not much you can’t do in the excellent aft galley. And with a dinette forward, you have back-up plans in case of truly foul weather and for those intimate nights aboard.

The new portside lounge behind the helm was optioned as a convertible second dinette/breakfast table/work spot. It’s a clever bit of modular furniture proving a hit on Rivieras. With the new opposing saloon seating, the 6000 SY has improved sociability.

The fore and aft sunroofs give hitherto new levels of light to the saloon, while shade and insect screens add to their functionality, and sliding side-opening windows improve natural ventilation. At the same time, Riviera owner Rodney Longhurst has wielded his influence on the fit and finish.

The interior décor is sharp and smart, with greater attention to detail and a new auto-inspired dash that rates as the best we’ve seen on any Riviera Sport Yacht. Vinyl flooring adds to the boat’s utility and it’s an improved layout for cruising, too.

There are options below decks. We tested the three-cabin/three bathroom layout that will be preferred by most. The full-beam owners’ digs were grand, with an offset king bed allowing for a portside en suite behind switchable glass. The shower was increased in size. Down the opposite aft end is one of the best loos with a view in the business.

A vanity or bureau with pouf, integrated TV and views out opening portlights, plus a walk-in aft dressing room, add to the luxe. Owners can turn the utility room behind their bedhead into all kinds of things besides optional crew quarters. A watertight door leads back into the engine room for quick pre-departure morning checks.

The optional Presidential Suite puts the king bed on the centreline of the full-beam stateroom. The atrium lounge on our test boat, which was fitted out as game’s room with TV, Xbox and L-shaped sofa that converts to a single bed, becomes the bathroom. Either way, a bigger opening portlight would be nice, even assisting ventilation of the washer/dryer going round nearby.

You can also order the boat’s atrium lounge as a fourth cabin with bunks, as a lower galley, a media room, with extra storage and so on. Such are the possibilities and flexibility of a $2 million-plus boat. Meantime, the twin-single beds in the third cabin opposite to starboard are adult-sized, while the VIP forward vies for attention with its island berth and en suite. And a very nice ambience.

?The photos speak volumes for the finishes and furnishings, suffice to say, the European influences were evident on the stateroom bedhead, in the trick lighting, and upmarket bathroom vanities. Storage is a strong point, as is the LED and mood lighting. Throughout, there’s an overarching sense of space, headroom and width in the companionways on this voluminous Sport Yacht.

HULL AND ENGINEERING

- Two engines and a new hand-laid hull

There are options for crew quarters in the utility room aft of the stateroom, which can be accessed from a separate cockpit deck hatch and ladder. The transverse fuel tank with shut-offs, bench and storage area, plus rubber matting add to the otherwise workshop feel. Riviera has built a gym down here and a wine cellar for owners before.

Yet for all the possibilities the biggest advancement comes from the repower with the twin 725hp Volvo Penta IPS 950 engines in place of the triple 435hp IPS 600s originally fitted to the 5800 SY and the Zeus drove options. Through a watertight door, the engine room appears less crowded with the twins.

We noted clear engine strainers (upgraded) for easy weed checks, accessible dipsticks (though not paired), Racor fuel filters (upgraded) and an oil change system, plus a big 5000W inverter for the AV system, icemaker and GPOs. The generator is a whopper, a 22.5kW Onan for the combined 62,000 BTUs of air-con, there are twin 100A and 30A battery chargers, and 32A three-phase shorepower along with one 15A auxiliary input. C-Zone digital switching now controls both AC and DC electric systems.

Another big change is the return to a hand-laid fibreglass hull and deck. The hull bottom laminate is solid fibreglass to the chine and then tapers to closed-cell-foam reinforced topsides. The deck features an end-grain balsa core for added strength and weight saving. There is a watertight collision bulkhead forward and separate compartments throughout the hull.

We questioned Riviera about this switch back to hand-laid hulls after building the 5800 SY with resin-infusion technology. Having closely monitored the comparison between the two hull-lamination methods over the past seven years, Riviera has seen:

<<Environmental impact – there is a huge amount of waste material that has to be disposed of after each hull is infused such as the large plastic sheets, hundreds of metres of resin filled plastic hosing, etc.

<<Production time impact – to suit growing production demands, Riviera is able to gain greater production efficiencies from the open-mould hand-laid process of lamination.

<<Cost savings – there is a cost premium associated with infusing large hulls (Riviera still infuses small parts in closed moulds).

<<Quality and performance of the finished vessel – difficult to determine a significant difference from the standard and well-proven procedure. But with more than 5000 Riviera hulls in active operation the world over, “we have not seen one hull fail. Hand laying fits our ‘built to last’ philosophy,” says Stephen Milne.

Suffice to say, the mouldings looked fair on this 6000 SY and, despite the addition of a keel and the ensuing drag, performance hasn’t suffered. Volvo Penta’s Active Corrosion Protection system stands you in good stead, while a big water capacity of 800 litres and a 500 litre holding tank mean you can stage serious parties without having to break raft-up for services. Families can weekend away without need for a watermaker, too.

ON THE WATER

- A cruising chariot with great sight lines

You can get Joystick Driving over and above the twin supplied Joystick docking devices on your 6000 SY. Our test boat has this option as part of a Glass Screen package that ably reflects the new level of technology adopted by Riviera these days.

The flip-up cockpit docking station was a neat trick and with the Volvo auto-trim system you can drive this boat very easily. With the saloon doors shut, the twin D11 Volvo engines have a powerful sound, quite unlike the smaller engines of yore, and they really take command of this big hull.

Transition to plane was snappy and it was almost hard to believe we were cruising offshore at 28 knots until we looked down at the Garmin SOG! Top speed is officially 31 knots, down just half a knot off the keel-less sister ship, and the sweet spot ranges from 1900rpm and 18.7 knots for 8.2 l/nm to 2100rpm and 22 knots for 8.5 l/nm.

?At 2300rpm and 26 knots fast cruise, your range is around 265nm, increasing to 291nm at 18.7 knots or, more likely a safe 300nm range from 90 per cent of the 2650l supply. So it hasn’t exceptionally long cruising legs, even though some 5800 SY owners do Hammo, but the 6000 SY is most certainly a Sport Yacht with nice turn of speed and some snappy off-the-wheel steering.

The addition of a keel does seem to keep the big boat more upright in the turns — although a side-by-side compare is really needed to say this with conviction — and it helps stop slewing running down sea and reduces your scope when on the hook.

Suffice to say, without overanalysing the drive, it was just a nice way to travel in a boat with a stately and triumphal attitude, which seemed quite flat when running without displacing too much spray. Back at low-20 knots, it was very comfortable offshore, too.

VERDICT

- Setting the tone for a new Sport Yacht range

Following its release in Sydney, the 6000 SY was headed for the Fort Lauderdale Boat Show. The flagship Sport Yacht for Riviera has always been a stand out, being styled quite unlike any other boat in any range.

It’s not sharing a platform or a derivation of a flybridge cruiser. It’s something altogether different, a little daring, with a more European flavour and finish. It’s geared for the bon vivant, but with a new and enhanced level of functionality for our way of on-water entertaining.

Still, the 6000 SY seems kind of lonely at the top. We’re betting this Euro-styled model will be joined by bigger and smaller Sport Yacht iterations before too long — watch this space — because this is where the market is heading.

With all the tweaks, a greatly improved layout, new power plants and cutting-edge technology, the 6000 SY gives the impression of a new boat rather than just a reworked 5800 SY. Definitely the latest and greatest in Riviera’s on-trend Sport Yacht range.

HIGHS

<< Terrific outdoor entertaining space with better orientation

<< Flowing saloon with aft galley and additional new seating

<< Auto-inspired helm adds to the driving experience

<< Better performance from twin IPS 950s

<< A cutting-edge Sport Yacht with the latest technology

<< High volume hull with lots of space and a stunning full-beam stateroom

<< Riviera delivers local backing and support, plus strong resale value

NOT SO MUCH

<< Would like an opening portlight and deeper hull window in the lower atrium lounge

<< Ocean-water ingress in the bottom of the tender garage requires cleaning after time

<< High volume hull isn’t as smooth offshore as some Rivieras

Specifications:

Price as tested: About $2,257,600 with Volvo Penta IPS 950s, auto-trim system, Joystick driving, lower atrium lounge, soft furnishing upgrades, Garmin Glass Screen electronics and more as per spec.

Priced from: $2,129,600

LOA: 19.30m

Lh to ISO8666: 17.60m

Beam: 5.38m

Draft: 1.36m (max)

Weight: Around 25,750kg dry

Sleeping: 6+ 1 (up to 10 possible)

Fuel Capacity: 2650 litres

Water Capacity: 800 litres

Holding tanks: 500 litres

Engines: Twin IPS950 setup using Volvo Penta D11 turbo-charged, fully electronic, six-cylinder common-rail diesel engines with IPS 2 pod drives

Supplied by:

R Marine Sydney

d'Albora Marinas, New Beach Rd,

Rushcutters Bay , NSW, 2011

Ph: (02) 9327 0000

Fax: (02) 9327 0011

See www.rmarinesydney.com.au

Built by:

The Riviera Group,

50 Waterway Drive

Coomera, Qld, 4209

Phone (07) 5502 5555

See www.riviera.com.au.

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Riviera 6000 Sport Yacht

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