Sea Ray 480 Motor Yacht

The innovative Sea Ray 480 Motor Yacht will divide opinion. It is high volume with a big, blunt back end that might make some regular boaties shudder. But others are likely to fall in love with the home-away-from-home comforts and size afforded by that very attribute, the aft cabin.

In my opinion the aft-cabin is the ultimate liveaboard cruiser. You need to have lived on an aft cab - as I did for 11 months - to appreciate these boats. With the new Sea Ray 480 Motor Yacht, you need to climb aboard, stroll the vast amount of deck space and fossick through the cabins to find the beauty within.

SPORTSCRUISER-ESQUE
Sleeker than your average slab-sided aft cab, the Sea Ray 480 MY has a hull and deck styled almost like an aircraft's fuselage. The deck line from the bow to the hardtop is sportscruiser-esque, even though the aft end remains voluminous.

Running across the back of the boat is a huge enclosed balcony with a moulded amenities centre including icemaker, fridge, sink, hot and cold water, storage lockers, sound system and hot/cold deck shower.

The boat's big 38,000BTU reverse cycle air-con system feeds the aft deck area. The hardtop provides lots of shade in summer and floor space is massive. All-up, I gauged this boat to be capable of entertaining 16 people.

THE MAIN ATTRACTION
Neutral or buff colours and mock cherrywood or mock maple veneers make for an elegant interior.

Of course, the real attraction of an aft-cabin motoryacht is its master cabin and huge interior. Saloon seating consists of a U-shaped lounge opposite a two-person settee to port, facing the entertainment centre that includes a sound system, CD stacker, and a 20in combo TV/VCR.

The dinette lounge can seat four around a Corian table opposite the galley. A terrific design detail is the utility room beneath the lift-up galley steps, providing valuable storage for long-range provisions, golf clubs, wine, dive bottles, cased goods and so on, as well as housing a combo washer/dryer.

There are two cabins forward and the master aft, separated by the saloon, and two bathrooms with showers and Vacuflush loos at either end of the boat. The smallest room, to starboard, is for short-term guests, but even it has twin bunks that can be converted to a king-sized double using an infill, plus a cedar-lined hanging locker.

But nothing can hold a candle to the 480 MY's master cabin, probably the size of the main cabin found in 60-70ft craft with conventional layouts.

DRIVER PLEASURE
Aside from looks, performance also sets this aft cab apart. With Cummins' cutting-edge electronic QSM11 diesel motors (upgraded to the big 635hp models), the Sea Ray 480 Motor Yacht has sporty speed, good responsiveness and a sense of direction that will leave old clunkers tottering in its wake.

In Sea Ray custom, a lot of effort and ergonomics has gone into the helm. In the deep blue beyond the Gold Coast beaches, the boat exhibited surprising seaworthiness. It stayed on track and didn't lurch or lope, which are all good qualities for a fast passagemaker. Top speed came in at 34.4mph at 2310rpm on the Raytheon GPS. I clocked a convenient cruise speed of 24.5mph at 1800rpm, at which speed both motors will consume a little over 100lt/h.

While the turn of speed may come in handy for short notice sojourns, at 8kt it cruises along quietly and incredibly efficiently.

In fact, its range is such that you could cruise all the way from the Gold Coast to Noumea, a distance of just under 800nm, should you have the time on your hands.

FOR MORE DETAILS...
For our more detailed report on the Sea Ray 480 Motor Yacht, don't miss the first issue of Big Boat Quarterly, on sale this month.