Voyager V930 Express Cruiser

It is hard to categorise the futuristic Voyager V930 Express Cruiser. You could pigeon-hole the boat under anything from cruiser to charter, sports to family, multihull to marine revolution.

A low-drag, low-wash powercat, this latest version of the Voyager V930 - boat number four - has a hardtop and a lock-up cabin and is therefore suitable for hot and cold climate cruising.

Made in Queensland, the cat would be at home dashing along the d'Entrecasteaux channel off Dover and, I assume, it would be a practical boat for Port Phillip Bay.

Reminding me of something I might expect to see the Jetsons driving, the venturesome Voyager has bubble-top styling, lots of surrounding glass and a sleek profile coming from a five-axis milling machine.

Hydrodynamically and aerodynamically, this isn't your run-of-the-mill catamaran. Designed by Paul Stanyon, the boat's symmetrical hulls have 31° of deadrise at the stern for tracking and a big initial chine and lots of buoyancy forward for lift.

There is a second chine for spray deflection and a high clearance tunnel between the sponsons that encourages air flow and prevents the cat bogey - spray being sucked back aboard and into the motors. A wave-breaker in the tunnel helps stop water-slap into a headsea.

Derek Appleton, the MD of Voyager Cats at Capalaba, and an engineer by trade, says the basic concept was to create a catamaran that delivered leisure and pleasure. Unlike a lot of workboat, rescue and dive cats, this boat had to have an interior that shone.

SLIP STREAM
Measuring 9.0m overall, the Voyager has solid glass below the waterline, a Divinycell foam-cored deck and a hardtop with a Coremat centre. Vinylester resins are used throughout the hull, which is constructed to survey standards with four watertight compartments.

This same construction method is used to create the Voyager 930 Sports, an open rear bulkhead version of this boat, and it will be used on a future model called the V1040 Flybridge, which will be a bigger displacement cat with a flybridge.

All Voyagers are available with Yanmar or MerCruiser petrol or diesel inboards with sterndrives, or with outboards. The V930 Express Cruiser seen here had twin V-six 200hp Yamaha Saltwater Series II outboards with 25in legs.

The outboard version has cut-outs in the aft running surface and a flatter run aft than the inboard version. The high tunnel between the sponsons allows you to trim the 25in legs clear of the water, thereby reducing maintenance as a result of mooring.

On this model, the internal galley, 14lt hot-water system and outdoor barbie were powered by gas. A semi-custom builder, Voyager offers options such as inverters, shore-power connection, generators, air-conditioning, microwave ovens, and suchlike.

A full internal liner adds polish and gives the overall impression of a professionally-made boat. The low-profile of the hardtop belies the amount of room inside and the vision afforded from the helm.

At the same time, the boat's low height lets you duck under low canal bridges, which should endear it to Gold Coast boaties. The low draft of just 0.5m also means less likelihood of hitting a sandbar. The outboard versions seen here can be beached.

A 3.0m beam on the V930 lets you truck the boat with a wide-load permit. Potentially, you could have it shipped interstate to new destinations and fly in for holidays afloat.

There are other possibilities for this boat such as fitting twin 25hp motors for licence-free charter use. There is also a Sports targa model for dayboating that looks kind of cool.

TOP DECK
Cats don't usually have much in the way of foredeck space - the Voyager is much the same. Traced by a one-piece bowrail, topped with a bowsprit, it hasn't much room to do anything.

There is an electric anchor winch, but the chain locker is concealed and accessed internally, which might be a hassle if the chain piles too high or gets caught.

There are two forward mooring cleats and a deck hatch, which is the only way onto the foredeck and from it back into the cabin top. In other words, the boat has no sidedecks.

Having said that, no-one really uses a cat's foredeck in any case. What you do use is the cockpit, which is super stable. The V930 has a self-draining cockpit 2.4m by 1.8m - perfect for entertaining, fishing, diving, cruising, whatever takes your fancy.

A central swim platform leads out between the motors, acting as a springboard to the water. There is a fold-down swim ladder and a grabrail to help you back aboard.

There is room, assures the builder, to carry a rubber ducky across the outboard enginewells. The framework along the boarding platform needs to be topped with non-skid to make stepping aboard safer.

Padded coamings, sidepocket storage, a hatch for a 4kg gas bottle, and a two-tray tacklebox were fitted. A bimini is an option that would make this boat ideal for sundowners.

A surprising amount of room hides in the sponsons, where inboard motors are fitted. Used as lazarettes on the outboard version, the motorwells are big enough to stow a deflated duckie, outboard, dive gear, rail-mounted barbie and lots of long-range provisions.

INDOOR LIVING
There was no evidence of skimping on the lovely anodised alloy door leading into the saloon. Safety glass windows surround the cabin - this early model had curved perspex sections in the corners. Two-pack painted white moulded surfaces and very professionally fitted soft-touch vinyl liners reflect natural light.

An opening aft window, two sliding side windows, two overhead hatches and a forward hatch ensure plenty of fresh air at rest and underway. The side and aft windows are tinted, while the clear fronts (especially when covered with Rainex) ensure good vision at sea.

Headroom inside ranges from 1.90 to 1.95m between the helm and saloon door. In between these areas is a 2.0m long galley on the port side with salt-and-pepper speckled moulded benchtops, a deep top-loading icebox that can take a 12V fridge unit, sink with H/C mixer, two-burner gas stove, storage lockers and drawers.

Opposite is a dinette big enough to seat a family of four on a U-shaped lounge that converts to a 1.80m long double bed. Access hatches take you to the boat's wiring looms and plumbing bits. A 12V fridge hides under the nearby skipper's seat.

Forward is a U-shaped passenger lounge for two people set behind the windscreen, offering good views for guests. Though it has a squat feeling when standing, the boat drives well from the adjustable helmseat, where the windscreen offers a good vista ahead.

The throttle and wheel are thoughtfully located, Hynautic hydraulic steering reduces the load and overall this is a nice boat to drive. The white dash does reflect in the windscreen, however. A matt beige insert would be better.

HUNKER DOWN
You need to bend down a little to get to the bow cabin, but once inside you will find room to sit on the V-berth, which with infill converts into a 1.90m by 1.35m transverse double bed. Storage space hides beneath this bed in what is considered the main cabin.

At first glance, you may think, as I did, that this is all there is to this boat. But look closer and you will notice the two frosted-white acrylic doors alongside the skipper's and co-pilot's dash. Open these doors and you will discover how much volume and depth hides in the sponsons.

The starboard door leads down to a fully moulded head with non-skid floor, H/C handheld shower and sink with storage under. The loo is an electric TMC. Towel rails and hooks provide somewhere to swing the wet weather gear and a skylight directs light inside.

The port side door reveals additional accommodation, a 1.95m x 0.95m wide single berth back aft and a little cot forward. There is standing headroom at the entrance, but you have to feed your body to get into the beds.

Despite being designed around a family of four, and capable of entertaining six or more, the Voyager V930 will be most comfortable as a weekender for a couple. The boat is well finished, better than many production boats and most catamarans I've set foot on.

ONTO THE PLANE
From the moment I opened the throttles it became obvious this is an efficient hull. The cat eases onto the plane with no discernible raising of the bow and holds low planing speeds.

It is slippery in the way of a modern cruising cat and with twin 200hp outboards it is faster than it needs to be. At 4500rpm the boat is content to cruise at 30kt, with some reverberation of sound from the tunnel, but no pounding.

I ran the boat offshore, where it was happy to maintain this 30kt cruise speed. But it was also happy to hold any speed down to 10kt while still planing.

For what it's worth, the Voyager V930 returned a top speed of 38.5kt at 5500rpm. While the company thinks of this as an Express Cruiser, the futuristic cat is smartest when it's running around 20kt.

With 900lt of fuel underfloor and, for my money, four-stroke outboards, the Voyager V930 can run all day and the next. If you must label it, grab the Dyno (remember them?) and press the letters 'C.R.U.I.S.Y. C.A.T.'

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