Whittley CR2800: Review

OVERVIEW

This tide of RVs is what the Whittley Cruiser range is at least partly up against. As this family boatbuilder has long said, Whittley builds wave-piercing caravans. Or true off-roaders. But there’s a premium to pay to get on the water. You could buy two caravans for the price of this Whittley CR2800 flagship and you would certainly get the keys to a King of the Road motorhome in which Elvis would be right at home.

Additionally, the CR2800 is about as big as you can go in a trailerboat. The dry boat/motor/trailer (BMT) weight is a minimum of 3400kg, states Whittley in its specs. Our test boat has some fruit including diesel engine (120kg lighter than the standard V8 petrol) among its upgrades.

While it’s right on the 2.50m beam width, meaning you don’t need a towing permit, the CR2800’s BMT weight could demand something like a Dodge Ram or Silverado to tow it if you aren’t careful. All passenger cars like a LandCruiser or Discovery top out at 3500kg and realistically this rig could easily be heavier on the road. We’re thinking of your insurance here.

But once you have these considerations addressed — the other options are rack-and-stack, a hardstand or out the front of your waterfront property — you are ready to hit the highway and, ultimately, the road less-travelled. Of all the Whittley wave-piercing caravans, the CR2800 is the most sophisticated, accommodating, autonomous and perfectly geared for adventurous trailerable cruising. Paris will just have to wait.

We’re not talking crowded caravan parks and shared amenities blocks, either, though you could pull in and stay aboard en route. We’re talking island hoping through the Whitsundays, long voyages on the mighty Murray, out to Kangaroo or Rottnest Island, a serious Hawkesbury holiday. Oh, and for this owner, we’re talking cruising around the absolutely incredible Tasmanian SW corner and coast.

PRICE AND EQUIPMENT
- A loaded boat with diesel power
We have to reverse up all the way to 2007 to find our previous test of the Whittley CR2800. Back then, our test boat was a $180K rig with a petrol 300hp 350 MAG MerCruiser and some gear. The base price eight years later is $183,990 with a 300hp Volvo Penta V8 300Gi.

Engine options on the CR2800 range up to 380hp in petrol. But if it’s range you want from the standard 200-litre tank, and you have deep pockets, you can’t go past the diesel offerings.

Our test boat here had the smallest diesel in the D3-220hp Volvo Penta pairing, which is the most horsepower they make from this 2.4-litre engine. You can get a D4 in 225hp up to 260hp configurations, but it weighs 300kg more or almost double!

As with all boat set-ups, it’s all about power-to-weight and in this department this little D3 is a darling. The engine weighs just 363kg versus 485kg for the base petrol 300hp 5.7 Volvo Penta V8 300Gi and a hefty 660kg for a 260hp D4.

In fact, it was this realisation, the performance from a compact and modern electronic diesel engine, that inspired us to retest this CR2800. You can even get an optional bowthurster and joystick if you want the works.

All Volvo Penta diesel engine options are common-rail, fully electronic with some very nice interfaced electronics available from Garmin — the test boat has an 8in Glass Cockpit touchscreen with sounder and GPS —  and the D3-220 is fresh-water cooled. It puts out a whopping 150A, so there's your quasi generator.

On the electrical front, our test boat also had a triple battery upgrade (a fourth battery is optional), electric toilet upgrade (saltwater flush to save on freshwater), LED cockpit floodlights, front LED docking lights, and a 22in LCD AV screen with DVD player and speakers.

Upgraded amenities included Magma rail-mounted barbecue, bow ladder, 12V fan (generator and air-con are available), deluxe full-width rear railing (a must to maximise your swim platform useability and safety), and custom interior vinyl upholstery and trim.

With the extra kit, D3-220 diesel upgrade, and a factory-fitted Mackay alloy trailer, our boat was a $236,990 Whittley flagship. The boat as you see it here was proudly displayed at the 2015 Melbourne Boat Show before being delivered to its Tassie owner.

That’s big brass for a trailerboat, but this is the flagship with a D3-220 diesel engine upgrade costing $25,999 — including full EVC features, digital screen, gauges, E-key, tow mode, cruise control and power trim assist — and the Glass Cockpit option costing $4500.

LAYOUT AND ACCOMMODATION

As with most boats these days, it’s the new engine technology and accompanying electronics that are transformative. But before we get to that, a quick layout overview. After all, we see a lot of Whittley CR2800s rafted up with the Club and just swinging on the hook during our travels. We have seen how they are used and know how we’d set ours up.

As touched on, the big swim platform is an integral part of the Whittley’s outdoor living area, hence the need for the full rail. That shouldn’t be negotiable. Having ticked that box, you can then add your barbecue and a cutting board with rod holders. That should also be mandatory.

There is enough floor space out on this platform for two adults to sit on deck chairs and toast the sunset while sending smoke signals from the barbecue. That image right there is the Whittley postcard we see and smell at so many anchorages.

By day, the whole aft platform area is your waterfront interface from which you can launch toys, kayaks, inflatable SUPs, a roll-up tender, crab traps, and cast lines. You will be spending a lot of your time out here so make sure you get it right. I’d even consider an extended Euro awning of some sort.

At 29.5ft overall, the swim platform is a whopper but it’s well supported by extended mouldings that provide floatation at rest. There is a nearby cockpit shower, the best shower in the boat, and a 40-litre at-call water system via a heat exchanger as standard. There is wet storage for swim gear near the engine, where it will dry, and a Fusion stereo remote for getting the swim party happening.

Once in the cockpit proper, there’s L-shaped seating to port hooking around to an adjoining aft-facing chaise lounge perfect for mum with a champers in hand, watching you with beer in hand and the kids with fish rods in hand. The cocktail bar isn’t far away, behind the helm seat, and you might have a wee dram as a nightcap.

The CR2800 comes with a 12V fridge, plus we’d add some ice for the supplied insulated inbuilt icebox under the helm seat, if you don’t option it with the 12V fridge/freezer unit. The boat comes with a portable esky, but you might want to add a bigger one strapped on the swim platform that doubles as a seat.

Leave the cockpit nice and open by day, then when it comes time for your al fresco lunch or daylight-saving’s dinner in summer, grab the table that stows neatly under the hardtop lid and create your social setting.

With the table in the cockpit and the fold-down seating behind the helm bench, up to six people can sit around for dinner. The CR2800 is rated to carry nine if that matters. It might at raft-up Whittley time on this flagship.

Later, you can convert this table and lounge into the boat’s second double bed and add your camper and, most definitely order the full insect covers. Our test boat had LED floodlights, good storage wherever Whittley could create that including underfloor for rods and skis.

The moulded hardtop has a cradle or rails or “roof racks” as part of the standard spec. Along with the 2.1m rubber ducky that fits up here, you might want to carry a kayak or two. The inflatable SUPs are fantastic. We’d have a brace of them and stow them in the cabin footwell when we’re back at home. Incidentally, the carpets through the boat are all removable for easy cleaning.

The enclosed helm deck is well ventilated via side opening windows and an electric sunroof, which also lets you drive with your head out the lid like Dicky Knee. The boat comes with a solar panel for trickle charging when not using the battery charger or alternator and the supplied Swedish battery management system has been worked out.

Sunroof closed, the helm is fully weather protected and there are supplied port and starboard wipers for those inclement days of cosy family cruising. You know the ones: doona out, DVD on, hot drink in hand. The boat comes with a windlass and top anchoring gear, however, the walkaround decks are quite safe and mean you can access the foredeck if you want to escape the ratty kids. Put a cushion against the windscreen and kick back.

The lock-up cabin is something else again, with a really nice big galley featuring two-burner stove, 12V microwave (hooked to a 2500W inverter) and sink connected to the 110 litres of freshwater. The separate toilet with hand-held shower had the upgraded electric head that added to our test boat’s luxury.

With the forward dinette converted, the bow is one big double bed fronting the TV/DVD/games screen. I’d be inclined to leave it set up with a pile of pillows and bedding and to eat outside. With the bed up, your access to the galley and WC remains unobstructed. Good 1.80m headroom also makes this 2800 cabin nice and inviting.

There’s quite a lot more to the thought behind the useability of the CR2800 and Whittley knows how they work. At the same time, you could garner an independent view from the Whittley Club and some of its members. It’s not rocket science, mind you, but different folk do things differently and there are some great ideas out there.

Do get that rear rail set-up right, maximise your fridge and icebox options, and upgrade to the electric loo. A bow thruster is an option, but I think you will manage just fine with the Duoprop and a fender or two. A bigger fuel tank is an option worth considering for the petrol boats, but not this diesel.

HULL AND ENGINEERING
- Fine fit and finish and fair mouldings, with a proven installation
Whittley and Volvo Penta are bedfellows these days. Both parties have the engine installations down pat and they spoon well with each other. There wasn’t anything to complain about on this test boat’s engineering.

With the engine hatch/aft lounge folded forward, you could easily access to the fluid levels, dipstick, fuel filter, bilge, batteries and master switches, and windlass breaker. Any big issues, well, the electronic management system will tell you and you’ll just have to limp home. The supplied Neutra-Salt flush system will help extend your engine’s life otherwise.

As touched on, the 200lt of diesel and 110lt of water will suffice for long-weekend boating. But for a week or more you will want to carry spare water and have a marina stop in your route plan. The toilet went straight overboard, but the power side of things was very well managed.

The hull lay-up is solid fibreglass with glass-encapsulated timber stringers and a fibreglass liner. There is no foam floatation, as you would lose too much storage. But twin bilge pumps, an auto with float switch, and a manual dash back-up, are fitted.

To date, more than 135 CR2800s have been built in eight years, so the boat is certainly refined and resale reflects that fact. A 2007-model CR2800 with a petrol engine had an asking price of $137k in our classifieds at the time of writing. Compare an old American sportscruiser. Just saying.

ON THE WATER
- Diesel clatter makes way for a smooth cruise worth talking about
The 2800 hull has been around. It’s a moderate 19-degree vee form, that obviously carries a lot of gear and weight for the 2.50m legal beam. You are carting everything including the kitchen sink with you and it feels a bit like that.

This has always been a trade-off and this big Whittley drives and feels like a straight cruiser rather than a sportsboat. There’s no other boat in the range quite like it and it will be exciting at holiday time as you leave the ramp or marina.

With the diesel, at least at start-up and idle, you also get that unmistakable clatter. But then it transforms as you advance the throttle. The D3-220 has fantastic power-to-weight ratio and plenty of torque. It's not a fast boat, but it does function very well.

Hole shot is excellent with the tabs down and trimmed back out you will use roughly 25lt/hr at 20-22 knots cruise, where there’s a wonderfully smooth and agreeable note with acceptable noise levels. You can tow the kids on tubes off the hardtop.

In respect of noise, Whittley worked with Aquapower, the Volvo specialsied in Melbourne, and they put a muffler on the induction area of the engine, which we're told has reduced the induction noise by up to 60 per cent. Since testing, Whittley has also created a new high-quality insulation that it says will reduce sterndrive noise by more than 55 per cent.

The D3-220 is definitely a cruising engine and your range is safely 200nm from the standard tank, we reckon. At 24-25 knots consumption is about 32lt/hr, while top speed was 31 knots. So you’re getting similar speeds to a big Riv or Maritimo.

Meanwhile, the raised helm affords very good views through the glass windscreen and out the lid at low speed. The white dash was a bit harsh, but the push-button Finscan engine start and touchscreen Volvo Penta and Garmin 8in touchscreen certainly modernise the boat’s operation.

Of course, trim tabs are supplied — decent Bennett tabs and not those silly QL things — and you will need them to keep on an even keel in cross winds and to button the bow down to remove porpoising with the family sitting back on the rear seats alongside all their gear.

But the CR2800 doesn’t do anything untoward. It’s a big chariot on the road and the waterways.

VERDICT
- A ticket to trailerboat exploration and adventure
While many Whittley owners seem content packing the family aboard and hitting their local waterways, there are those who prefer a bit of adventure and many do it in the company of their Whittley Club.

After a few weeks shakedown in the Gippsland Lakes, this owner is back in Tasmania exploring the remote southwest corner. It’s said to be better than the Whitsundays and you can drive to the action before launching into the wilderness.

This CR2800 owner is now starting the Whittley Club in Tasmania and Whittley itself has just appointed a new dealer via Maynes Marine in Hobart. Not that the boats are short of backing. But with the diesel upgrade by way of the 220hp D3, and even considering the price premium over the standard 300hp petrol V8 of about $30k with the complementary Garmin glass screen, this flagship Whittley R2800 is better than it’s ever been.

You’ll need a big tow tug, and with extra batteries and all the gear you will have to work hard keeping it under that 3500kg LandCruiser or Discovery territory. But if you’re prepared to hitch it up and haul away you have a ticket to some of the best trailerboating in the world. A great family and retirement package that lets you escape the well-worn Grey Nomad trail.

LIKES
>> Excellent diesel economy and cruising range with Volvo Penta D3-220
>> Volvo Penta Glass Bridge electronics and integration
>> Very complete trailerable cruiser with great comforts and kit
>> The ability to discover Australia by land and sea
>> Whittley has strong backing these days and resale value

NOT SO MUCH
>> Need a maxi tow tug and care to keep weight under 3500kg
>> All-white dash is due for a makeover to take bigger screens
>> Of course, there is some inherent diesel clatter at low and idle speeds
>> Yes, the boat has a big sticker price but it is the flagship

Specifications: Whittley CR2800
Price as tested: $236,990 with upgraded Volvo Penta D3-220 and options including upgraded alloy Duoprops, 8in Glass Screen, 22in AV screen, electric toilet, deluxe rear railing, docking lights, battery upgrade, custom trim, Mackay aluminium trailer with hydraulic brakes, and more.
Priced from: $183,990 with base 300hp Volvo Penta V8 300Gi.

Length (overall): 9.00m
Beam: 2.50m
Deadrise: 19 degrees
Weight: 2100kg (hull std)/3400kg min (BMT)
Fuel: 200lt standard
Water: 110 litres
Rec/max HP: 380hp
Engine: Volvo Penta D3-220hp common-rail three-cylinder 2.4-litre diesel with sterndrive and Duoprop

Supplied by:
Whittley Marine Group
99 Freight Drive
Somerton Victoria 3062
www.whittleymarinegroup.com.au