Whoever said that looking good and being seaworthy can’t go together? Brunello Acampora and Solaris Power have proved the opposite
by Niccolò Volpati – photo by Maurizio Paradisi and Andrea Pisapia
My grandmother always used to tell her daughters: “beauty has a price”. Brunello Acampora, who is the designer of this and all other Solaris Power boats, does not share that opinion. He has clearly shown that you can make a beautiful boat that is also comfortable and is good at sea.
Attractive and elegant design should not necessarily be synonymous with a lack of comfort. And nor should boats that are impressive in the harbour necessarily struggle with waves of a few inches as soon as they set out. Design and functionality can co-exist. Indeed, functionality is a component of design. Solaris’ powered boats stand out precisely because of this. The lines are attractive, but you can get around safely on board, even when underway. The side decks are wide, and there is always a grab handle to hang on to even if it is not immediately obvious, and the sides are high enough to protect the walkway. The 40 Open, although it is smaller than previous models, has kept all of these characteristics. You can move from stern to bow without any problem; it does not have a bulwark, but rather a handrail which runs along the outside of the bow sun pad and as you move around you never get the feeling, in any part of the deck, that you are climbing up a rocky cliff face.
The three seats for the helm and co-pilots are welcoming and help to increase the feeling of safety while underway.
Another feature, probably the most important one, which can indicate the seaworthiness of a boat, is its hull. The sea at Palma de Mallorca was not especially rough, but since it is a tourist town with a lot of yachts, there was no lack of wakes from boats, ferries and ships. The feeling at the helm was one of security. The hull cuts through the waves nicely and handles them without difficulty regardless of the angle. There are two Volvo D6 engines each developing 440 hp, with stern drives. There is no IPS option, as with the 44 and 48, but the handling is nevertheless excellent.
THE PROJECT WAS EXECUTED BY BRUNELLO ACAMPORA’S VICTORY DESIGN STUDIO, WORKING TOGETHER WITH THE YARD’S TECHNICAL DEPARTMENT, ESPECIALLY ON THE INTERIOR FURNISHINGS.
The 40’ turns without any problem, without needing much room, and making tight turns while doing nearly forty knots feels good. Its performance is perfectly satisfactory. I topped out at 41 knots, and 14 knots were enough to start planning. There is a very broad range of choices for the preferred cruising speed, and fuel consumption is always low. Just 53 litres per hour were needed for both engines at planning minimum and 177 at top speed. Those are very low figures, especially if you bear in mind that you can do thirty knots and use just 30 litres per hour. And the litres per mile figures confirm that, because they are nearly always around three and only at top speed do you get up to 4.3 litres per mile.
There are also open spaces below the deck. There are two cabins, one double and one with a pair of single beds. The headroom is excellent without having an impact on the lines of the boat, which are still very sporty.
The trim is also a positive note. The boat sits flat, parallel to the water, and does so at any speed. The bow is not too low, and there is no risk of it dipping or causing spray when you go fast. We got this performance from the maximum power rating that can be installed, but there is a wide choice. You can go for a pair of 280, 300 or 380-hp engines. The deck of the 40 Open has also been designed in such a way that outboards can be fitted. They have gone for a simple and rational deck layout which uses the space available, always ensuring that you can get around easily on board.
The grab handle which means you can get around safely has been placed on the outside of the bow sun pad, so it does not affect the boat’s design.
I appreciated the fact that one can move from one side to the other without having to clamber around the sun pad or sofas. In contrast to the other, larger models, the sides of the cockpit 40 Open do not open up, perhaps in part because it does not feel necessary. But there is a large stern platform which gives easy access to the water. The setup is very straightforward: the console is in the middle, along with the kitchen unit, sun pad, sofas and living area, and all around there is the walkway to get easily from stern to bow, and back. The hard top sits on single support that seems solid and robust, and even at 40 knots, I did not feel much vibration. The windscreen is a good compromise: it offers protection but is not excessively closed. It does not reach the hard top, which means there is a good flow of air. Furthermore, the 40’ is a deck boat, so it is designed for trips in the Mediterranean, which do not require an excessive amount of protection.
The pair of Volvo 440s push the 40 Open to 41 knots, while not using much fuel. The stern drives ensure excellent manoeuvrability.
Below decks, the layout has had input from the yard’s technical department. The two areas which I found most convincing were the headroom and the lack of pointless duplication. With regards to headroom, the height in most of the area below decks exceeds two metres, except for the stern cabin, which is located below the cockpit and has two single beds, and the bathroom – which is nevertheless a large and comfortable space with a separate shower cubicle. Pointless duplication has been avoided in the furnishing. There is no second kitchen, which would have been too much since there is already one in the cockpit, nor is there a living room since there is plenty of space on deck.
Engine room
As well as the version with two 440 horsepower stern drives, there are other ones available with less power.
Solaris Yachts
Via A. Masetti, 20
I-47100 Forlì (FC)
T. +39 0543 807062
[email protected]
www.solarispower.com
PROJECT
Brunello Acampora by Victory Design and Solaris Power Design Team
HULL
LOA 11.97m • LWL 10.62m • Maximum beam 3.85m • Draft 0.73m • Light mass displacement 9,040 kg • Fuel tank volume 1,000 l • Water tank volume 250 l
MAIN PROPULSION
2xVolvo Penta D6 440 • Outlet mechanical power 324 kW (440 hp) • 4 Stroke • 6 in line cylinders • Compression ratio 1.69:1 • Swept volume 5.5 l • Maximal rotational speed 3800 /min • Dry weight 790 kg
EC CERTIFICATION
CAT A
PRICE
€ 510,300, Excl. VAT
(Solaris Power 40 Open,
Beautiful and attainable – Barchemagazine.com – December 2022)
