Maritimo S50 Review - When being second makes you the winner!
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World 17 Sep 18:13 PDT
Last year we wrote extensively about the then very new Maritimo M50 in Symbiotic circle. Innovation and tradition coexisting harmoniously. This year, Maritimo launched the S50 at Sanctuary Cove, and the glorious light oak interior highlighted the completely different main deck level, from swim platform to helm station.
Now there was most certainly the opportunity to go and find out how much of a different craft the sedan version is to the flybridge vessel, but we had received word that Hull #2 of the wonderful new S50 was going to be a little more special, and that was more than enough to pique the curiosity. It was also following along in the production line quite quickly. So it was bypass one, and go straight to two - with a bullet. Win. Win. Win!
The primary point of interest was the engine room, where the Volvo-Penta D13 inline sixes may very well have occupied the identical footprint of Hull #1, but had been up-specced from 800hp a side to the range-topping 1000hp from each. Yes. Maritimo had listened to its clients, and offered the extra 400hp, which as we’ll come to see, puts more than little extra pep in the step.
After coming through production, this special craft had a very active commissioning stage before it had to get onto a ship in order to make the important and very significant Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show from October 28 to November 1, 2026. Now if you’re going, do make the effort to see this boat, and if you can get a ride, then superglue yourself into the helm seat. DO NOT miss out. This boat impresses from the get-go.
Also a good time to say thank you to Maritimo for allowing me to be included in that commissioning stage, well before she was dressed for show, which is why the screws are uncoated, and there is plastic on bench tops, etc…
Now as it turns out, there’s a host of other very cool features and attributes as well. The teal/slate grey/air force blue painted hull and hardtop are simply wonderful in the daylight. Any amount of sun just lifts the shapes in a way Nardo Grey (aka undercoat) cannot even contemplate.
Hull #2 also has Seakeeper Ride fitted. Already a hit on smaller craft, the versions for larger vessels are simply great, and we got to experience the roll aspect of that when another vessel went by the other way. The inboard pair of the ‘bucket’ style interceptors deal with pitch, and the outboard pair tackle roll. Gyros on a planing hull at speed is a bit like wondering why the foam from your cappuccino goes all over your face when you’re standing on the bow doing 30 knots.
Seakeeper Ride for big boats gets a massive tick from me, and as the range expands to even larger craft, I do look forward to enjoying the smooth and fast-acting control they deliver by the, wait for it, bucket load…
The pair that were in charge of pitch were very much still in the Commissioning Phase. They will not have a lot of work to do anyway, for every Maritimo is known for the shallow shaft angle, and the S50 has slightly reverse chines out aft and relatively low deadrise over the expansive 5.22m (17’2”) beam. Couple all of that to the thrust being delivered so expeditiously, and the S50 is never seen with its bow pointing skywards. Changes in load, and to some degree weather will be factored in, and the display on the huge Garmin screen lets you not just see the goings on, but also alter the outcome.
Time and a place - even a quick, little sidebar meeting
And right now we've got a very interesting market globally, with lots of new changes and new aspects to the market. Maritimo is actually in there chipping away very nicely, thank you very much.
“So in this new market that we're facing, we're finding the demand for our boats is still strong. Across the range we're selling very well into the US, and customers are specifically looking for our product over other brands. It’s really exciting to see how these new products are landing in the US, and selling through. We have good forward orders across the board in our range of boats into the US market, including yet to be seen new models,” said Candler
“Here in Oceania, things have certainly picked up in recent months.”
Yes. It is all about the donks.
And what a pair! Volvo-Penta D13-1000 12.8l inline sixes that spin to 2400RPM. Yes it is the same block as the lower output variants (700 and 800hp), but different and slightly larger plumbing and intercooler allow for the bigger, denser charge packet in the 900 and 1000hp versions, along with a different spray pattern from the injectors. It means the 25.5 metric tonne gem (dry ship) is a genuine 35-knot boat BTW (and that is with her 3500l belly completely full, which we did whilst I was on board).
Phil Candler, Maritimo’s Operations Manager, commented on the addition of optional extra horsepower in the 50-foot models, “It’s very exciting to see this second S50 go to the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show. We have had a lot of customer enquiry on this new boat. Indeed, this craft is already sold into the US, and it hasn't even got there yet. Overall, the enquiry has been much stronger in 1000 horsepower range than we anticipated. So we are now offering the S50 both in the US and in Australia with 1000 horsepower, and we're running it today to get all the final details on this version.”
Overarching premise
As for the teal/slate grey/air force blue paint scheme, Candler said, “We took the lead from our US sales team. They looked at the colour palettes that were available, and they chose this colour. We love it. We think it'll look fantastic in the show, and present really well. From this side of the show, we think the S50 will sell really well in the US, as it has done back here on the Western side of the Pacific.”
Once upon a time, Maritimo’s single level craft probably accounted for 25% of sales. Given there are more than several in the pipeline already, it would appear to be even a little bit stronger than that. “The sedan versions of the 50 and 55 are selling particularly well globally, so the US and Australia/New Zealand, and we’re really excited about that. We believe the demand for our S50, particularly, will be close to matching the M50.”
“It's really an exciting new trend or look and feel for this boat, and we believe we've met the market with the design, the features, and the overall positioning of this boat,” added Candler.
On that matter of styling, this craft loses the GT Stripes, given the painted wings on the coachhouse roof, and will not have a boot topper, either. “We really like the look. This comes from our design team looking at the overall positioning of this boat, particularly in the US, and we just love the look without a boot stripe, and just have it butt into the black antifoul.”
Overall, there is a distinctly Euro feel, in combination with a genuinely offshore style hull ready to blast out to the Bahamas, or down to the Florida Keys. Electing to have a limited pallet comprising of either paint, white gelcoat, or teak, and let’s not forget the brightwork, delivers a purposeful, elegant, even determined sort of stance.
In person, the craft lures you in somewhat bewitchingly, and in combination with the darker Walnut timber finish it seems brooding, mysterious, and maybe a smidge wary, or even circumspect. Could it be that this particular S50 is part B-1B Lancer, and part F-117 Nighthawk? Don’t be lead down a rabbit hole, however, for the moment the iron ladies are sparked up, it all goes to one word. Intent!
Let’s run with that intent…
Clearly the ears are not painted on at Maritimo. If you want it, and they can do it, then you can have it. Case in point, Hull #3 is purportedly going to have a pair of Scania’s mighty Di16 V8s at 1150hp a side installed, which will amount to 700 more ponies in the paddock than the standard offering. These two craft have three-inch prop shafts and meatier ZF reduction boxes between them and the donks. Hull #2 has 2.2:1 and Hull #3 will have 2.5:1, which for the latter I think you can only describe that as, deep!
Back to Hull #2, and specifically its wheels. I talked with the Prince of Props (Ross Willaton) about the new screws we were going out to test that day, which is why they had not been coated as yet. “These are Veem, light camber, 32 x 42.5 inch, with 1mm inserts that take it out to more like 43.5 inches of pitch. There’s plenty of grunt on board, which is why we have these big screws. Of course, it is all about getting the engines to 100% load, and therefore good speed. To ensure we make the most of the 2400RPM on offer, this set is designed to 93% DAR (diameter to area ratio).”
It is arguably the most important aspect, for screw efficiency not only delivers pace, but affects underwater noise and consumption, alike.
So then, how does one measure intent? Well, I think we have the answers. Try over six knots at idle, ahead with just one screw. Then there’s the wide stance, with one leg also in front of the other when standing in the main saloon whilst leaving the quay, with one hand definitely holding onto a helm seat, or other firmly secured item. Put simply, manoeuvring under clutches is to be done judiciously. Always and unequivocally. This thing has real bite. Drop or kick the transom, and sideways shuffle with gusto. Think Sportsfisherman coming back in after a day on the Continental Shelf, and jostling for position at the weighing station…
Don’t get me wrong. It is not too much, just needs the grey matter switched on.
That then is a marvellous segue into another thing that has moved on with the passage of time. Namely, the brushless and proportional thruster. Simply marvellous, and make you look good in nearly all weather conditions. In craft under 70 feet, Maritimo now offer optional Vetus or Sleipner thrusters, and it would have to be a box worth ticking. Lower overall mass, no worries about overheating and tripping out, nor the weight of running oil up to the bow, and it’s associated maintenance. Do yourself a favour, and just lock it in.
You may have been waiting?
Bet you have… So, here it is. This second S50 does 35.6 knots WOT from 317lph (83.75USGph) combined. 32.5 knots at the fabled 80% load from 308lph (81.37USGph) consumed. Then, at the 25-knot mark, where you spend a lot of your offshore time in places like Australia, New Zealand and the USA, it is but a mere 65% load, and only 213lph (56.28USGph). This is important, for at over 60% the engine manufacturer won’t accuse you of clogging the girls up, and it is so utterly and delightfully smooth.
Point to really consider here. The 800s won’t get you to 35 knots, not even 32. So at say 25 knots or thereabouts, the classic real-world cruising speed, the 800s are at 244lph (64.47USGph), and the 1000s are just 213lph (56.28USGph). This equates to a different of 31lph (8.19USGph) min favour of the higher output donks. Then at WOT, which for the 800s is 29 knots with full fuel, it’s 288lph (76.09USGph), whereas the ‘big' girls are just 317lph (83.75USGph), but every hour you are over six nautical miles further down the track, and literally almost out of sight in those first 60 minutes, alone. Short version: speed up, range up. There’s only 29l difference in overall burn, and as the lower units are travelling 10nm per litre, and you have six nm to catch up, not three.
Ponder then too, that the you burn only a tad more at 32.5 knots with the 1000s than the 800s at 29 (like 20lph, but 3.5 knots faster). Quod Erat Demonstrandum me thinks.
Should you find that all a little perplexing, then the answer is in the torque figures and curves. Yes, they both share the same 12.8l block, and have nearly identical architecture with high pressure injection, dual stage turbocharging and intercooling, but it is all about the wallop.
The D13-800 delivers 2,900 Nm of the heavy lifting stuff, and the torque curve is dead flat per se from 800 to 1800, but has a long and steep tail thereafter (relative terminology given the brutal nature of modern European Diesels).
Whereas the D13-1000 delivers a mighty 3,527 Nm (a massive 21.6% more) of torque, with the bulk of it from just 850RPM, and then has a hump from say 1700 to 2000 where it stretches from 3200 Nm to nigh on 3600, and a much shorter and flatter tail that takes it back to the same as it was at 850RPM.
How about a demonstration? Well, I had been impressed with how the S50 jumped out of the hole. Seriously impressed. So what do you do? Answer. Set the stopwatch and pin the ears. The result is 0 to 30 knots in 15 seconds, and remember this is with full fuel and water on board. Equally, 20 to 30 seemed to come up in about the same time as it took me to look from the stopwatch to the GPS and back again. In car speak that’s called in-gear acceleration, and back when three pedals was the norm, it was a real benchmark, especially for third gear.
If you understand that, then you understand the shove of this thing, and that's the reason I wanted to highlight it. It is not so much bark, as it is turbine like, and Volvo-Penta’s D13 1000s have never been smoother than this latest incarnation. Should you ever need to outrun weather, this S50 would be my go-to craft.
Then of course there is the main deck!
It is both quite sublime and visually brilliant. It is also much more than the galley being on the left side with the S50, and right on the M50. More than the cantilevered co-pilot’s seat. More than the adjustable Ottoman, or extra 300mm on the upper deck for more convivial dining. More too than the new boot with flash gullwing lids for the chiller and bin, and even more than the return of the traditional whole-lift of the deck and boot by electric actuators to provide substantial access to the lazarette.
And did we mention the central skylight with opening hatches? Because that provides for more headroom than the provision of a sliding sunroof. Now this, along with thin mullions creates the hardest thing to obtain on any boat. Space or the feeling of such…
Now on that very matter, the thing with the S50, which you can't actually understand at a boat show, and you can only understand when you're sitting in the forward facing seat directly in front of the galley and cruising along, is the ratio of the glass area on the S50 that makes you consider it is much more like the mesmerising S75.
I think that the couple that's been in Flybridge boats and reducing their LOA or air draft, as well as people stepping up from something smaller, will really get a buzz out of being on board Maritimo’s S50. It is an air of peace and tranquility when at anchor, and even cruising, for that matter. Advance the throttles somewhat, and the tiger stripes begin to appear. Both aspects offer fun and usability in boating, which remain the cornerstones, and sometimes get left behind when chasing more floor plan, toys and gadgets. Not here…
We have covered the Accommodation Deck extensively in our M50 review, and chose not to repeat it here to leave space to highlight and explain the differences. So, please read that for more detail, but suffice to say that given the order book, the two cabin/two bathroom layout has proven to be well popular. As in very!!!
Personally, I think vessels with the uprated powerplants and brushless thrusters will be proven to be just as in demand. Everything always comes down to money, but similar or lower fuel consumption for more pace, and therefore range, is utterly compelling, especially as escape becomes the key word of the late 2020s. Add in that I’m tipping resale will also be enhanced, and it is not like you’ll be standing in the cold shower tearing up $100 bills.
Said it at the top, and will say it again now. Don’t simply look at Maritimo’s S50. Get out on it, and try it in different conditions. It is not good, nor great, and it is not for everyone. Rather, it is somewhat beguiling, decidedly spellbinding, and ready to take you on a journey you hitherto may not have thought you were ready for. Even if you do not decide to buy it, you’ll be seriously glad you went out on it, which makes you the winner.