SUNSEEKER MANHATTAN 55

How do you go about improving the most successful model you have ever made? That was the task facing Sunseeker in updating the 52 – has it succeeded?

- Jack Haines

The day of our test happened to be one of those rare gems where the wind decides never to get out of bed. A chilly day of such breathlessness the breeze couldn’t even find the energy to banish a dusting of mist brought about by some warmer days prior. Not exactly ideal for testing the mettle of the Manhattan’s 55 hull but a day to savour for its eerie stillness and for an opportunity to plough great white furrows in the inky blue around Studland Bay. Doing the carving are a pair of propellers linked to shafts driven by a pair of 800hp Volvo Penta D13s. IPS1050, which uses the same blocks with pod drives, is also an option but only 30% of this boat’s predecessor, the Manhattan 52, were fitted with the pods. It seems that a combination of cost and the familiarity of shafts is the reason behind these numbers, especially as the demographic of a Manhattan 52/55 owner suggests that they are experienced boaters looking to upgrade who generally run the boats themselves and often as a couple.

I’m not complaining from my perch on the upper helm where the Manhattan 55 belies its near 30-tonne weight and sweeps through the turns with an easy grace. It’s a pleasure to run the chunky wheel from lock to lock and watch from this elevated position as the wash peels off the hull and dashes across the surface of the water.