Any concerns that the start-up Finnish brand’s second boat might not live up to the hype were soon blown away during Hugo's exclusive test of an early pre-production version of the Saxdor 320 GTO...
It doesn’t seem right to start a review of something as dynamic and stylish as the new Saxdor 320 GTO with something as dry and unsexy as a price tag but when that figure is £105,626 inc VAT for one of the coolest 33ft boats we’ve ever clapped eyes on, it’s rather hard to ignore.
It’s not even as if that’s for a stripped-out special with a feeble engine and zero spec – even the base boat comes with a 300hp Mercury V8 outboard, hardtop and those deeply desirable folding side platforms.
So you can understand why we were keen to get our hands on one as soon as possible, so keen, in fact, that the model we tested is technically an early handbuilt prototype rather than the fully sorted production boat.
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All too often this is an excuse for a test boat with all the structural integrity of a jelly that handles like an overloaded airport trolley. Not this time, even the prototype was a dream to drive, but it does mean that some of the fixtures, fittings and details are either in the process of, or already have been changed. More of that later but first let’s get to the meat of the matter, that enticing looking hull and cockpit layout.
Designed by Sakari Mattila (one of the founding partners at Aquador, XO and Axopar) and J&J Design (Prestige, MCY, Bavaria, Greenline and others), it is a very sweet-looking twin-stepped hull that sits neatly in the gap between its closest rivals, the Axopar 28 and Axopar 37.
With its reverse-angle bow, long, lean appearance, walkaround cockpit design and outboard-only power source, the Saxdor 320 GTO shares a number of similarities with its Finnish counterparts.
Read our full review of the Saxdor 320 GTO in the August issue of MBY, out July 1.
Saxdor 320 GTO specification
LOA: 33ft 8in (10.28m)
Beam: 10ft 2in (3.1m)
Draught: 1ft 11in (0.57m)
Displacement (dry): 2,650kg
Fuel capacity: 450 litres
Water capacity: 100 litres
Test engines: Twin 300hp Mercury V8 outboard
Top speed on test: 52.5 knots
Cruising speed: 23.1 knots
Fuel consumption: 62lph
Cruising range: 134nm
RCD category: C for 8 people
Design: Saxdor Yachts with J&J Design
Starting price: £105,626 (inc. VAT & single 300hp outboard)
Price as tested: £176,991 (inc. VAT)
