F I R S T F U L L T E S T

I T S C O O L E S TB O A T E V E R

SUNSEEKER HAWK 38

It’s almost 20 years since the British yard last launched a proper performance

boat. Has it got the pace and the seakeeping to rekindle the glory days?

WORDS Hugo Andreae PICTURES Sunseeker & Paul Wyeth

B O A T T E S T

Alum Bay, Wednesday 5 June. A fresh Force 4 is blowing through the Solent from the south west, kicking up the usual messy chop. The Sunseeker Hawk 38 we’re in is lapping it up, skipping over the wave tops at 50 knots, the supercharged howl of the twin 400hp

outboards accompanied by the staccato ratta-tat-tat of hull chines kissing water. The closer we get to the Needles the larger the waves become and the further the Hawk starts to fly. Sunseeker’s skipper, an experienced offshore racer, is starting to work the throttles harder now, whipping them all the way back and forth like a conductor’s baton, urging his piston-powered orchestra to raise the tempo up a notch.

Timing is everything in this game. The aim is to keep the hull skimming flat and fast by throttling back as the propellers leave the water then slamming the power back on a fraction of second before it lands to reduce the stress on the gearboxes. His ability to read the waves is uncanny, and his hand speed dizzyingly fast.

I had been looking forward to driving Sunseeker’s fastest boat for almost 20 years; now I’m getting nervous. I’ve already piloted the prototype of this very boat at 68 knots without the slightest wobble. But that was on Lake Como in conditions so benign I could have sailed a paper boat across it. This is different. This is the Solent with winds, waves, tides, overfalls and large pointy rocks. At speeds over 50 knots things happen very quickly.

I remind myself that the Hawk 38’s target market is not experienced offshore racers but ordinary power boat owners in search of the ultimate fast day boat. People like me in other words, albeit with a lot more money – at £642,000 inc VAT this is not for the faint-hearted nor light of wallet.

I N T H E H O T S E A TA pause, while our snapper changes lenses, provides an opportunity to swap places. I clip on the kill cord and settle into the beautifully upholstered Buzzi Besenzoni helm seat. The deep side bolsters keep my hips locked in place while a small toggle switch beneath the seat lets me bring the base up to meet my thighs. I could have folded it all the way down and stood with my feet braced against the console, but in these conditions the powerful spring and hydraulic dampener of the seat’s suspension system should do a better job of absorbing any impacts than my legs. There’s only one way to find out.

With both Mercury 400R engines trimmed right in and the multi-function steering wheel centred, I ease the two stubby gear selectors into ahead and shift my hand across to the taller throttle levers to feed in the power. Compared to the instant acceleration of a ‘normal’ sportsboat like an Axopar or Cormate, it takes a couple of seconds for the Hawk to build up speed. Until you see it in the flesh it’s hard to grasp just how long and thin this thing really is. Put it this way, the Hawk 38 is almost nine feet longer

T h e l a r g e r t h e w a v e s b e c o m e t h e f u r t h e r t h e

H a w k s t a r t s t o f l y

and over two tonnes heavier than an Axopar 28 but with a beam of just 7ft 8in (minus the stabiliser tubes), it’s two feet thinner. Even with a triple-stepped hull to reduce drag and create three separate planing surfaces, it’s not surprising that it takes a while to get going.

Once we’re planing at around 20 knots the first thing I notice is how much safer and more civilised the finished boat feels than the prototype I drove back in April. The tall cockpit coamings and hard top give you the feeling of sitting in the boat rather than on it, while carbon-fibre grab rails on the backs of the seats, the centre console and all around the perimeter ensure there’s always something to hang on to. The double curvature windscreen also has air vents at the base to reduce negative pressure behind it as well as lips on the side panels to channel the wind blast round the cockpit rather than swirling through it. The only disadvantage of its shape is that a conventional wiper won’t fit so you’ll have to rely on Rainex and sheer speed to blast the water droplets off it. Not that it tends to get wet, coming out of

the Lymington channel a few wisps of spray were blown into the cockpit but at faster speeds it all gets left behind.

Talking of speed, the twin supercharged 2.6-litre outboard engines are really getting into their stride now, and the Simrad touchscreen

displays are showing a speed over ground of 43 knots at 5,000rpm, with 2,000rpm still to come. At this pace it’s a remarkably civilised place to be, the deep-vee hull is cutting cleanly through the waves, the steering is light if a little slow and lacking in feel, the engines are in their sweet spot and nothing feels remotely strained. You could cruise all day at this speed, reeling in the miles while taking comfort from the fact that this is also its most efficient running speed – 162lph may not sound too clever but at 43 knots that equates to 3.8 litres per mile.

But when the mood takes you – and believe me it will – the thrill of putting the hammers all the way down, trimming up the

engines to +24 and feeling the surge of acceleration as the air gets under the hull and really starts to fly is something you’ll never get tired of. In flat water it’s the raw speed of the thing that gets your heart beating – Sunseeker have seen 62 knots two-up in calm conditions, and even at 68 knots on Lake Como the lightweight unfinished prototype felt utterly composed and stable.

Today with four people on board and properly lumpy seas, 58 knots is our two-way maximum average. In these conditions a couple of knots here and there make little difference, what really counts is how it copes, particularly with a relative amateur at the helm. The fact that I’m writing this at my desk rather than from the A&E department of Southampton General says it all. I’d be lying if I said it was a comfortable experience, water is a remarkably solid substance when you’re hitting it at 58 knots – however good the hull, it’s never going to be relaxing. What I can tell you is that it feels immensely strong, secure and forgiving. It tracks straight and level, flies at just the right angle and soaks up the punishment without the slightest creak, groan or shudder. Even when I get it wrong and we land awkwardly on one side, the suspension seats take the sting out of the impact while the STAB tubes sort out the lateral roll. On one occasion with the waves behind me I overcook a jump and end up stuffing the bow into the back of the next roller but the squared off anti-dive prow works its magic and stops it digging in.

It’s intoxicating and reassuring in equal measure, making amateur helmsman feel like offshore heroes and giving their guests a taste of real speed without exposing them to excessive risk or discomfort. It doesn’t have the turning agility or relentless cornering grip of foil-assisted Princess R35 but it reels in the horizon at a much faster rate and feels sharper, tougher and far more focused on performance rather than comfort.

N O T J U S T A P R E T T Y F A C EI shouldn’t be surprised, the Hawk 38 may be a Sunseeker but the hull itself is designed and built by FB Design in Italy, a company that made its name building tough, unsinkable, high speed patrol boats for everyone from drug enforcement agencies to special forces. A patented build process that uses structural foam injected into the voids between hull and deck not only makes the boat unsinkable but creates an immensely rigid bonded structure that also helps absorb unwanted sound and vibration.

Sunseeker designed the deck and cockpit coamings to ensure it looked the part but also to make it as useable as possible, then

SEE MOREmby.com/h38

commissioned Supermarine Powerboats in Lymington to fi t it out. There’s a sunpad at the front with a big locker beneath designed to take a pair of Seabobs as well as the small carbon fi bre table that slots into the bow dinette. There’s more dry storage under the seats and another deck locker further aft for a liferaft or infl atable SUP. A gas-strut assisted door in the centre console leads to a surprisingly big sunken heads compartment,

while the rear bench seat can be fi tted out with a pair of fridge drawers for food and drinks. The deck is self-draining, the tubes have a built-in infl ator to raise or lower the air pressure, and the bathing platform, while small in size, is fi tted with a fresh water shower and a cassette-style ladder as standard or a taller optional carbon fi bre number for those needing a bit more help to climb in and out of the water. Six pop-up cleats give plenty of

B O A T T E S T

STAB tubes have a built-in infl ator to adjust pressure

Colour of the LED strips all around the boat is adjustable

Surprising amount of storage in the long, slender bow area

Tall cockpit coamings give passengers a sense of security. The detailing is superb

Not a bad heads compartment for a true performance boat

options for lines and fenders while those STAB tubes double up as fenders when coming alongside the mothership – the inclusion of a reinforced towing eye on the extras list suggests some Hawks will end up as superyacht chase boats.

There’s no getting away from the fact that its slender dimensions make everything a bit of a squeeze. There’s no cabin for overnighting nor galley facilities, but they have made the most of the space there is. The optional sound system, with backlit speakers on the bathing platform and in the cockpit sounds amazing, while coloured LED strips under the hull, seats and in the recess between the exterior hull and deck mouldings can be adjusted to any colour via the twin Simrad touch screen MFDs. There’s even a small LED indicator on the transom to show swimmers whether the engines are in gear.

There were one or two small areas of this first production boat that still needed a bit of tidying up, such as the detailing in the heads and too much flex in the longer grab rails (it was rushed to meet the launch date) but they are all on Supermarine’s snagging list along with a weight-saving programme that should make it even quicker still.

V E R D I C TA boat like this is always going to be an easy target. It’s not as pretty as a Riva Aquariva, not as practical as a Boston Whaler Outrage 380, not as comfortable as a Chris Craft Launch 38 and not as clever as a Princess R35. But boy is it

effective. It has the kind of presence that makes every set of eyes swivel to see what’s pulled into the bay and the detailing to back it up once you get closer. It also feels safer, more practical and considerably more luxurious than the majority of genuinely high performance RIBs. But above all it has the performance to deliver on its promise, the robustness to cope with it and the seakeeping to ensure that performance is accessible to the type of people who will buy it. Sunseeker purists may sneer at its outboard engines and Italian roots but these are the very things that make it so robust, refined and easy to live with. Sunseeker’s founder Robert Braithwaite may have passed away just before the Hawk 38 touched the water but he was involved in its development and the first 10 bear a limited edition plaque in his honour. I can’t think of a more fitting tribute to his remarkable legacy.CONTACT Sunseeker London Tel +44 (0)20 7355 0980;www.sunseeker.com

S I D E S C R E E N S Curved lips on the

trailing edge channel air around the cockpit seats

T H R OT T L E S Tall red levers

control power, short silver ones select ahead or astern

S M A R T W H E E LHub and buttons

are fixed while the wheel spins freely

around them

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