Motor Boat & Yachting – August 2019

difference is that it is now the guest quarters.
Head aft and you’ll fi nd the galley in the same
place but sunken onto a half deck, and steps
descend at the aft end of the saloon where the
Europa has doors out to the cockpit. This is the
CL’s ace card – a huge bedroom with its own
ensuite, a dressing table and masses of storage.
It puts its two residing couples at opposite ends
of the boat for privacy. Engine access is also
different. On the Europa, lifting the fl ybridge
stairs grants access to steps down to a
surprisingly spacious and well-lit engine room.
On the CL there’s a hatch by the helm which
feels like it should offer a more compromised
route, but actually works well, revealing another
useful machinery space.

LIKE FOR LIKE
Standard engines for both variants at launch
were twin Cummins QSC8.3 diesels pushing
out 500hp a side through straight shaft drive
to tunnelled props protected by a short keel
deep enough that it would touch bottom
before the propellers or rudders. Top speed
was quoted at 25 knots, with optional 550hp
versions adding a knot and a further upgrade
to 600hp adding another.
Caterpillar were also on the options list, C9
motors offering 503hp or 567hp with speeds
broadly in line with the equivalent Cummins.
So whichever engine choice is fi tted you’re
looking at a useful mid-20 knots from this wide,
upright 20 tonne bruiser (25 tonnes fully
loaded). A sea change for Grand Banks that
attracted a whole new breed of customer, like
David Pugh, who bought the Europa you see
on these pages brand new from Colin Watts
in 2007, keeping it in Beaucette Marina in
Guernsey for the fi rst 9 years and cruising the
north French coast and around the Channel
Islands with Brittany a favourite destination.
“My boating history goes back to childhood
with a pram dinghy and then progressing to
speed boats. Our previous few boats had been
Princesses, the last a V52. I’d hankered after a
Grand Banks, purely for the timeless style, but
with limited time, plodding around at 8 to
10 knots simply wasn’t going to give us the

ENGINES

Engines are a large and

expensive part of a boat

like this – consider

commissioning an

engineer’s report

DECK HATCHES

Deck and engine hatch

seals should be

watertight but check for

signs of ingress

WINDOW SEALS

Saloon has large

opening windows, so

check for water damage

from unsecured windows

on woodwork beneath

The Classic’s saloon has steps up to

the aft deck and down to the aft cabin

Both the aft cabin and the VIP

have ensuite bathrooms

The Classic’s galley is a few

steps down from the saloon

CLASSIC VERSION

The original Classic

model features a

separate aft cabin

with a raised aft

deck for storing

the tender

The big aft cabin makes a strong
case for choosing the Classic