rio

RIO YACHTS 42 AIR
The Art of
Refreshment
THERE’S SOMETHING IN THE AIR—THE RIO YACHTS 42 AIR—THAT BRINGS
THE COOL WHEN THINGS HEAT UP. u BY ALAN HARPER
This much deck space on a 42-footer?
Reinvention of the status quo is
what Rio Yachts is all about.
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Test
Notes
CUSTOMIZATION
has long been a
hallmark for Rio
Yachts. The better
ideas that a buyer
brings to the
party, the more
the company will
incorporate.
FROM POLISHED
stainless steel
to hand-stitched
leathers and accents
in “Tiffany
Blue,” which Rio
Yachts has taken
on as an institutional
color, the
interior finish of
these boats is
something to see.
If you’re looking
for a creative
use of space, the
42 Air Americas
is a good place
to start.
THE BUYER
of a boat from Rio
Yachts may want
to stand out a little
bit. He may want
something a little
different. This
boutique yard can
accommodate
most custom
requests.
PMY
For an expanded gallery of the Rio 42, make your way over to
www.pmymag.com/dec16.
RIO YACHTS 42 AIR
LOA: 43'5"
BEAM: 13'2"
DRAFT: 3'8"
DISPL.: 35,000 lb. (dry)
FUEL: 300 gal.
WATER: 85 gal.
TEST POWER: 2/435-hp Volvo Penta IPS600s
OPTIONAL POWER: 2/370-hp Volvo Penta IPS500s
TRANSMISSIONS: Volvo Penta IPS, 1.82:1 gear ratio
PROPELLERS: Volvo Penta VP T4
GENERATOR: Kohler, 13.5 kW
WARRANTY: 5 years on hull and deck, manufacturer
warranty on engines and equipment
BASE PRICE: $740,000
PRICE AS TESTED: $977,250
I’m not saying Americans are demanding, but it’s nevertheless
an interesting fact that, according to her manufacturers, a Rio 42
Air fitted out to U.S. specification—which includes more powerful
air-conditioning, a bigger generator, and an extra 12-inch
monitor at the helm station, among various other refinements—
comes out ten percent heavier than the same boat built for the
European market.
Which perhaps explains why Rio chose to fit my test boat, the
first one built for the U.S., with the larger of the two engine options—a
pair of 435-horsepower Volvo IPS600s. On glassy seas off
the Côte d’Azur at the tail end of summer, these proved more than
adequate to push the boat through the 30-knot barrier. In fact, in a
two-way speed trial—not that there was any tide to counteract, or
even any wind during the hottest Cannes Yachting Festival anyone
could remember—we averaged just over 32 knots.
Rio Yachts might not have tracked across your radar before, but
this family-run boatbuilder from northern Italy has carved out a
solid reputation for its runabouts, weekenders, and sports cruisers
for more than 50 years. While its main focus down the decades has
been the domestic market, the company now seems determined to
make a splash over on the more demanding side of the pond.
It’s certainly taking the challenge seriously. European customers
would generally expect three cabins in a 42-footer, but this first example
of Rio’s new model was fitted out American style, with just
the two. There’s much to recommend it. All boat layouts involve
compromise, but there’s little of that in evidence here in the en suite
double forward, which has a roomy head compartment, and a fullsize
berth with 6 feet of headroom at its foot.
The amidships cabin is also surprisingly practical, with a useful en
suite, a small sofa on the port side, and cabinets to starboard, complete
Her sleek lines and metallic finish will entice boaters looking for that sporty feel (top). The cockpit table (above right) rises from the deck (above
left) to serve the aft seating area, a great way to make the most of deck space and up the ante in entertainment value for friends and family.
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The natural light of that skylight will flood the space belowdecks, including
a galley (left) and lounging space (far left). The forepeak stateroom
offers a full queen and a yacht-worthy finish (left, bottom).
sengers you set out with. A more useful innovation is the way the
port section of the cockpit sofa pivots around to face forward—not
to improve the view, but so it can sit inside the zipped canopy, the
better to enjoy that high-spec, stateside air-conditioning.
The fit and finish of the 42 Air are also aimed at the U.S. market,
according to Rio, with high-quality plumbing fixtures, leathertrimmed
door handles, stitched leather linings, and neat little features
like the embroidered ‘RY’ logos on the upholstery, which all
help to create a luxurious ambience that’s maybe a notch or two up
from the average sports cruiser. Bamboo flooring is an unusual but
attractive touch that also adds a little character.
Unplugged from the boat-show pontoon, the sudden lack of 42,000
Btu, American-style cooling power that we enjoyed belowdecks was
apparent in the sweltering confines of Cannes’ Vieux Port that lent
an element of urgency to our departure. In the airless conditions we
badly needed to create our own breeze rather than deploy the curtains
around the cockpit and crank up the air, and the Rio was only
too willing to oblige.
Lightly loaded as we were, with just three aboard and not much
fuel, the moderate-vee hull was on the plane at about 2500 rpm, and
from there onward provided a fun and responsive ride, with no vices
and just the right angle of heel in the turns. It seemed especially
comfortable at cruising speeds in the mid- to high-20s, and with big
wheelhouse windows, sightlines from the helm were pretty good.
It was also quite sensitive to fore-and-aft trim. Putting the tabs all
the way down increased speed by a full knot—although such changes
may be less marked with more fuel in the tanks and the boat’s
center of gravity slightly farther forward.
While 32 knots seemed an excellent result, it’s somewhat less than the
top speed Rio claims for the 42 with IPS 600s. Part of that might be due
to the heavier U.S. spec, but we did notice that the engines were about 50
rpm down on their rated maximum of 3,500. So props with slightly less
pitch might help reinstate the missing revs, add a little more speed, and,
more importantly, ensure that the engines can reach their rated power
even with stores on the boat or some late-season fouling on the hull.
But if I hadn’t looked at the tachometers, I wouldn’t have realized
that anything was amiss. The 42 Air felt right underway and proved to
be a safe and enjoyable family cruising boat. It felt right in the harbor,
too, with its luxurious fit-out, capacious stowage volumes, and the allimportant
interior space created by a generous two-cabin layout.
There was another reason why it felt right, of course, once we got back
from the sea trial. With the shore power plugged in again, that air conditioner
was soon back up to full combat power. I didn’t want to leave. ❒
Rio Yachts, 305-722-7200; www.ybiusa.com
RIO YACHTS 42 AIR
with a hinged and mirrored top to create a dressing table. Headroom
over most of the berth is a perfectly reasonable 33 inches, while windows
and an opening porthole on each side admit light and fresh air.
With just two cabins, there’s plenty of space between them for a comfortable
little saloon seating area opposite the galley on the port side,
which has good counter area and plenty of stowage space. The saloon
sofa slides out to create an extra berth, albeit one for shorter people—it
measures 5 feet, 4 inches by 3 feet, 4 inches when extended—while the
infill cushion has its own stowage slot under the galley sole.
There are numerous other clever stowage solutions throughout
the boat, from the dedicated glass and crockery cupboards in the
galley to a useful little locker hidden away behind the companionway
steps, which might not be especially accessible, but it still
makes excellent use of otherwise wasted space. Best of all is the
way the cockpit table rises electrically out of its own recess in the
engineroom hatch. Of course this does mean that when the table is
stowed, you’re walking on it, but for most owners that will prove a
small price to pay for being able to make the table simply disappear
when it’s not wanted. And naturally, in its half-way position, it fills
in the L-shape of the sofa to make a large sunpad.
A word about the cockpit sofa: that open corner looks pretty unusual,
and there’s a reason for that. It has now dawned on Rio that
what probably looked cutting edge on the drawing board is actually
a pretty fundamental design flaw, and so future boats will have
conventional seatbacks all around (thus filling in the open corner),
to help ensure that you return to port with the same number of pas-
RPM KNOTS GPH RANGE dB(A)
600 4.3 0.90 1,290 65
1000 6.4 2.38 726 65
1400 8.2 5.81 381 70
1800 10.2 11.09 248 74
2200 14.5 21.13 185 75
2600 19.5 26.42 199 76
3000 25.4 35.93 191 77
3450 32.1 43.32 200 78
TEST CONDITIONS: Air temperature: 88°F; humidity: 60%; seas: 1';
load: 87 gal. fuel, 85 gal. water, 3 persons, 250 lb. gear. Speeds are twoway
averages measured with Garmin GPS. GPH taken via Volvo Penta
display. Range is based on 90% of advertised fuel capacity. Sound levels
measured at the helm. 65 dB(A) is the level of normal conversation.
NOTEWORTHY OPTIONS: Volvo Penta IPS600 option ($45,000);
48,000 Btu air-conditioning ($43,350); genset upgrade ($12,000);
hydraulic swim platform ($22,500); 4-kW bow thruster ($6,750);
custom galley ($6,850); additional 12-in Garmin MFD ($7,250).
EDITOR’S NOTE: Since our test, Rio Yachts changed out the props and
the trim tabs CPU, and reported a top speed of 35 knots at a fuel burn of
45 gph with 119 gal. fuel and 87 gal. water, and three persons on board.
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