Axopar 24 T-top
It’s no secret that Axopar is on a role at the moment. The combination of cutting-edge looks, a deep-vee hull, a sociable deck layout, exhilarating performance and attractive pricing has struck a chord with buyers the world over, but nowhere more so than in the UK.
Lymington-based dealer Offshore Powerboats has sold over 28 Axopars in the last year – a good number for an established mainstream player but unheard of for an entirely new brand. Most of those orders have been for the Axopar 28 in one of its four different guises plus a handful of the larger Axopar 37s. This boat, the entry-level Axopar 24, has the sales potential to outstrip them all given that it’s smaller, easier to keep at home on a trailer and even more affordable. But first it’s got to deliver on the water.
The first signs are good. The cockpit layout works a treat with five supportive forward-facing seats aft of the helm, two of which swivel round to face a teak table that slots in the middle. Ahead of the twin helm console, a pair of slender pipe berths extend under the deck moulding with a couple of steps leading up to the open bow area and another V-shaped dinette with fill-in cushions for a sunbed. There is even the option for a proper slide-out sea toilet between the berths, although with zero privacy from fellow crew members, you’ll need to be on pretty familiar terms. This aside, and given the slender beam necessitated by its performance-oriented hull, it’s a remarkably clever layout that strikes the perfect balance between useable dayboat and focused driving machine.
The helm encapsulates that same ethos with excellent protection from the tall screen and optional T-top (there are Open and Hard-top versions too), firstrate ergonomics courtesy of a tilting wheel and a perfectly placed armrest for working the throttles, plus a simple electronic dash. There’s even a narrow well for sunglasses. My only quibble is the siting of the kill-cord switch, tucked underneath the helm by your right knee. There are lockers aplenty scattered around the cockpit but none large enough for full-length skis or a cool box. I guess that’s what the pipe berths will end up being used for.
Nosing out of Portsmouth harbour, it’s clear we’re in for a bumpy ride. The usually messy Solent chop has been stirred up by several days of windy conditions and a powerful spring tide. The deep vee, twin-stepped hull and relatively small planing surfaces means that it takes a fair few revs for it to climb up on to the plane; at 3,000rpm, it’s still dragging its bum through the water with the engine whining away, but at 4,000rpm, it suddenly springs into life skipping across the waves at 20 knots and burning a modest 30lph.
It will take a better man than me to stick to that speed though, when there’s so much more fun to be had further up the rev range. Push the throttle all the way forward and the engine note hardens, catapulting the Axopar’s dart-like shape into the turbulent seas. Somehow the low-slung bow stays clear of the waves, sending spray cascading away from the cockpit and letting the deeper mid sections slice through the crests with remarkable ease. It’s not completely immune to slamming if you land it on its side during a turn, but keep the vee pointed downwards and it gives a wonderfully smooth ride for such a small, light craft. The steering is perfectly weighted and direct, with sportscar-like 3.2 turns lock to lock. Flat out, we reached a reasonable 35 knots given the conditions, but it feels like the hull could take so much more if only it were approved to take a 250hp or even 300hp engine on the transom. Sadly it’s not, so unless you’re limited by berth size or funds, maybe that’s the excuse you need to upgrade to an Axopar 28 after all. Impressive as the 24 is, given the relatively modest extra cost of a 28, I’d be sorely tempted to go large! Hugo
Length 24ft 11in (7.60m) Beam 8ft 4in (2.55m) Top speed on test 35 knots with single 200hp Mercury Verado outboard Fuel capacity 220 litres Engines 90-200hp Weight (ex engine) 1,680kg Price from £54,492 inc UK VAT Price as tested £61,209 inc UK VAT Contact Offshore Powerboats. Tel +44 (0)1590 677955. Web www.axopar.fi