BENETEAU SWIFT TRAWLER 35
The Beneteau Swift Trawler 34 was one of those sweet-spot boats that was just right, making it a sales success with over 400 sold and a tough act to follow. Very wisely, the Swift Trawler 35 is a careful evolution of that boat, riffing off all the good points and gently massaging a few of the rough edges to create a worthy successor.
INTERIOR
Perfect examples of that evolutionary massaging can be found throughout the interior. The basic layout remains the same with two cabins on the lower deck – an owner’s cabin forward with a central double bed and a guest cabin with bunks to starboard opposite the heads – but upgrades abound. That forward owner’s cabin now sports a lower bed and hull windows for more light and a better view and the curtained off shower in the heads has been banished in favour of proper shower doors. Head up to the main deck and again, the basic premise is the same – a traditional trawler yacht layout of helm to starboard with a galley alongside it to port and a sofa aft opposite a sideboard. But the door next to the helm is wider, the windows larger and a useful seating perch has been added in the galley area.
EXTERIOR
The biggest change to the outside, beyond a gentle but effective restyle, is the split and hinged transom that opens out the cockpit to the bathing platform, beach-club style. The mast is gone, and with it the ability to hoist a tender onto the flybridge, but there’s plenty of space aloft, plus a second alfresco helm position of course.
PERFORMANCE
Beneteau stuck with the big single 6.7 litre Cummins diesel, which puts out 425hp through its shaft drive. We maxed out at 19 knots at 3,000rpm on test with this engine but drop it back to an economical 8 knots at 1,600rpm to achieve a 14lph fuel burn and a near 400-mile range.
SEAKEEPING
We punched an ST35 through a steep short chop in a stiff breeze and found it a solid performer, if understandably wet in those conditions.
LOA: 37ft 0in (11.3m) BEAM: 13ft 3in (4.0m) DRAFT: 3ft 10in (1.2m) DISPLACEMENT: 9 tonnes FUEL CAPACITY: 800 litres ENGINE: Cummins QSB 7 425hp diesel engine