As a kid, I used to love those fairground spinning teacups. Climb aboard, settle-in, and as the ride started, the oversized cups would spin, making you as dizzy as an astronaut in a centrifuge.
The nautical equivalent might just be the new “power-actuated rotating lounge module” that comes with Michigan-based Tiara Yachts’ brand new 48-foot 48 LE luxury cruiser.
Think of it as a spinning sofa.
Typically this comfy, three-across bench sits east-west, facing forward across the Tiara’s roomy cockpit. Yet at the push of a button, it can power-rotate a full 360 degrees. But with its unique tracking system, you can position it at any angle you want.
Spin it 180 and you can gaze at the sunset over the stern. Rotate it 90 degrees to face the port side, lower the fold-down terrace, and watch the kids doing Greg Louganis-style dives into the briny.
I’m checking out this quite-brilliant piece of design while the new Tiara 48 LE is bobbing gently in a marina slip outside the Vinoy in downtown St. Pete. It’s the eve of the St. Pete boat show and Tiara has kindly offered Registry Tampa Bay a test drive of both boat, and sofa.
Launched at last fall’s Fort Lauderdale boat show, the 48 LE is the new flagship of Tiara’s outboard-powered Luxury Express series, and sistership to the popular 48 LS (for Luxury Sport) dayboat.
Whereas the 48 LS is all about family fun in the sun, this new coupe-style LE is more accommodating with upscale accommodation for weekends, or even weeks, away.
In the cockpit there’s a real indoor/outdoor flow into the salon, courtesy of twin sliding glass doors and a glass panel that lowers into the aft bulkhead.
Below decks there’s a roomy, full-beam ensuite master in the bow with big, side hull windows for light. Amidships there’s a full-beam guest cabin with twin singles that can slide together to make a double.
And throughout the boat, the quality of materials, the cabinetry, the fit and finish, and detailing are hugely impressive. As you’d expect of something with a base price of around $2 million.
Time to fire-up the Tiara’s twin Verado 600 V12 outboards and see what this new super-luxe cruiser can do.
With joystick control plus bowthruster, easing out of the Vinoy slip is a cinch. And with such terrific all-round visibility from the helm, the boat is easy to position.
It’s not a great day for boating with a feisty northerly blow kicking up whitecaps and short, sharp three-foot wave action.
But pour on the power, and this 16-ton heavyweight lifts elegantly on to the plane in just over seven seconds and settles into an easy 30-knot cruise speed. That’s what 1,800-horsepower delivers.
Out in Tampa Bay, the Tiara slices through the chop without any slamming or pitching, the focus being on comfort and refinement. Even when I push the throttles wide open and the speedo shows an impressive 47 knots – just below Tiara’s claimed 49-knot top speed – the 48 LE feels like it’s running at half that velocity.
For me, what sets the 48 apart is its quite-astonishing refinement. With the cockpit doors and sunroof closed to keep out the chill, there’s an eerie silence inside the salon.
Much of this is down to those silent-running V12 Verado outboards hanging off the transom. At the yacht’s easy 30-knot cruise speed, my noise meter is recording not much more than 65 decibels in the salon. That’s quiet.
There’s agility here too. Spin that lovely wooden wheel, and the LE leans confidently into the turn, hardly flinching as it slices through its own wake.
Of course there’s no shortage of competition in this fast-growing, sub-50-foot outboard-powered cruiser market. But the Tiara is definitely a stand-out.
Me, I’d chose it just for that spinning sofa.
