De Antonio D32. We tried the walkaround boat (9 m) for the weekend

Air of America’s Cup in Barcelona. The area around Port Vell is the one designated to be home to the sheds of the teams engaged in the world’s most famous competition in sailing. I arrive at the dock where the De Antonio Yachts fleet is lined up, from the D50 to the new D32 Open, the boat I am about to try out.

De Antonio Yachts D32

She is the younger sister of the De Antonio D36, a model that commercially achieved great success and which now, precisely with the America’s Cup, arrives in a “turbo” version under the name of D37, powered by two engines, strictly outboard, 400-horsepower Mercury Racing, to serve as the official support boat for the Alinghi Red Bull Racing team. And if a company like Switzerland chose De Antonio Yachts, it means that walkarounds from hidden outboards really do have something special.

Back to our D32: it actually shares the same design philosophy as the major one, but in smaller size and cost. The overall length is 9.9 meters, roughly one less than the D36. On a watercraft this difference is particularly felt, but the design work has made it possible to offer in fact the same features: what are “sacrificed” are the tender garage and part of the space in the middle of the hull where we find a smaller dinette that nevertheless offers two benches and a table in the middle. This argument, however, applies only in theory.

The D32 has everything we need, and we notice it as we move aboard. Aft is a large sundeck that hides the engines immediately behind the platform. Toward the bow, however, under the t-top is both a full galley and triple seating opposite the helm station. The latter is a detail that is far from trivial, especially for those who want to stay at sea longer and thus also enjoy sailing with others. Finally, there is a second sundeck in front of the windshield that completes the outdoor spaces on the deck. If the D36 winked at cruises, while retaining a walkaround soul, the D32 is definitely inscribed on the list of most interesting weekenders for 2024.

The walkaround cabin cruiser

Below deck, the Spanish shipyard De Antonio Yachts has gone in the direction of less is more by removing the frills and returning to the yachtsman an essential boat, but with plenty of volume especially in the bow and equipped with four berths and a separate bathroom. With a view to optimizing the space in this room, in the version I tested, a hinged “sail” style opening had been chosen instead of the classic door, perhaps more suited to daily use than cruiser use. Returning to the beds, however, the forward double can be folded down to have a dinette. On the other side, with no engine room, aft volumes are maximized by offering the owner or his guests a double berth on a fixed layout. Taking into account that we are talking about a boat (under 10 meters), the interior is still adequate for the use for which it was born and well usable for the weekend.

How does this De Antonio navigate

When there are two 300-horsepower V8s in the stern that, even if you can’t see them, they make themselves heard. The nearly 50 knots of promised top speed speaks volumes about the
double-step hull
of the D32. On the day of the test in Barcelona, a wind was blowing from the sea at about 15 knots, ideal for America’s Cup AC40s in training, but less so for testing a power boat given the rather high and annoying wave it raised. This is why we speak of “promise” since the top speed of 48 knots is a figure collected by the shipyard.

Despite this, by finding a compromise between safety and speed, I was able to bring touching 30 knots, with the engines at 4,500 rpm. It is therefore not science fiction to think that at 6,000 rpm you can run at 48 knots of speed. The vertical bow forehand proves to be able to cut through the bow waves well, while with the stern when going down on the wave some water catches up with us, also because at that moment the goal was to touch the highest possible speed. Windshield and roof protection however does the trick, and the hull sails smoothly in conditions where most boaters would stay in port.

By Gregorio Ferrari. Full article published in BAM 36

De Antonio D32 data sheet

Boat navigation data: