Beneteau Antares 13.80 - Well Thought out Aft Deck - Click for Full Screen Photo - Aft deck chairs and a teak table shared with the cabin make make the aft deck an extremely pleasurable place to be. Note the comfortable wrap-around seating and the molded in stairs to the flybridge.  Very safe and comfortable. The entire transom of the boat is all storage, batteries one side, generators centerline. Sun Deck on the Flybridge On the Flybridge you'll find comfortable seating with an oversized built in freezer below. A great and handy feature. The Bimini is built to fold down and back out of the way. It has a quick pin disconnect so you can pull if off in the sun. The sun mat aft on the flybridge is a great spot for your sunbathing guests.  The seating cushions come up and the deck chairs move back to adjust to your level of comfort. The flybridge (below) features a centered helm station complete with all the dual-station navigation, electronics, and thruster control a Captain would want. That includes a remote spotlight and windlass. Beneteau Antares 13.80 - Centered Helm Station - Click for Full Screen Photo - The helm pod has twin seats, a racy aluminum wheel, and adequate room on the dash. One criticism of the boat is the small compass. But then I like them big and stable. Top on my list for my dealer to upgrade is the compass and ladder back helm chairs. I must admit by this time I was starting to think just how good I'd look as Captain on the flybridge. Beneteau Antares 13.80 - A Flybridge Beauty Just think how good you'd look up there! Overall, what impressed me the most is the blend of living spaces, inside and out: The fun-in-the-sun areas of the foredeck sunpad, the flybridge protected by a canvas Bimini, the large cockpit with its large stern bench seat, the wide swim platform and side decks allowing easy transit fore and aft. And the fact that the design is quite attractive overall.

User Friendly Design If you are wondering what's different about the boat; it’s the fact that the whole boat is user friendly. For example, she is very easy for a couple to handle. Case in point - the windlass system is phenomenal. It activates from both driving stations as well as from the bow.   There are two anchor lockers. All the pistons are stainless steel. Great for your fenders so you don’t have to have fender brackets on the rail.

Taking a Look at the Power The 13.80 has twin 45 Volvos on it which are second generation VFI, so they are monitoring fuel. The trawler is a naturally aspirated yanmar as opposed to the Volvos that are electronically controlled. That translates to 0 smoke; they burn really clean and are very quiet. Engine: Volvo TAMD 75 EDC 353 Kw (480 hp) # of Engines: 2 Gear Box Type: IRM280A, ratio:1.77/1 Total Displacement: 33,960 lbs Propeller Type: 057313 propeller, 4 blades 600x780 LH50 S8 Volvo's Comments: The TAMD75P EDC marine diesel is specially developed for fast planing and semi-planing craft. The engine’s high output and low weight combined with a rich low-end torque curve ensures excellent acceleration and response. The EDC system takes full account of variation in operating temperature and other contributing factors which optimizes engine performance and efficiency, reducing fuel consumption and emissions. More importantly, unlike other engines, if you cruise on a four-hour ride, you start out with 480 hp and at the end of 4 hours you are still running at 480 hp. Normally diesel engines heat up the fuel because of the return and lose their hp rating, affecting fuel mileage and power significantly. And, "yes Gracie" that does translate to more fuel $$ in your pocket. Volvo does an incredible job with a very low power curve and very clean engines. Beneteau Antares 13.80 's Well Laid Out Engine Room Boater's LIFE's very own Captain Tom Checking the Oil Volvo 75’s provide easy access to fuel crossovers. Everything is double clamped. Complete with dripless shafts. This boat has a structural grid system in it, not just fore and aft, but amidship. It's similar to their sailboat design but more open. Very rigid and strong. Everything is labeled and all through hulls are labeled in English. The engine room access is hydraulic and the room itself has florescent lighting. Another special feature of the boat is its aluminum substructure on the floor. It, too, is very stiff and very light. And, it can be raised to open up the entire engine room. The boat is obviously well planned and Beneteau should be very proud of it. We approve.

The Aft Deck is a Pleasure Beneteau Antares 13.80 - Great Swim Platform -Click for Full Screen Photo - The aft swim platform is quite large. Just what the family ordered, and there is a built in swim ladder to ensure that everyone can come back aboard easily. I personally loved the Davits. Built right into the transom, very strong and sturdy and out of the way when not being used.

Her Accommodations Shine Beneteau Antares 13.80 - Luxurious Master Stateroom Even without the benefit of fancy sheets, lighting, or a wide angle lens, it's obvious that the 13.80 with a 3 stateroom layout provides incredible livability. She sports a queen-sized island berth flanked by hanging lockers and cabinets. There’s loads of storage underneath the mattress. For a family, here’s a boat that provides two heads and three staterooms; a very livable arrangement with excellent storage in each of the staterooms. Each of the single berths can be separated to doubles as shown in the photo at the right. Most families have kids that don’t want to be sleeping in the same berth. Cedar lined hanging lockers for each of the cabins. A private head and shower compartment features a flip-up bench seat over the marine toilet and a cylindrical door that forms the shower stall to protect the Corian-topped vanity. Spacious and powerful, a real seagoing power yacht from Beneteau with luxurious surroundings. Without question, the Antares 13.80 is the flagship of the Beneteau Antares line.

Beneteau Antares 13.80 - Sea Trial Test Time for Sea Trial Test to see What She Can Do After leaving the dock, easily done by our test captain, Dave Nolan, President of Cape Yachts in Harwich Port, MA we made way for open waters. The Antares responded like a smaller boat, very sporty feel, with smooth throttle controls and a responsive helm. Once out in the bay, we found some wind and about a four foot chop. The twin 480-hp Volvo TAMD75 diesels provided plenty of acceleration. She popped up on a plane fairly quickly around 12 knots (I wasn't looking). But at 2300 rpm, we did clock ourselves at 26.6 knots. And at wide open at 2700 rpm, we were doing 31.7 knots, maybe a little more. Given the wind in our face it seemed more like 45. Beneteau Antares 13.80 - Completing Figure Eights After completing several speed tests and tight figure eights around the bay, we ran back to port at 30 knots. I was quite impressed that she handled like a much smaller boat because of how quiet she was and the smooth ride delivered in spite of the chop. She tracked straight and true with no sense of slippage, nor the anxiety that some boats can generate. Even in following seas, we tracked straight  even when a  commercial fishing boat slewed about. We felt in perfect control at all times. Beneteau Antares 13.80 - Running Straight and True We did not keep close track of the numbers. However, the factory sea trial results below should have been similar to our ride. Sea Trial Test Report Numbers Data was obtained under ideal circumstances and must only be considered as an indication: new hull, without antifouling, on a flat sea with no wind or current. Boat Description: Engine Type Volvo TAMD 75 EDC 353 Kw (480 hp) Number of Engines 2 Gear box type IRM280A, ratio:1.77/1 Total displacement 33,960 lbs Propeller type used during the test 057313 propeller, 4 blades 600x780 LH50 S8 Rev/minute According to Instruments Speed in Knots - According to Radar Fuel Consumption in gal/hour/2 Engines 1000.0 8.0 4.2 1500.0 11.0 14.3 1750.0 14.3 19.3 2000.0 19.5 25.6 2250.0 24.0 31.7 2500.0 28.5 39.1 Max 2660.0 31.0 50.5

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