{"id":115371,"date":"2021-07-12T09:01:07","date_gmt":"2021-07-12T08:01:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/?post_type=review&p=115371"},"modified":"2021-07-12T10:14:57","modified_gmt":"2021-07-12T09:14:57","slug":"evo-r6-open","status":"publish","type":"review","link":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/reviews\/sportscruisers\/evo-r6-open","title":{"rendered":"Evo R6 Open review: A boat that will be noticed wherever it goes"},"content":{"rendered":"

You have certainly noticed them \u2013 maybe at one of the Mediterranean boat shows, or emblazoned across the pages of a glossy magazine; zooming out of your screen in a Youtube video, or simply anchored serenely in some turquoise bay as if it owned the place.<\/p>\n

Since emerging into the light of day in 2015, the Evo<\/a> range has come to epitomise the modern Mediterranean boating lifestyle in a way that is out of all proportion to the company\u2019s size, output or marketing heft. The chances are you haven\u2019t actually seen an Evo in the wild, because there just aren\u2019t enough of them out there.<\/p>\n

But as soon as you do, you\u2019ll know what it is. It\u2019s all about the look \u2013 the uncompromisingly assertive styling, the sheer confidence expressed in those daring, expanding cockpits. A 43ft model got the ball rolling, now known as the R4, which was followed in 2019 by the Evo R6.<\/p>\n

Article continues below…<\/em><\/p>\n

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\n Evo T2 first look: Superyacht tender design spawns new dayboat range<\/a>\n <\/h2>\n <\/header>\n
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Now we have the Evo R6 Open. They are conceived on the drawing board of Valerio Rivellini, a Neapolitan industrial designer \u2013 you can tell he doesn\u2019t have a traditional yachting design background \u2013 whose portfolio includes plenty of boats, but also industrial and automotive projects and even a plywood bicycle. No doubt lateral thinking helps in the design of laterally expanding cockpits.<\/p>\n

Blu Emme, the company that builds the Evo range in the suburbs just south of Naples, prides itself on its commitment to customisation, which is perhaps just another way of saying that they don\u2019t build many boats \u2013 four Evo R6 Opens and six R4s annually \u2013 and a customer is a customer.<\/p>\n

This open version of its 58ft model came into existence because a prospective buyer asked if he could have one without the hard top. And the Evo R6 Open model comes with two- and three-cabin layouts, as you might expect, but also, perhaps surprisingly, in a four-cabin version \u2013 because another owner asked for more sleeping accommodation.<\/p>\n

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Strategic use of mirrors boosts the feeling of light and space in the open-plan saloon and galley<\/p><\/div>\n

Ours had three \u2013 two doubles amidships, sharing the port-side head compartment, and a master ensuite in the bows, with a good-sized central double bed, stowage in a decent hanging locker and a large drawer in the bed base, and headroom at 6ft 4in. The heads compartment is comfortable enough, although some sort of catch would be useful to stop the door swinging right round into the shower.<\/p>\n

There is little to choose between the two guest cabins \u2013 one has a slightly wider bed, but slightly less headroom at the after end, one has slightly more stowage space, but neither really has enough for more than an occasional overnight or weekend guest.<\/p>\n

But both beds are 6ft 3in long, and the narrower one is still a comfortable 4ft 10in wide. We noted a couple of minor quality issues down below, mainly to do with the bolt-on hardware \u2013 door latches that didn\u2019t work, and a magnetic door catch that had simply been pulled off, its self-tapping screws no match for its magnet \u2013 which were trivial enough in themselves, but didn\u2019t reflect well on a boat with this sort of price tag.<\/p>\n

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The master cabin is refreshingly light and airy for a slender sportscruiser<\/p><\/div>\n

The lower saloon is a small but comfortable seating area which would be a welcome, air-conditioned haven on a blazing afternoon. The galley is over to port, and a 40-inch LED TV lies concealed within the mirrored bulkhead that faces the sofa \u2013 slightly disconcertingly, I have to say, if you\u2019re past the stage of admiring your own reflection. An attractive set of backlit glass steps up to the cockpit offer a welcome distraction.<\/p>\n

The cockpit seating is nothing if not versatile. Its sofa backrests can be flipped over to face either way, and the forward backrest can be moved aft when you\u2019re watching the optional flip-up TV, which appears out of what you might have assumed was a chart table.<\/p>\n

If you go for the hi-lo table option, the entire long sofa can become one huge sunbed, in case the dedicated sun-worshipping altars fore and aft are not enough. Overhead, a roll-up canopy can be unfurled from the top of the windscreen and stretched across to the radar arch for some shade, although unless the sun is directly overhead you might wish it was bigger. Void spaces in the sides and the seats are put to good use as stowage lockers.<\/p>\n

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The forward half of the cockpit appears relatively conventional<\/p><\/div>\n

The Evo R6 Open’s show-stopping cockpit<\/strong><\/h2>\n

This is all well and good, but the Evo R6 Open\u2019s pi\u00e8ce de resistance is of course its expanding cockpit. The sides slide out to increase the beam by about a metre each, adding some 40 per cent to the aft deck area. It is an immensely pleasing feature on a cleverly conceived craft, and once the Opacmare Transformer is deployed aft, don\u2019t be too surprised if you get a spontaneous round of applause from neighbouring boats.<\/p>\n

The mechanics of both are beautifully designed, and whether stowed or deployed, they leave no steps or gaps in the deck. The Transformer can of course be used either as a raised platform with steps for boarding from the quay, as a horizontal extension to the existing aft platform, or as a set of steps down into the water. It\u2019s a terrific piece of design and engineering.<\/p>\n

With its topsides slid out, and the aft deck suddenly a wide open space, some might feel it needs extra security. Although low gates swing out from the tender garage to close across the walkway, they are not long enough to span the gap when the deck is opened up.<\/p>\n

\"evo-r6-open-test-drive-review-cockpit-aerial-view\"<\/p>\n

A matching gate on the other side would solve the problem, while the gaps at the forward end of the sliding sections could benefit from similar treatment.Together they would make relaxing with small children, or indeed drunk uncles, far more, well, relaxing. Perhaps Evo R6 Open owners are not the type to go boating en famille.<\/p>\n

If your tender is in the garage, the only way into the engineroom is via a hatch in the sole and through a service area, but it\u2019s a tidy space with crawling room between the engines, and access to the generator and drives.<\/p>\n

The Evo R6 Open comes with a choice of two propulsion installations, both IPS and both based on Volvo\u2019s 10.8 litre diesel \u2013 either twin 625hp IPS 800s, or twin 725hp IPS 950s. Ours had the pokier pair, making it a 35-knot boat, at least on paper.<\/p>\n

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The Evo R6 Open is all about design \u2013 it will be noticed wherever it goes<\/p><\/div>\n

A razor-sharp entry and assertive chines give the Evo R6 Open\u2019s hull a businesslike aspect. Deadrise aft is a fairly deep 18 degrees.<\/p>\n

In the absence of the Covid-cancelled Cannes boat show<\/a>, several Italian boatyards opted to show off their 2021 models at La Spezia, which offers far more varied and spectacular backdrops than the French Riviera, from the ancient Lerici waterfront and the elevated villages of the Cinque Terra further down the coast, to improbably pretty Porto Venere across the bay, looking like a film set even on our grey and gloomy test day.<\/p>\n

Everything looks better in the sunshine, and that probably includes the view through the Evo R6 Open\u2019s windscreen, which we felt was rather too heavily tinted.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You have certainly noticed them \u2013 maybe at one of the Mediterranean boat shows, or emblazoned across the pages of a glossy magazine; zooming out of your screen in a Youtube video, or simply anchored serenely in some turquoise bay as if it owned the place. Since emerging into the light of day in 2015, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":418,"featured_media":115362,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","tags":[1620,1593],"review_manufacturer":[262],"review_category":[43],"review_type":[],"review_award":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/115371"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/review"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/418"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=115371"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/115371\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":115372,"href":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/115371\/revisions\/115372"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/115362"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=115371"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=115371"},{"taxonomy":"review_manufacturer","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review_manufacturer?post=115371"},{"taxonomy":"review_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review_category?post=115371"},{"taxonomy":"review_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review_type?post=115371"},{"taxonomy":"review_award","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mby.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review_award?post=115371"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}