Boat Test: 2023 Solara S-310 CW
Special delivery: Sign up for the free Boating email newsletter. Subscribe to Boating magazine for $14 for 1 year and receive 4 bonus digital issues.
Overview
Solara calls its new S-310 CW a Center Walkaround. It can do a lot on the water.
A console offset to port anchors the deck plan. A wide starboard walkway leads to a deep forward cockpit with twin seats on the console’s front and double benches served by a table. There are beverage holders, rod holders, and recesses for gear and stereo speakers. There’s an anchor windlass and bow ladder. A nonskid pad atop the gunwale with a handrail facilitates boarding at a high wharf. The cabin top sports a rack for kayaks, boards or bikes, plus an eight-rod rocket launcher that lowers for access.
Interior and Accessories
The helm holds bow and stern cameras, two Garmin MFDs, beverage holders and USB charging ports. There is also a refrigerator-freezer.
The lockable cabin offers air conditioning and heat. The electrical system includes 110- and 12-volt circuits, using shore power or a 3,000-watt inverter and LiFePO4 batteries. Above the V-berth are rod racks. There’s an enclosed head and shower, and a small galley with a countertop, microwave, Keurig coffee maker, refrigerator-freezer and wine cooler. We also noted an LCD TV, LED lighting and opening portlights.
The cockpit offers folding double seats across the transom and to port. Five big hatches provide storage access. To starboard is a cockpit helm for maneuvering while fishing or docking. There’s a livewell in the transom and a door to the full-beam stern platform. The transom center holds a fish box/cooler and a sink, with an electric grill (110 volts). There’s even a retractable ski pylon.
This Solara runs on a deep 24-degree deadrise. Its two steps provide a cushion of aerated water and aid efficiency. Laminar flow interrupters help keep the hull locked in during turns, functioning like dimples on a golf ball in flight.
Engines
With the twin Yamahas, the S-310 CW topped out at 47.4 mph, with its painted bottom and auto-leveling trim-tab system limiting the revs. Disabling the tab system and trimming manually allow them to reach 6,000 rpm. The steps, strakes, tabs and flow interrupters provide a wide range of cruising speeds, from 16 to 39 mph.
Solara’s S-310 CW includes many standards. The only options a buyer might order are a joystick, a Garmin radar ($2,755) and a solar panel ($1,105).
How We Tested
- Engines: Twin 300 hp Yamaha V-6 outboards
- Drive/Props: Outboard/15 1/4″ x 18″ SWS II 3-blade stainless steel
- Gear Ratio: 1.75:1 Fuel Load: 50 gal. Water Load: 40 gal. Crew Weight: 420 lb.
High Points
- Sturdy grab rails in the right places allow moving around safely, even in sloppy conditions.
- Ergonomic features bespeak the builder’s long experience with dayboats.
- Rocket launcher on the aft end of the cabin top has an ingenious mechanism to lower for access to fishing rods.
Low Points
- Port gunwale beside the console is very narrow, making it difficult to handle a kayak or paddleboard lashed to the cabin-top bracket on that side.
- Does this boat size really need a standard full cockpit helm? Wouldn’t some buyers prefer a clear starboard hullside?
Toughest Competitor
Beneteau’s Flyer 9 Spacedeck OB ($295,000 similarly powered) is 1 foot shorter and about 3,000 pounds lighter.
Pricing and Specs
| Price: | $373,937 (base with twin Yamaha F300) |
| LOA: | 30’10” |
| Beam: | 10’0″ |
| Draft: | 2’1″ |
| Displacement: | 10,500 lb. (dry) |
| Transom Deadrise: | 24 degrees |
| Bridge Clearance: | 8’4″ (9’2″ with radar) |
| Max Cabin Headroom: | 6’1″ |
| Fuel Capacity: | 200 gal. |
| Water Capacity: | 41 gal. |
| Max Horsepower: | 600 |
Speed, Efficiency, Operation
Solara Boats – Auburn, Washington; solaraboats.com
The post Boat Test: 2023 Solara S-310 CW appeared first on Boating Mag.
Source: https://www.boatingmag.com/boats/2023-solara-s-310-cw-boat-test/
