Yamarin Aura Cabin review: the bold new flagship

With the launch of their new flagship model, the Aura Cabin, the long-standing and much respected Nordic boatbuilder, Yamarin, have decisively propelled their way into a whole new stratum of the leisure boat market. For decades, the company’s reputation has been forged upon the design and build of high-quality open sports craft for watersports and family recreation use. But having witnessed the successes enjoyed by their Scandinavian peers who’ve created a global reputation for ‘all-weather’ pilot-styled craft, not surprisingly, Yamarin have wanted to join the party. The question is, how convincing a move into this increasingly competitive sector is the Aura Cabin?

Whether you’re sizing this 10.4m model up beneath the glossy lights of a boat show stand or eyeballing her as she sits afloat in a marina berth, you can’t help but be impressed by her overall stature and sheer substance. She stands tall and proud but unlike many contemporary craft, the Aura possesses a full, traditional bow, as opposed to the semi-wave piercing, straight sheer, ‘Dreadnought’ styled bow so many other builders have opted for. As a result, you get the feeling right away that the fullness in her bow coupled to her generous 3.35m beam is going to fare well in a following sea.

But this is where the Aura’s association with tradition ends, because her lines, detailing and overall aesthetics give every impression that stylistically she’s a craft that aims to remain relevant and contemporary ten years from now. Fundamental to this too of course is the fact she is outboard powered. In the Aura’s case, a gleaming pair of pearly white Yamaha 350hp OBMs. A few years ago, a boat of this ilk would undoubtedly have been fitted with an inboard diesel. Whilst the latter has its benefits when it comes to fuel availability and long-distance cruising, all the same, the advantages in terms of ease of rigging, additional internal space, weight saving, and the clean burn benefits of advanced 4-stroke technology, means one can readily see why the outboard has usurped the inboard in terms of market dominance.

Stepping aboard the Aura via its spacious swim platform, the aft deck is then accessed by means of a single step either side of the transom bench seat. Uncluttered and generous in size, the aft area affords a great working space as well as a really valuable social zone too. As for the Aura’s choice of deck surface, as throughout the rest of the craft, a modern, hard-wearing teak laminate has been chosen and to the builder’s credit, is laid to perfection. Another feature deserving of a special mention is the Aura’s absolutely first-class stainless-steel work – not only the steel fittings found in and around the aft deck, but throughout the boat’s anatomy. One criticism I do have though, is that there are no transom gates installed. This means children in particular can access the swim platform and outboards without restraint. Open transoms are a common design, but personally I like to see gates for safety to keep children and pets onboard!

Unlike some of her market rivals, the Yamarin Aura features generous port and starboard walkways either side of her cabin. Both are spacious and free of any pinch points with high gunwales that certainly do afford excellent onboard security with families in mind. Noteworthy is the fact when walking cabin-side, the cabin coach roof presents no overhangs or protrusions to bang your head on. The starboard side of the aft deck also features a small but useful bulkhead door to enable easy boarding and exiting.

Going forward, within 6 strides or so, you come to the Aura’s beamy foredeck with its sumptuous, raised, double sun-pad. Surrounded by a set of sturdy stainless-steel guard rails, with due care, the foredeck is a secure place to be and thanks to their functional design, these rails offer welcome security when accessing the likes of the detachable forward swim ladder or the windlass and anchor chain locker. But upon returning to the aft of the boat, another outstanding feature of the Aura’s design is her magnificent set of toughened glass doors that hinge in such a way as to allow the rear of the wheelhouse to be fully opened to the maximum extremity. This allows for the wheelhouse’s social area to become fully connected with the aft deck’s social space. Plus, with the wheelhouse cabin’s coach roof extending generously over the deck, welcome shelter from both sun and showers is provided. Sun protection can be increased even further by means of a set of lightweight, detachable awnings that can be rigged fore and aft.

As soon as you enter the wheelhouse you can’t fail to be impressed by the cabin’s generous proportions and the degree of natural light. The latter literally envelopes the cabin interior, particularly when the electric sunroof is retracted and even more so when the big sliding side doors either side of the helm are slid back. With the aft doors open too, the world outside can be enjoyed without confinement. Whilst the wheelhouse’s internal style is relatively minimalistic, it’s certainly functional and will no doubt appeal to those buyers seeking a contemporary feel that’s less likely to tire or become dated over time.

The helm and its associated ‘flight deck’ are one of the best-looking configurations I’ve seen on a boat of this type. I love the chunky design of the wheel, the ergonomics of the throttles in relation to the latter, the Yamarin Q infotainment system with navigation, engine data, music, weather, and guides all on one touchscreen MFD directly in front of one. Paired with the Yamarin app, the Q system keeps the owner fully connected with the vessel, in the sense the technology tracks the boat’s movements, allows one to revisit routes, to review entire voyages, and is constantly updated automatically to ensure all its functions/capabilities are kept bang up to date.

Of course, Yamaha’s new Helm Master EX Wireless Control System dovetails seamlessly into the Aura’s onboard system and not only enables full joystick helming, but remote helm governance from anywhere on the boat. In addition, the advantages of autopilot, automated MOB alerts, plus, such useful functions as StayPoint and FishPoint, are all standout features of Yamaha‘s latest technological strides to enhance onboard safety and the navigation experience as a whole. With the addition of Raymarine radar, which like many other optional extras the test craft’s inventory included, you have pretty much every technological advantage you could wish for.

In terms of cabin seating, the two-point helmsman and navigator seats are electrically adjustable and besides being super comfy to reside upon, with the addition of a full-length footplate to brace against, the mechanisms allow folk of all heights to gain a comfortable position behind the adjustable wheel. As far as passenger seating goes, there’s plenty to accommodate family and friends both at rest and underway, although in the case of the latter, it would only really be suited for use in settled to moderate conditions. The seating unit at the rear of the cabin can also be converted into a put-me-up bed and as you would expect on a boat of this type, there’s plenty of dry storage and lockering throughout. Especially with overnighting in mind, the optional galley/sink/refrigerator unit positioned on the port side of the cabin astern of the navigator’s seat, though simple, is likely sufficient for most needs.

Moving below, the generous degree of headroom at the bottom of the companionway amplifies the Aura’s overall sense of spaciousness. A comfortable master cabin is located up in the forepeak and this features both a central skylight/hatch plus a cleverly designed double bed, which in part, converts into a double sofa. Off the generously sized central area at the bottom of the companionway steps, you’ll find both the heads/shower compartment and the under-cockpit-sole cabin. The heads/shower cubicle is beautifully appointed, first class. In fact, more akin to that which might be found aboard a much larger vessel. Lastly, a discreetly located sleeping compartment or second cabin accommodates two people in cosy fashion and would likely be the place where the children would bed down for the night. In terms of size, its proportions are fairly typical and would certainly offer enough headroom for sitting up in bed comfortably, but my criticism would be that this space is dark and uninviting thanks to having no natural light. The Aura’s topsides appear plenty high enough to accommodate a window panel or two, and indeed, if such had been incorporated into the design, it would have made all the difference in making this useful addition to the boat’s internal anatomy, more inviting.

So, onto the matter of the Aura driving experience. Upon leaving the shelter of Salcombe Harbour, we were met by fresh south-westerly wind-over-tide conditions, which meant there was a slight to moderate swell mixed with the odd breaking crest. This gave the opportunity to drive the Aura both head to sea and before the seas, as well as through the rougher seas found amongst the tidal overfalls off Bolt Head.

The boat’s set-up included a Zipwake 600S Pro automatic stabilising system. This meant I could focus on the helm rather than having to give a great deal of thought to the matter of trim. Heading 30 degrees into the seas, we made good 22 knots and the Aura handled this with confidence. Rounding up to the seas and on out toward the overfalls half a mile off the headland, the boat continued to remain well planted even when a steep sea was negotiated. The twin Yamaha F350s showed themselves to be pleasingly responsive in these conditions which meant the Aura felt nimble even through the rough. Dropping back to between 12 to 15 knots, the hull handled the challenging, short, steep, breaking seas commendably well, with any spray striking the screen being quickly despatched by the wipers. Would a family fairly new to boating have felt safe aboard the boat in such conditions? In my view, whilst the experience wouldn’t be one they’d perhaps enjoy, the boat would have certainly looked after them and proved a faithful friend.

With her high topsides, full weather protection, and capable offshore hull, the Aura is certainly a confidence giver if driven according to the conditions. Throughout the head seas, the boat never slammed, banged, shook or rattled, and to her credit, she behaved in a very solid and surefooted manner. Even though we had the Zipwake stabilisation system activated, the boat gave every indication of being very well-balanced throughout all her paces. It’s true that the Aura is not designed to be a rough water boat, but when called upon to look after her occupants, in true Scandinavian style, she gives the impression of being a trustworthy steed.

Running back to port with the seas directly on our tail gave us the opportunity to test out the hull’s forward buoyancy and its ability to recover in the deeper troughs. But not once did the Aura seek to dip her bow severely or stuff her nose in the foot of the sea ahead. Each time she recovered admirably and remained reassuringly capable.

The conditions didn’t allow for a full turn of speed, but Yeoward Boatyards, the local Yamarin dealership who kindly hosted us on the day, confirmed that with the Aura’s 700 litre fuel tank half laden and with two people up, the twin Yamaha 350hp V6 rig will deliver a top speed of 46 knots. But in economy mode, at a steady cruising speed of between 22 and 25 knots, you should reckon on total fuel burn of approximately 65 litres an hour combined.

In addition to the foregoing, there are two things I should point out. Namely, at speed, you may wish to keep the wheelhouse rear doors closed, as these F350s can be a little more audible than some may like. This isn’t a big issue, but if you’re happy to step down to the twin Yamaha 250hp configuration, you’ll likely find these a little gentler on the ear.

Now, you may have noticed that I’ve omitted until now to mention what Yamarin consider to be one of the Aura’s greatest USPs – the flagship’s vast wraparound, rearward raked toughened windscreen. The thing is, whilst this radical screen design shows a commendable degree of imagination and commitment on the part of the Yamarin team, in practice, in my opinion the design is sadly flawed. This is because, without any mullions straightforwardly dividing the main front panel from the side view panels, the effect that the screen’s curvature has is to badly distort the view out. This results in a critical angle of sight being dangerously obscured, to the degree that the helmsman has two blind spots either side of him where judging distance or maintaining a clear view of other water traffic, hazards, or navigational marks becomes very challenging indeed. At night it would be almost impossible.