Mazu 38 Open

Below decks the design is just as striking as above.
With a 12ft beam, providing a triple sun pad on the foredeck was an obvious move.

Mazu 38 Open
Revealed at the Düsseldorf Boat Show for the first time, the IPS-powered Mazu 38 Open White Pearl is likely to catch your eye. Greg Copp explains why …

The Mazu 38 Open features a combination of a retro-styled exterior and a contemporary interior, which works very well. First impressions are that this boat is certainly not built as a northern European family all-rounder. The low windscreen and small, low-cut bimini, sitting on tall slab-sided topsides, enhance its muscle boat feel, leaving you in no doubt that this boat has been designed as a serious but stylish offshore tool.

The most notable aspect of the cockpit is the centrally located single shock-absorbing seat. Upholstered in bright-red leather and beautifully engineered, it looks slightly out of place against the sofa seating that adorns the rest of the area. It tends to make you wonder what happens to the rest of the boat’s occupants if the helmsman feels a need to test the seat in earnest.

The hull is comprised of a Kevlar/GRP composite mix, so weight is minimised and strength is maximised. Power options start with a modest pair of 300hp Volvo IPS400 pod drives, and go up to 435hp IPS600 pods. The sensible option is the IPS600s, which give the boat an estimated 45-knot top speed and, given that they displace 9000kg, a healthy power-to-weight ratio, which at like-for-like cruising speeds is likely to prove more frugal than the IPS400s. We understand that twin 370hp IPS500s are another option, but their only advantage over the IPS600s is a slight reduction in cost. The boat’s designer, Halit Yukay, is a passionate and experienced motor yachtsman, so he has designed the boat in accordance with his experience at sea, and consequently the yard claim that it is a good sea boat.

The design has maximised cockpit space, dispensing with side decks in the process. Instead you get a teak step on the starboard side next to the helm, enabling crewmembers to step up from the sofa and over the short windscreen – a lot safer than teetering along skinny side decks. The cockpit is large for a 38-footer, with no fewer than three sofas with two small tables aft, which, I would hazard a guess, drop down to provide a large sun pad. The transom is as open plan as the boat is below, a design feature that seems popular with the latest generation of superyacht tenders. A deep bathing platform shouldered by wide stern quarters should keep the elements at bay if you are unlucky enough to get caught out labouring through a heavy stern sea.

With a 12ft beam, providing a triple sun pad on the foredeck was an obvious move. Mazu claim they have given this boat two galleys. This is not an unrealistic boast as the wet bar next to the helm is big enough for galley status given that it has a full-size fridge, sink, storage and a large griddle. Behind the galley sits an icebox conveniently built with five bottle holders, one large enough for a magnum of champagne.

Below decks the design is just as striking as above. You are hit by a large expanse of mirrored glass on the starboard side, concealing storage and what is claimed to be an en suite bathroom with a separate shower, and full standing headroom. With such a quantity of glass in the forward section you might think twice before running flat out into a choppy head sea. As all of the below-decks accommodation is open plan, technically the bathroom can’t be en suite. However, the layout is hugely impressive – Tardis-like, thanks to the open-plan design, and an abundance of headroom created by a high foredeck. Two king-sized beds sit fore and aft – one in the forepeak and another under the cockpit sole leave you spoilt for choice. A galley sits on the port side equipped with a double ceramic hob, fridge, storage and a large microwave oven. This boat is available in a wide variety of different hull colours.

Specifications
Length overall:                     11.90m (39ft)
Length at waterline:            10.40m (34ft)
Beam: 3.70m (12ft 1in)
Draught (max.):                   60cm (2ft)
Displacement: 9 tonnes (dry)
Berths: 4
Hull material: Composite – carbon/GRP
Superstructure:                    Composite – carbon/GRP
Designer: Halit Yukay
Engines: Volvo Penta IPS400 (2×300hp) or Volvo Penta IPS600 (2×435hp)
Max. speed: IPS400 – 36.0 knots; IPS600 – 45 knots
Cruising speed:                   30.0 knots+
Fuel capacity: 800L (176gal)
Water capacity: 300L (66gal)
RCD category:                     B