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BOATINGAugust 2007 | www.boatingmag.com

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w o r l d ’ s l a r g e s t p o w e r b o a t m a g a z i n e

hOW SAFE IS YOUR BOAT?

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Boston Whaler’s new 345 Conquest is so damn big that, even with a six-line trolling spread, it looked like we weren’t fishing. There were two rods in each gunwale, plus another pair of lines running

through the long riggers from one of the three wing rocket launchers on each side. That left two empty rodholders per side, plus three along the transom. Want to pull a dozen ballyhoo from an outboard boat? Then this is your ride.

hip trip. To run a boat this large out to bluewater takes gobs of power. The 345 Conquest delivers, thanks to triple Mercury Verado 250s on the transom. Worried about the triple-screw fuel consumption? Hah! Cruising through the inlet at 32 mph, we burned 38.5 gph. That equates to bet-ter than 0.8 mpg while pushing 14,200 pounds of boat plus four guys, full gear, and fuel and water. And if you start feeling frisky, you can juice it up and run close to 50 mph. Want power of a different kind? Whaler includes such big-ticket items as an 8kW genset and a 4kW bow thruster. Other goodies that make the list include cockpit and cabin air conditioning, a windlass, the hardtop with wiper/washers, spreader lights, integrated speakers, a

power vent, and rocket launchers. Make sure you crunch some numbers before doing a price comparison, because many other builders charge extra for these items.

Take the Hydra-Sports 3300 Vector. It lists for about a quarter mil with twins, but its standard equipment list is much shorter. The Hydra-Sports goes faster with equal power and lists a 61-mph top end, but it weighs several thousand pounds less and has a 10'4" beam, which makes for less fish-fighting room. Grady-White’s 330 Express puts more emphasis on the fish and less on speed. Rigged with twin 250-hp Yamaha four-strokes and measuring the same as the 345 Conquest, it also costs about a quarter mil with a long list of standards, but the bow thruster is an option. The 9,500-pound Grady-White isn’t available with triples, but performance doesn’t seem to suffer too much—it achieves a 35.2-mph cruise and a 44.1-mph top end.

happy birthday. It makes sense that Whaler would come out with its largest outboard boat ever this year, the

BoatTest2461

superior attitudeIt’s good to be king. By lenny rudow

Boston Whaler 345 Conquest

in some cases, we have to admit, bigger really is better. this is one of those cases. top end: 49.3 mph.

BOATING

Certified Test Results

EXTRA POINT!company’s 50th anniversary. And these days, outboard boats just keep getting bigger. The benefits go way beyond fishing, too. Check out the berth. On most outboard boats,

The hardtop is reinforced and the wing pipework has steps built-in, so this is one outboard boat that’s tower-ready.

you stuff some pillows under your head to watch the tube. But on the 345 Conquest, you click a button, and the elec-tric backrest integrated in the queen-size berth tilts up to prop you at the perfect viewing angle for watching the 20" flat-screen TV. On most outboard boats, you crawl into the bilge to check the genset, tanks, pumps, and through-hulls. But on the 345 Conquest, you lift the enormous center deck hatch, which raises on a single gas-assist strut, to eas-ily access everything—no cramping or contortions neces-sary. On most outboard boats, you light up the single-burner alcohol stove and pray you don’t burn to the water-line. But on the Conquest 345, you pop the hatch on the portside cockpit module and fire up the integrated electric cockpit grill. Hmmm…maybe size really does matter?

The Conquest 345 is still a fishboat, and it holds its head high in that regard, too. There’s a 40-gallon lighted livewell, a molded transducer pocket in the hull, and a dial-up refrigerator/freezer in the cockpit to keep your baits chilly or rock hard, as you choose. Other Whaler-esque fishing features are present and accounted for: toerails, downrigger ball holders, cabin rodracks, rigging station and tackle drawers, and a foldout transom bench.

The sheer bulk of this boat allows for some unusual accessory designs. Check out the compartment below the grill. Grab the tray at the bottom and pull, and a cooler slides out. Extra special cooler bonus: There’s a cushion on top, so you can use it as an aft-facing bait-watching seat. Another neat trick is the starboard-side passenger seat. It slides horizontally, so you can tuck it up next to the inwale and create tons of walkthrough room to the starboard-side cabin entry. On most outboard-powered boats you’ll find either a fixed passenger seat or a four-man lounge to port of the helm, but not both. Speaking of the lounge—have you ever lain down on a couch while watching the spread? The forward section of the 345 Conquest’s lounge is angled and padded, creating a great backrest, so you can kick all your buddies into the cockpit and “fish” like a king.

roboboat. Most boatbuilders change construction methods when they build a supersize outboard boat. Not Whaler. It built the 345 Conquest with its “Unibond” con-struction system—a fiberglass outer shell, high-density structural foam, then another layer of glass for the inside shell. The glass-foam-glass sandwich deadens sounds, vibrations, and wave impacts. Cleats and hardware are backed with phenolic Whaleboard backing plates, hatches are finished on each side, and wiring is tinned copper.

I could feel the solid construction underfoot as we cruised and trolled. Unfortunately, the fish weren’t as impressed—only one sailfish rose to the bait all day. It looked to be about 50 pounds. But behind the 345 Conquest’s massive transom, the fish looked strangely small. The unexpected bright side to all this room? You have an excuse to go buy a dozen new rods and reels. A

Boston whaler 345

Advertised fuel capacity 421 gallons. Range based on 90 percent of that figure. Performance measured with four persons aboard, half fuel, full water. Sound levels taken at helm, in dB-A.

high points Sweet gadgetry, including a slide-out cooler, electric-tilt berth backrest, and electric cockpit grill. Triple out-board performance is surprisingly economical. Nice rodholder layout; you can troll a spread fit for a kingfish.

low points Half of the bifold cabin door secures open on a magnetic latch, but the other half swings (Whaler says it’ll change this). Center access hatch should have a second gas-assist strut. No anchor locker access from the cabin.

Standard power Twin 275-hp Mercury Verado outboards.

optional power Twin outboards to 550 hp; triples to 750 hp.

teSt boat power Triple 250-hp Mercury Verado in-line-6 four-

stroke supercharged outboards with 158.5 cid, swinging 17" x 22" three-bladed ss props through 1.85:1 reductions.

Standard equipment (major items) Bow pulpit w/roller; 2 integrated fishboxes; 4 under-gunwale rodracks, 4 gunwale-mounted rod-holders, 3 transom-mounted rod-holders; hot/cold cockpit shower; 2 raw-water washdowns; bait prep center w/sink and tackle stowage; cockpit refrigerator/freezer; slide-out cooler; windshield wipers w/washer; 6 rocket launchers; com-pass; 12v outlet; SmartCraft Vessel Display system; 2,000-gph bilge pump; electric trim tabs; 40-gal. lighted livewell; windlass; 30,000-Btu a/c; bow thruster; 8kW genset; 2 30a battery chargers; 20" flat-screen TV w/DVD player; AM/FM/CD/satellite-ready/MP3 stereo; CO detector; 12v/120v refrigerator; electric cooktop; microwave.

LOA 34'0"

Beam 11'8"

Draft (max.) 2'7"

Displacement (lbs., approx; w/o power) 14,200

Transom deadrise 15°

Bridge clearance 10'0"

Max. cabin headroom 6'6"

Fuel capacity (gal.) 421

Water capacity (gal.) 45

Price (w/standard power) $320,970

Price (w/test power) $356,882

NMMA Certified

ContaCt Boston Whaler, Dept. B, 100 Whaler Way, Edgewater, FL 32141, 386/428-0057, www.whaler.com.

speed efficiency operation naut. stat. n. mi. s. mi. run sound rpm knots mph gph mpg mpg range range angle level1000 4.4 5.1 2.5 1.8 2.0 672 773 0 58 1500 6.5 7.5 4.3 1.5 1.7 574 661 0 61 2000 7.7 8.9 7.0 1.1 1.3 419 482 0 64 2500 8.9 10.2 12.0 0.7 0.9 280 322 2 68 3000 10.2 11.7 19.0 0.5 0.6 203 233 4 71 3500 15.9 18.3 24.3 0.7 0.8 248 285 4 76 4000 22.6 26.0 30.1 0.8 0.9 284 327 2 78 4500 27.8 32.0 38.5 0.7 0.8 274 315 2 80 5000 35.0 40.3 53.3 0.7 0.8 249 286 1 82 5500 40.0 46.0 71.9 0.6 0.6 211 242 1 84 6000 42.8 49.3 88.5 0.5 0.6 183 211 0 86

Monthly payment $2,171 (6.75% interest with 20% down on test boat power, tax not includ-ed; 20-year loan to qualified buyers estimated by Excel Credit)$

Copyright © 2007 Hachette Filipacchi Media U.S., Inc. All Rights Reserved.For more about reprints from Boating, contact Wright’s Reprints at 877-652-5295.

BOATING

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WORLDEXCLUSIVEBostoNWHaLer 345

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TIPS

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©2007 Boston Whaler. All rights reserved.

Everyone should look so good after 50 years.

In 1958, we astonished the world with a boat that wouldn’t sink. Today, we’re still pioneering innovative

technology that leads the industry in safety, reliability, low maintenance and quality – all designed for a life-

time of safe, carefree boating. Which is why Whalers perform better than ever – year after year after year.

BOSTON WHALER® HAS A BOAT FOR ADVENTURES OF ALL SIZES. TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE PRODUCT LINE THAT’S

BEST FOR YOU, VISIT US ONLINE AT WHALER.COM OR IN-STORE AT YOUR LOCAL DEALER. 1-800-WHALER 9

TENDER / SPORT MONTAUK® DAUNTLESS® VENTURA™ OUTRAGE® CONQUEST®

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