The styling of the latest riva is close to perfection, with performance to match.
The styling of the latest Riva is close to perfection, with performance to match.
THE RIVA 76 PERSEO is the latest in a line of recent releases from the famous Italian yacht builder. There is no doubting the style of this new design, but the 76 also manages to perform well at sea – a tribute to a careful marriage of the technical side of the design to the styling.
Riva always sets the bar high, after all it is perceived as the best in the business and leaves no stone unturned to try and achieve perfection. There is no doubt that the styling is as close to perfection as I have seen in a sports yacht and there is performance to match.
It is always a challenge to be the best and with competitors upping their game all the time, Riva has to find that bit extra to keep ahead. With the 76, it certainly has done that.
Much of the modern Riva styling seems to focus on the windscreen and here the 76 does not disappoint. From the outside the windscreen is just one smooth curve up to the flybridge. It is only inside that you become aware of the enormous scale of this monument to glass. Although divided down the middle this fresh windscreen concept allows for glass on an enormous scale, a towering display of glass that not only allows a clear view ahead, but it curves up over your head when at the helm.
It looks fantastic from the outside as all Rivas do, but inside you might have problems with the sun. Riva says it plans to fit adjustable blinds to give sun protection, which should help a lot.
The side windows in the saloon are equally large. Almost double the height of normal windows and combined with headroom to suit tall people, this generates a great feeling of space inside the saloon. Keeping the furniture low helps, and the designers have done a great job in traditional Riva style.
There are L-settees in opposing corners, the forward one serving the teak dining table while the aft one is for relaxing and watching the TV that rises out of the credenza on the port side. Light folding chairs are used to increase the seating at the dining table and the saloon is a better place when these are stowed away.
The helm occupies the starboard forward corner of the saloon and facing the helmsman are three large electronic displays. There are some problems here with reflections but that proposed adjustable sunblind should help. These are important displays because one is a touch screen that controls many of the yacht’s services and features, while the other two are dedicated to navigation. Surrounding them are all the controls and switches that make this the focus of the modern electronic yacht.
Other good features of this yacht include the way the rear window of the saloon can be swung up to the deckhead in order link the saloon with the large cockpit once the main aft door is open.
In the large cockpit, Riva offers several options from bar counters to dining tables. On this prototype the Owner chose to keep things simple, maintaining the open space with just a transom settee across the stern and a small table with settee in the starboard forward corner. Below the cockpit is the garage with its excellent slipway launch and recovery system and, of course, the engine compartment.
There is no shortage of sitting out areas and sunbeds on the 76. The compact flybridge tucked in behind that large windscreen dome that is designed mainly as a social area with just a pop-up helm station if you want a commanding view when controlling the yacht. This is the logical helm location to use when manoeuvring in harbour. A sunbed is located in the aft area, but in the interests of styling the protective rails have been kept low so you do feel a bit vulnerable here when at sea.
Much safer is the cockpit on the forward coach roof. This is a proper cockpit where everything is recessed so as not to spoil the lines of the profile, but this also makes it a wonderful secure sitting out area at sea. Settees and a table make this a comfortable social area and further forward on the coach roof there is a pair of sunbeds and in the bow there is the foredeck where almost all of the mooring fittings are recessed below the wooden decks.
Heading down below, the three staterooms are fully up to the Riva style with black lacquer providing a contrast to the teak wood panelling, leather trim and rich fabrics. It is restful down here and the large window concept continues with the full-width master stateroom amidships having some of the largest hull windows I have even seen. I am not sure that an Owner would welcome having the en-suite bathroom three steps up from the stateroom, but there is no arguing about the quality with veined granite creating a striking feature on many of the surfaces including the decks and the washbasins.
This same granite deck material extends into the galley that sits between the master suite and the two-berth guest cabin. This galley is compact but fully formed and should be capable of producing quality meals, although the food has to travel some distance to get to the table.
The crew cabin is a compact area between the engine compartment and the lower accommodation. The crew share this space with the yacht’s main electrical panel. The very compact crew bathroom is on the opposite side of the hull and access to this space is from a hatch in the cockpit.
Everything looks to be readily accessible in the engine compartment, although the garage does intrude on the headroom. This prototype 76 has two top-of-the-range MAN V-12 engines that each produce 1,800hp and these drive initially forward to V-drive gearboxes that reverse the shaft direction and transmit the drive to the propellers.
There is a degree of gearbox whine emanating from the V-drives which seems to be standard for this type of gearbox and perhaps a bit more sound-proofing would help in this area.
Leaving harbour, there is a deep rumble when the gears are engaged as though the 76 is eager to get up and go. With powerful bow and stern thrusters, everything is under control and manoeuvring can be very precise and accurate. Like at the bow, Riva has tidied up the mooring arrangements aft by recessing them into the bulwarks and the ropes exit the bulwarks through an aft slot in place of the conventional fairleads.
This Riva 76 moves up several notches of quality when it gets into the open sea. Wind open the throttles and it really gets going and while on the sea trial we didn’t have much in the way of waves, something around half a metre, the 76 treated these waves a though they were not there. It was only when we went through our wash that we could start to feel the impact of waves on the hull and while the hull deadrise of 14 degrees is average for this type of hull, it does provide an adequate amount of cushioning in waves.
When you consider the sort of benign conditions that the 76 will be used normally, this ride is very much one where you can enjoy the considerable performance with the wind in your hair.
With conventional steering and propulsion, the 76 behaves much as would be expected and the performance is totally predictable with no apparent hidden vices – demonstrating that this is a very competent sports yacht. The speed topped out in the high 30s, which is more than enough for most people and there may be a knot or two extra once Riva has had time to adjust the Vreem interceptor propellers that allow the apparent pitch of the propellers to be adjusted for peak performance.
A Seakeeper gyro stabiliser comes as standard with the 76, and this seems to work well as there was very little evidence of any rolling during the sea trial.
The performance at sea clearly demonstrates the potential of this new design and not only will it impress with its styling, but you will be able to impress your guests with the performance out at sea.
This new Riva is absolutely stunning in appearance, all curves and smoothness and wonderful. It comes in at a very popular size of sports yacht and there is no denying that Riva has once more captured the style and performance that makes this brand unique.
There is a sense with the 76 that Riva has created another of its highly desirable classic designs to whet the appetite of the elite few who can own one.
www.riva-yacht.com
