Big Cats IV

Thank you. You have made this series oh-so-popular. Additionally, you have oft requested more instalments, which is also greatly appreciated. So, we started all this back in September of 2021 with Big Cats I. Big Cats II followed, and then there was Big Cats III.

One of the brands highlighted first was ILIAD Catamarans, who had just moved into a new facility at the time. Interestingly, they now occupy some 25,000m₂ at that same yard, which highlights how successful they have been since kicking off in 2016, and actually launching in 2019. Talk about exclamation mark!

In short, who better to go back to and check in with than one of our first ‘victims’, especially as they are soon to get into their first hull of the new ILIAD 75 model. The yard at Zuhai has 15,000m2 dedicated to the delivery of the distinctly super-popular 53 Series, and an additional 10,000m2 crafting the larger 62 and 75 offerings.

ILIAD Catamarans may be a ‘new’ brand as such, but it delivers boats designed by boaties. In addition to that, offering semi-custom fitouts (just about bespoke actually) as one of its cornerstones sets them apart for clear market differentiation, almost as much as their angular and purposeful styling, and the fact that they only produce powercats.

Now when it comes to explaining their glorious success, you’d be hard pressed to surpass the words of the general manager of ILIAD Catamarans, Michael ‘Nod’ Crook. “We’ve been in the industry for a long time now, so we really understand what clients are looking for in a boat and making sure our designs respond to this.”

The visualisation of what Crook is referring to is evident in wider companionways, and doors that you do not have to enter through sideways, so as not to scrape your shoulders. Just as there are no spiral staircases that are the bane of anyone who may be of advanced years, or have knees that delivered their best some time ago.

“People come on board our models, they look around, they disembark, and it’s very rare they can find anything they disliked about it,” added Crook who had just attended the recent show at Fort Lauderdale.

Indeed, all of this is definitely why the brand that started in Australia and enjoyed immediate success throughout Asia Pacific, now has strong order pipelines from the United States, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Europe.

In-built stylish practicality with high quality materials, as well as exceptional levels of fit and finish, genuine long-range capability (2,500nm plus and 4,000 in the case of the 75), enough sprint speed combined with either low speed cursing or brisk pace for shorter hauls like Florida to the Bahamas, have added to the appeal, which is why you tend to think of a grass fire when reflecting on ILIAD’s triumphant march onto the world stage. The price and mass of an ILIAD Catamaran may be higher than some alternatives, but quality of design and build reign supreme.

All of that is lovely and nice, but we have a 75 to talk about, and it is no ordinary 75-footer. LOA always allows for grace and style, even when you are straight and adroit, as such. The interior spaces have a lovely, modern aesthetic, and of course you have options, like galley up, galley down, Master for’ard, Master on the bridge deck to be anything from three to five Staterooms.

It is more than a Portuguese Bridge with cruising lounge, sunken foredeck with recliner lounges, and optional fully covered bridge deck with additional solar array, or various engine options to select from. 725 to 1,000hp a side and inline the preference, but not essential, where the upper installation would mean the WOT mark could be as much as 23 or 24 knots, with a fast cruise of maybe 19, even when real world laden.

That of course makes the maximum range cruise velocity more in the 8-9 knots bracket. Notably, all of this is still the original ILIAD mantra from what seems like way back when, and is key to the crucial differentiation in a competitive space. Riccardo Bulgarelli is the man responsible for the hull forms and ensuring an ILIAD remains an ILIAD, if you get my drift.

The other element to take in is that the areas can usually be used in different ways to the main task, and added functionality reduces speedhumps in the signing up process. I was more intent on ascertaining who is looking at the ILIAD 75 in earnest, and just as crucially, why.

For sure there is the multi-generational aspect, and here space is king, especially the ability to have genuine private time. There are those that have made their own money and are coming into boating, often with this type of craft as their launching point. They need space for entertaining, and lots of it. It could even be a large dayboat, and space below gets converted from accommodation to karaoke or cigar bar, for instance.

Next is charter, where the owner is keen to offset a portion of the running costs against shared usage. Many a vessel in this bracket is booked solid, and for good reason, as the crew to guest ratio is about spot on. At this size, crew can be housed more efficiently, and this helps with being present when required, and not seen or heard when not. In the case of the ILIAD 75, the crew have direct deck access from both the for’ard lounge and under the aft flybridge stairs.

Non-guest space can be configured to workshop/mess/accom/engineering/laundry in a myriad of ways to suit the mission parameters, and it is a mission at this level. A mission of peace and luxurious pampering, wrapped up in exploration and freedom and space. In pondering all of this, the ability for an ILIAD 75 to offer a seven-star South Pacific experience, where range and autonomy are definitely needed, stood out just about as well as Balls’ Pyramid near Lord Howe Island, which is clearly a place you are going to go if you bring your ILIAD 75 into this part of the world (APAC).

Additionally, the buying process and timeline is very different in this segment. The arrangement goes from more of dealer/client model, to one incorporating many players from yard to designers, agents to lawyers, engineers to charter agent. It is important to note this, for it is the experience and reliability of people like Crook and the brand’s Asia Pacific dealer, The Yacht Sales Co, that will make this process simpler, finer, more navigable, and less restrictive.

In going down this path it is a relationship that is not merely the build, it is the lifetime of this vessel, and the one after it.

More Information

ILIAD 75

Power Boat World website