Viva la revolution

To fully exploit the carbon hull, the AFS system, and their combined performance potential, Princess has employed a state-of-the-art petrol engine. Robust, safe, compact and highly efficient, the engines provide a tangible boost in performance and excitement: another indication of Princess’s ambition to challenge perceptions at every turn.

The smooth delivery of power in the R35 comes from twin Volvo Penta 430 horsepower V8 petrol engines. The engines are all aluminium and feature direct injection, variable valve timing and fully CNC machined intake and exhaust ports to provide exceptional levels of torque and responsiveness that safely power the R35 to an exhilarating 50 knots: the fastest-ever Princess.

A beneficial power/size to weight ratio plus the efficiency of modern petrol engines made them the best choice and give the R35 its exhilarating top speed and responsive performance at all speeds – the boat will happily cruise efficiently at 25 knots.

The 6.2-litre 430 is the most powerful of the next generation of Volvo Penta petrol engines, producing 14 per cent faster acceleration and ten per cent improved fuel economy over the previous model. It incorporates a combination of technical features perfectly suited to helping helmsmen make the most of the R35’s technology. Among these are closed-loop freshwater cooling, with no internal parts exposed to raw or salt water, and wideband oxygen sensors that optimise the engine for varying fuel quality and reduce carbon monoxide emissions by 95 per cent.

“We challenged the perception that limits of performance had been reached for yachts – that there were no more tangible gains in the battle between stability and speed.

Just like a race team, we looked for the competitive edge, the last tenth, the supposedly impossible performance gain. And our vision and ambition changed that perception and created the R35,” commented Antony Sheriff, Executive Chairman of Princess Yachts.