While the F58’s overall length is similar to the F55, there are changes – the beam has been carried further forward, the air draft has increased, and changes to the layout and packaging have enabled the designers to eke out valuable extra inches.

The displacement gives a better idea of the true scale of the increase, having swelled from 24.6 tonnes to 32.3 tonnes. Some of that can be put down to the F58’s heavier MAN engines, but it’s also a reflection of all the extra GRP, glass and equipment.

You can feel that extra volume and sophistication the minute you step onto the F58. That starts with what Princess rather optimistically describes as a beach club area. You won’t find any folding balconies, transformer platforms, convertible garages, bars or sea-level sunpads here, but what you will get – if you tick the right options boxes –is a big hydraulic platform large enough to take a Williams 345, a drop-down bench, a transom wet bar with a BBQ and sink, and a very cool little locker with a slide-out rack and charging point for a Seabob.

It’s not exactly revolutionary, but it does keep Princess in the game while steering clear of too many moving mechanisms that add cost and complexity, and have the potential to go wrong.

There’s also access to the crew cabin through a discreet entrance under the starboard stairs leading up from the bathing platform. Although the crew cabin fit-outis optional (as standard it’s just a big storage lazarette), the twin bunks and ensuite heads would make a handy overspill for children,or you can spec it as a larger day head forthe beach club.

In the cockpit, Princess has favoured a forward-facing moulded-in dinette, with decent side extensions and a pair of folding director’s chairs taking the capacity to six. Optional side gates also make life easier when coming alongside, not to mention a great diving platform for kids. A full-length flybridge overhang provides plenty of shade and a place to hang the canopies from.

Up front, there’s a much-improved foredeck lounge, with two separate sunpads, an optional chilled drinks locker and cushions that prop up both ways so they can act as headrests for the lounges or backrests for the aft-facing seats.

Up top, the flybridge has the option of a slicker-looking hardtop with a wonderfully big fabric sunroof over the front half and an electric sun awning that extends right out over the aft end. The wet bar has also been moved from its usual position behind the helm seats to the port aft quarter.

It’s a very effective use of the space that feels more open and still leaves room for a big dinette on the starboard side, as well as companion seating next to the helm that converts to a sunbed when needed.

Some might also question why they didn’t extend the flybridge further forward or add a skylight over the lower helm, although we suspect the former would have spoilt the F58’s impressively sleek looks.

For the first time on a boat below 19 metres, Princess has managed to find room for a dedicated dinette opposite the aft galley rather than a coffee table in the saloon that lifts and extends for indoor dining. It does require a slightly longer, narrower galley, but it also means you can eat – and, more importantly, drink red wine – above a wipe-clean wooden floor rather than stain-prone cream carpet!

It also leaves the slightly raised forward section of the saloon free for chatting, lounging, watching the 50-inch pop-up TV, or simply enjoying the view through the enormous side windows. The one thing we would recommend is adding the optional bucket-style armchair on the starboard side of the saloon instead of a full-length sideboard to create a more balanced, sociable seating layout.

The three-cabin, two-bathroom layout below delivers a really impressive master suite with an ensuite and walk-in wardrobe behind the bed rather than squeezed into one of the forward corners. This not only makes the cabin look and feel considerably bigger but also adds a whole extra layer of sound insulation between the sleeping space and the engine room.

Although prone to a little wave-slap noise at anchor through the GRP hull, the floor space, bed size, headroom and natural light in both the VIP and twin cabin have all increased over the previous F55, while the detailing and finish have been ratcheted up a couple of extra notches too. They’ve even found space for a separate washer and dryer in the lobby.

There’s a lot of extra weight to shift, so the standard engines are twin 1,000-horsepower MAN V8s rather than the F55’s Volvo Penta D13s. Our test boat had the even more powerful optional 1,200-horsepower MANs fitted, and

the eruption of torque that’s unleashed once the turbos kick in makes light work of the F58’s bulk. We recorded a two-way average top speed of 33.5 knots, giving plenty of leeway for mid-season fouling and a wide range of possible cruising speeds.

Those big engines do impact fuel efficiency, burning around 270 litres per hour at 20 knots. The good news is there’s very little penalty for upping the pace into the mid- to late 20s, as the litres-per-mile figure barely alters from 20 to 30 knots, and sound levels only creep up marginally – from a very subdued 67 dBA to a still comfortable 74 dBA.

For such a big beast, it’s also impressively nimble, showing a surprisingly deft hull that you can flick from side to side with pleasing speed and no ill effects on comfort or stability.

We didn’t have much in the way of waves on the day of our test, but the wake from passing ferries provided just enough of a challenge to know that while not completely immune to slamming at speed, the F58 feels impressively safe, solid and unperturbed. It does benefit from a dab of trim tabs to keep the bow planted, but that provides exactly the kind of adjustability a keen skipper will want in order to cope with differing sea conditions.

Nor do we have any complaints about either helm station, both of which enjoy very good ergonomics and visibility – aided on the main deck by a perfectly positioned electric helm window and the option of a third helm in the cockpit for stern-to berthing.

On that note, the optional Aventics joystick, giving one-touch control of the throttles,

steering and proportional bow and stern thrusters, may not be quite as slick as Volvo Penta’s IPS system, but it does make it easier for less experienced skippers to counter the effects of wind and tide during berthing manoeuvres.

Princess is so good at this size and style of boat that it would be churlish to gripe about the slightly half-hearted attempt at a beach club, not least because we suspect most Princess owners would baulk at the idea of any gizmos or gadgets that might compromise its primary role as a supremely capable, comfortable and reliable cruiser. In that regard, the new F58 hits its target with unerring accuracy.

It looks remarkably elegant for a sub-60- foot flybridge cruiser, feels bigger than its dimensions suggest, performs admirably, and the build quality is every bit as refined and detailed as you’d expect.

We would need to sea trial the F58 back-to-back with its closest rivals to decide whether it is in fact the new class leader, but it’s most certainly right up there.

princessyachts.com.au