The Princess Yachts F58 is beautiful, with gorgeous woods, fabrics and suedes, but this flybridge model is also tough as nails. Princess builds its yachts on the edge of the English Channel, which is one of the world’s harshest bodies of water, ranking up there with Cape Horn and the Bay of Biscay. This Princess is equal parts debutante and street fighter.
To properly understand the F58, you must first trail your fingers over the impeccable joinerwork, admire the syrupy finishes, and sigh into the comfy helm chairs. And, you must also poke around in the bilge, note the heft of the integral engine beds designed to carry 2,000 horses, rap on the thick, resin-infused hull, and see the spiderweb of fiberglass stringers and web frames. Lovely, and one tough cookie.
The layout includes a spacious salon and three staterooms (plus one for crew or teens) with three heads. This yacht is family-friendly, with three exterior areas and a transom beach club for entertaining guests. It’s all a bit bigger than on the Princess F55 model that preceded it, and the 900 hp Volvo Penta diesels have been upped to MAN V-8 1200s for an increase in torque, which is felt when you shove the throttles forward, even at cruising speed. The MANs give the F58 a hammer-down speed of around 35 knots and a cruise speed of 25 knots, for a range of 250-plus nautical miles.
The most important change in the F58 is how the designers used the increased volume. They moved the galley aft to shift the dinette opposite, making the setup easy for serving. With the opening window aft in the galley, this space becomes part of the cockpit as well. There’s also now a bigger settee in the salon facing a 50-inch TV, with tub chairs to starboard.
At the cockpit are twin stairs from the transom and two gates for boarding from higher piers. The transom platform is a beach club, with a fold-down lounge, optional grill and fridge and slide-out stowage to launch a SeaBob easily.
Other alfresco entertainment areas include a dining settee in the cockpit and a sun area on the bow that morphs from chaises into facing seats with a table for sundowners. A third area is on the flybridge, with a C-shaped settee around a folding teak table.
The bridge is accessed with gentle steps and hordes of handrails. The wet bar and outdoor cooking station are aft, leaving room for a dinette as well as another wraparound lounge next to the helm. The designers say this layout creates a closure to the aft bridge, but I think having the smoke from grilling steaks blow aft at anchor is their biggest achievement. A hardtop is optional (with an aft shade and opening sunroof). My advice: Don’t think of not checking that box.
The upper and lower helms are user-friendly, with twin Raymarine displays. Though this is a shaft-driven yacht, the Aventics joystick system links throttles, bow and stern thrusters, and steering into a one-handed, no-problem docking system. The bridge also has centerline seating for clear views all around, and service techs can access the helm electronics via a ceiling panel in the guest stateroom. There’s also a foldout helm in the cockpit, making back-down or Med-mooring a cinch.
Access to the accommodations is via a sunlit foyer below the windscreen. The owner’s stateroom is aft, spanning the beam. Designers improved things by placing the en suite head aft, creating insulation against any engine or generator noise. A walk-in dressing area is to starboard, with hanging lockers designed for dresses or blazers as well as longer outfits. A seat under the oversized window is to port, while a bureau with drawers and a hidden vanity is opposite. Just forward in the companionway is a full-size washer and dryer.
The VIP stateroom is forward. The yacht’s widened beam allows walkaround space around the berth, and the en suite head with a stall shower doubles as a day head. It also serves the guest stateroom, which has twin berths that slide together at the touch of a button, giving the F58 three double-berth staterooms. The crew cabin is aft, and could be used for teenagers, with bunks and a full head with a shower.
A delight of the F58 is finding all the touches learned from 60 years of boatbuilding at Princess Yachts. Take the electric warping winches in the after corners of the cockpit, on separate consoles and backed by immense cleats that are clearly intended for towing. With roller hawses, these also make trimming lines after a Med-moor just a touch of a button.
Joints on the teak dining tables aren’t the usual straight edge, but are instead curved to let the woodworkers show off their skills. Eighty percent of a Princess yacht is built by in-house craftspeople. And while having the dinette tables is great, you need director’s chairs to utilize the side away from the settee. Princess is way ahead: There is dedicated stowage for full-size director’s chairs in the lower companionway.
Even the engine room has thoughtful touches. There’s a big hatch in the cockpit, an easy ladder with handgrips and room to spare. There is also walking room between the MANs on nonslip decking, glass-top raw-water strainers for easy checks, a Seakeeper 18 and full access to the 19 kW Onan genset. Owners can opt for “hotel mode,” a bank of lithium-ion batteries that allow silent overnight use of systems like air conditioning without using the generator (a first for Princess yachts under 80 feet length overall).
The Princess Yachts F58 is elegant and regal in all the places an owner might want, yet powerful and pugnacious in all the places an owner might need.
Power Up
The MAN V-8 1200 is based on the MAN D2868 that’s used on heavy trucks. A 16-liter, 90-degree, common-rail intercooled diesel with twin turbos, it has a reputation for bulletproof operations in all conditions. The robust but compact block has replaceable liners, long service intervals and relatively low fuel consumption. With admirable torque and fast response to throttle changes, it is popular in workboats, patrol and rescue boats, and yachts such as the Princess F58.
Side Ride
The Williams TurboJet 325 is the largest in its line, at 10 feet 9 inches length overall. It fits easily on the F58’s hydraulic swim platform. With a 90 hp rotary engine, the 325 tops out at around 42 knots, and is designed to carry four adults. Its jet power makes it safe for kids, while ski tow eyes and serious speed make it fun for watertoys. And it goes from zero to 22 knots in just four seconds. For going ashore, bow and underseat stowage compartments keep valuables and luggage dry.
Take the next step: princessyachtsamerica.com
