1996 Fairline Targa 37: Parts & Upgrade Advice

[ClaytonDJ]

Hi all

Getting closer to purchasing a 1996 Fairline Targa 37 in Spain. Have placed a deposit to secure and just trying to arrange a full condition survey, engine inspection by VP mechanic and sea trail.
If all goes well then I will be buying her.

Has VP KAD42Bs and DP drives. I will be hoping to cut costs by doing as much of the routine servicing and maintenance as I can - so interested to know of reliable suppliers of VP engine/drive parts and service kits. Also thoughts on the essential tools I'll need in my toolbox to carry out said works.

Also interested in what upgrades are recommended. It doesn't have air con and will be berthed in Spain and I will be living onboard for 3 - 4 weeks at a time (before returning home for same amount of time as per immigration rules). Adding air con will be an expensive initial outlay but should add to the resale attractiveness when the time comes.

Currently has (I assume original) Simrad chart plotter that still works - but upgrading the electronics to include chart plotter, radar and AIS is also on my list. Is there a logical upgrade party to a MFD from the Simrad gear? Is price the only differentiating factor separating the likes of B&G, Garmin, etc

Trying not to get too ahead of myself but never been this close.

Regards,

Dave

 

[rafiki_]

Hi all

Getting closer to purchasing a 1996 Fairline Targa 37 in Spain. Have placed a deposit to secure and just trying to arrange a full condition survey, engine inspection by VP mechanic and sea trail.
If all goes well then I will be buying her.

Has VP KAD42Bs and DP drives. I will be hoping to cut costs by doing as much of the routine servicing and maintenance as I can - so interested to know of reliable suppliers of VP engine/drive parts and service kits. Also thoughts on the essential tools I'll need in my toolbox to carry out said works.

Also interested in what upgrades are recommended. It doesn't have air con and will be berthed in Spain and I will be living onboard for 3 - 4 weeks at a time (before returning home for same amount of time as per immigration rules). Adding air con will be an expensive initial outlay but should add to the resale attractiveness when the time comes.

Currently has (I assume original) Simrad chart plotter that still works - but upgrading the electronics to include chart plotter, radar and AIS is also on my list. Is there a logical upgrade party to a MFD from the Simrad gear? Is price the only differentiating factor separating the likes of B&G, Garmin, etc

Trying not to get too ahead of myself but never been this close.

Regards,

Dave

You might try the Fairline Owners Club for advice. Try a pm to PeteM.

 

[Grubble]

There are quite a few online parts suppliers in Spain now. A couple that I have used for Mercruiser, but they also do VP, are:-

Repuestos Marinos

Google "repuestos marinos" will find you more suppliers.

And more general:-

Francobordo.com - Tienda Online de Nautica, Outdoor, Pesca y Submarinismo

If you find a Bauhaus DIY shed near you they also have quite a good selection of boaty things, including stainless steel screws, nuts, fittings etc.

 

[jrudge]

A non ac boat in the med has a very limited market.

You maybe the person they have been waiting for !

Avoid it unless staggeringly cheap. There won't be a queue of people for it. It's an old boat add in no ac and there is not much going for it.

 

[PowerYachtBlog]

Things to do on a Targa 37 are....

Remove wet box on bathing platform to have more space, remove davits if they exist, probably in the Med would add a hydraulic passerelle.

The rest is okay how it is, with the positive and negatives.

 

[Grubble]

A non ac boat in the med has a very limited market.

You maybe the person they have been waiting for !

Avoid it unless staggeringly cheap. There won't be a queue of people for it. It's an old boat add in no ac and there is not much going for it.

An 11m sports boat is still firmly in day boat territory for many people who will be sleeping in their airconditioned villas at night. As the OP is planning on adding AC, if the boat is what they are looking for at the right price, who cares?

 

[petem]

Hi all

Getting closer to purchasing a 1996 Fairline Targa 37 in Spain. Have placed a deposit to secure and just trying to arrange a full condition survey, engine inspection by VP mechanic and sea trail.
If all goes well then I will be buying her.

Has VP KAD42Bs and DP drives. I will be hoping to cut costs by doing as much of the routine servicing and maintenance as I can - so interested to know of reliable suppliers of VP engine/drive parts and service kits. Also thoughts on the essential tools I'll need in my toolbox to carry out said works.

Also interested in what upgrades are recommended. It doesn't have air con and will be berthed in Spain and I will be living onboard for 3 - 4 weeks at a time (before returning home for same amount of time as per immigration rules). Adding air con will be an expensive initial outlay but should add to the resale attractiveness when the time comes.

Currently has (I assume original) Simrad chart plotter that still works - but upgrading the electronics to include chart plotter, radar and AIS is also on my list. Is there a logical upgrade party to a MFD from the Simrad gear? Is price the only differentiating factor separating the likes of B&G, Garmin, etc

Trying not to get too ahead of myself but never been this close.

Regards,

Dave

We have a Targa 34 and needed to install A/C. The original design had units in the forward and aft cabin.

Two units would be too expensive so our plan was to install a single unit under the forward berth and fit some ducts to the aft cabin. Unfortunately, there's not enough room under the sofa to do this so we've ended up still with the A/C unit under the forward cabin and with input and output vents pointing aft (i.e. through the cabin door to the saloon).

This has worked surprisingly well and 18,000 BTU is enough to cool the whole boat.

I think the total cost was under £5k.

 

[ClaytonDJ]

You might try the Fairline Owners Club for advice. Try a pm to PeteM.

Thanks Rafik - I'll drop him a message

 

[ClaytonDJ]

There are quite a few online parts suppliers in Spain now. A couple that I have used for Mercruiser, but they also do VP, are:-

Repuestos Marinos

Google "repuestos marinos" will find you more suppliers.

And more general:-

Francobordo.com - Tienda Online de Nautica, Outdoor, Pesca y Submarinismo

If you find a Bauhaus DIY shed near you they also have quite a good selection of boaty things, including stainless steel screws, nuts, fittings etc.

Thanks Grubble.
The British broker has also recommended a Chandlers in Estepona (Marina Del Sol)

 

[ClaytonDJ]

A non ac boat in the med has a very limited market.

You maybe the person they have been waiting for !

Avoid it unless staggeringly cheap. There won't be a queue of people for it. It's an old boat add in no ac and there is not much going for it.

Thanks for your view jrudge - all feedback and opinions count in my book.
I think the asking price is reasonable and I believe there are solutions for fitting AC - so I'll explore.
Agree adding AC will make it more marketable when time comes

 

[ClaytonDJ]

Things to do on a Targa 37 are....

Remove wet box on bathing platform to have more space, remove davits if they exist, probably in the Med would add a hydraulic passerelle.

The rest is okay how it is, with the positive and negatives.

Thanks PowerYachtBlog
The boat has a wet box and davits - so food for thought.
Adding some for of AC solution is top of my list.

 

[ClaytonDJ]

We have a Targa 34 and needed to install A/C. The original design had units in the forward and aft cabin.

Two units would be too expensive so our plan was to install a single unit under the forward berth and fit some ducts to the aft cabin. Unfortunately, there's not enough room under the sofa to do this so we've ended up still with the A/C unit under the forward cabin and with input and output vents pointing aft (i.e. through the cabin door to the saloon).

This has worked surprisingly well and 18,000 BTU is enough to cool the whole boat.

I think the total cost was under £5k.

Thanks Petem

Fitting an AC solution is top of my list (if I do buy the boat after survey and sea trail). Been looking on-line at options - but need to see/understand the layout of the boat to know what's possible/best.
Standalone units are attractive but as you say would need several to cool the forward berth and aft cabin.
Drawn to the solution that puts main (noisy) compressor unit in the engine bay with ducting runs to the outlets - but as you highlight need to see if enough room
Any suggestions for good units/ones to avoid? Suppliers in Southern Spain also helpful if anyone knows of any.

 

[ClaytonDJ]

An 11m sports boat is still firmly in day boat territory for many people who will be sleeping in their airconditioned villas at night. As the OP is planning on adding AC, if the boat is what they are looking for at the right price, who cares?

Thanks for the reassurance Grubble.

 

[petem]

Thanks Petem

Fitting an AC solution is top of my list (if I do buy the boat after survey and sea trail). Been looking on-line at options - but need to see/understand the layout of the boat to know what's possible/best.
Standalone units are attractive but as you say would need several to cool the forward berth and aft cabin.
Drawn to the solution that puts main (noisy) compressor unit in the engine bay with ducting runs to the outlets - but as you highlight need to see if enough room
Any suggestions for good units/ones to avoid? Suppliers in Southern Spain also helpful if anyone knows of any.

I bought a new/old stock one from Coastal Rides IIRC.

 

[ClaytonDJ]

I bought a new/old stock one from Coastal Rides IIRC.

Was it a self-contained unit - or did you need through hull fittings for sea water cooling?

 

[jrudge]

An 11m sports boat is still firmly in day boat territory for many people who will be sleeping in their airconditioned villas at night. As the OP is planning on adding AC, if the boat is what they are looking for at the right price, who cares?

As they seem new to boating and maybe caught up in the dream not the reality.

The boat will have stuck for a long time without ac as it will be difficult to selL.

Ac done right will have a cost. The boat is elderly and the price will be a decent % of value.

I assume the boat doesn't of have a generator hence it will be used in port only. The only reason to run it in port is if you are sleeping on it - not the mythical air con villa you speak of.

To do it right you also need to add a generator.

So yes if it is cheap as chips happy days but if not run a mile. They have been waiting for someone to buy that boat without ac and there will not be many.

I don't know where you are based. We are in the med and the ac is on 24/7 including when the boat is underway or at anchor.

 

[PowerYachtBlog]

AC is needed in the Med, especially if you tend to sleep onboard in marinas.

This size of boats generators tend to be a bit noisy (they have improved) but most 4 kw tend to be one cylinder and you cannot do much about that.
Add to that the space in the engine room is made for midgets, and its no fun if you need to make some work on the engine to starboard, the one to port is already impossible.
The generator was spec'd to starboard, and the Fairline original exhaust used to be above 50 centimetres above water line in 1996. A pure PITA...

 

[petem]

As they seem new to boating and maybe caught up in the dream not the reality.

The boat will have stuck for a long time without ac as it will be difficult to selL.

Ac done right will have a cost. The boat is elderly and the price will be a decent % of value.

I assume the boat doesn't of have a generator hence it will be used in port only. The only reason to run it in port is if you are sleeping on it - not the mythical air con villa you speak of.

To do it right you also need to add a generator.

So yes if it is cheap as chips happy days but if not run a mile. They have been waiting for someone to buy that boat without ac and there will not be many.

I don't know where you are based. We are in the med and the ac is on 24/7 including when the boat is underway or at anchor.

You don't need to do a perfect OEM factory A/C install. Ours was cheap and cheerful and keeps the boat cool enough to comfortably sleep on.

We don't have a generator and I've never missed one.

 

[petem]

Was it a self-contained unit - or did you need through hull fittings for sea water cooling?

When you say "self contained unit" do you mean (a portable) one that sucks air in through a hatch or something like that? That would be a bit crap IMO although some people seem to make do with them.

Ours is permanently mounted and has a through hull fitting for a water feed.

 

[Grubble]

As they seem new to boating and maybe caught up in the dream not the reality.

The boat will have stuck for a long time without ac as it will be difficult to selL.

Ac done right will have a cost. The boat is elderly and the price will be a decent % of value.

I assume the boat doesn't of have a generator hence it will be used in port only. The only reason to run it in port is if you are sleeping on it - not the mythical air con villa you speak of.

To do it right you also need to add a generator.

So yes if it is cheap as chips happy days but if not run a mile. They have been waiting for someone to buy that boat without ac and there will not be many.

I don't know where you are based. We are in the med and the ac is on 24/7 including when the boat is underway or at anchor.

I think you are looking at this from the point of view of what type of boat you have and how you use your boat. An awful lot of people in the med don't sleep on their boats, they sleep in their real life brick built villas on land with a pool and AC - I can assure you it is not mythical. The boats are a toy used, when the weather is nice, as a mobile swim platform by people like me. We take the boat out on a boiling hot day, drive as fast as we can to our favourite anchorage, where we jump in the sea to cool off as soon as the anchor is down. It would never even occur to me that AC is needed on a day boat.

Of course according to forum wisdom an 11m sports boat is completely unsaleable anyway, as it isn't a flybridge, isn't powered by a pair of outboard motors, has a flappy canvas tent and, worst of all, has no aircon.