Beneteau Antares 9 vs 9.80

[andyb28]

Good Morning,

I have just sold my sailing boat, to return to a motor boating.
Having looked at many different types of boat, I have decided to get a Beneteau Antares as it ticks many boxes of what we need out of a boat.

My main tickboxes were... Keep the wife warm / dry / happy. (Happy wife, happy life), Walk around, cockpit for dropping a line.

I previously vowed to never have a single engine motorboat again, but here I am trying to justify to myself that the Antares 9.80 is just too expensive for not enough gains over the standard 9. There is a massive difference in price for used models. 9.80's seem to be fetching high £90k's, where as the single engine 9 is £50k-£60k.

Does anyone have any experience of either of these models from the early 2000's?
Other than the full size bed / bunk beds / 2nd engine. Is there much else to it?

Would love to also here from owners of each on their experiences good or bad.

 

[dpb]

We have a 9.80 that we live on for six months.
The 9 was on our list but it was immediately apparent that it would be too small for us to live on and as with other boats there seems to be a lot more room inside than you might expect from just an extra 1m length. As well as what you mention the 9.80 has a proper fly bridge with seating for 4 or 5 and sun lounger.
It depends what you want to do with it of course but we have been very happy with ours so far.
Happy to answer any questions you may have.

 

[andyb28]

We have a 9.80 that we live on for six months.
The 9 was on our list but it was immediately apparent that it would be too small for us to live on and as with other boats there seems to be a lot more room inside than you might expect from just an extra 1m length. As well as what you mention the 9.80 has a proper fly bridge with seating for 4 or 5 and sun lounger.
It depends what you want to do with it of course but we have been very happy with ours so far.
Happy to answer any questions you may have.

Thanks dbp, I am grateful for your reply.

Going to look at a 9.80 today, which has twin KAMD43 engines. I have not seen this option before. Most seem to have Nanni?
I am going to see a 9 next week with a single D4-225 engine in it. I rate the engine, but really am not keen on having a single unit.

We do not stay on the boat for more than a weekend, so the extra space isn't a requirement for us.

 

[Pleinmont]

Interested to hear your thoughts.

Always wondered about upgrading to a bigger inboard Antares 9/9.80 from our 760 but the double berth in the Serie 9 looks a lot smaller than ours (offset rather than full width).
Whoever is on the inside needs to have a stronger bladder than the other as you have to climb over them to get out of bed!
The rest of the Serie 9 layout and design is good though.
The 9.80 looks even better to me - lovely layout and big beds.

The main issue for me with the 9.80 is underwater. No protection for the props and you cannot dry out (but you can with the 9) - might not be issue for many but in Channel Islands it's a boon to be able to put the legs on and dry out.
Also feel safer knowing the steel skeg will protect the prop if you were unlucky enough to graze the bottom.

Good luck with the search

 

[baldyash]

How about an Antares 30?

 

[andyb28]

How about an Antares 30?

I was going to say, they are over £100k, which is beyond budget. But I actually just found one for £99k. Even still, thats a lot of money for a single engine boat!

 

[TheCoach]

We are running a 9.80 as well, had it for 18 months and really like it. Great combination of space, happy to chug at displacement but also can cruise at low 20's if you want.

Our's is a 2009 so late one with twin D4's and TBH does everything we want from a boat. Flybridge is great in the sun and we do most of our driving from up their unless it is really bad weather, walk round decks are a bonus and engine access even on the twin is pretty good.

Still haven't found anything that really competes at this price for practicality/size/speed etc.

Some have commented that the build quality of the 30's isn't as good as the 9.80's but you would need to compare back to back to check that out.

Most I have seen have the twin Nanni's (one up for sale with those at the moment) or D4's

Cheers,

TC

 

[ST840]

I was going to say, they are over £100k, which is beyond budget. But I actually just found one for £99k. Even still, thats a lot of money for a single engine boat!

And the build quality is nowhere near as robust as the earlier 9.80!! I can testify this as we looked at both on the same day. The 30 was starting to fall apart and felt very flimsy. It may have just been the example we looked at, but I doubt it.

 

[ZorbaTheLeek]

"Other than the full size bed / bunk beds / 2nd engine". Is there much else to it?...That's about it really. For 8 years we have run a 2007 S9 with D4 225 which gets used. Always admired the 9.80 but never understood why Beneteau put the gally where to my mind the nav seat should be. We have spent several weeks away and for two it was no problem and on passage, it's always good to have two pairs of eyes looking out. An island bed and better fly are a plus. Single or double engine balance out in terms of more performance v increased maintenance and fuel cost but doubles are more maneuverable. S9s take the ground well.