Doral Boca Grande

[Tucana]

Do any members on the forum, own or have owned a Doral Boca Grande? if so how do you rate the boat against similar european built boats

I am looking at a couple of Boca Grandes, 2007 & 2008 built, and they seem good value for money, I know Doral have gone into administration so warranty is non existant.

Appreciate any feedback positive or otherwise

Thanks Rob

 

[MikeJ42]

Friend of mine had one. Lovely boat. Has a really 'opulent' feel about its fit and finish and it is cavernous inside (beamy and open plan). It had a hard ride though. I think he found it a bit tiresome in a head sea.
I think similar UK boats (especially Fairline) have a deeper V? Someone will know for sure...

 

[SolentPhill]

Hi Rob

I have one and they are fantastic they are made for the Candian waters and there it goes down to -30 in some places and they can stay on the water so the hull is made thicker than some, they are a heavy boat so can take rough seas, but dont use the fuel of a heavy boat. If you are in Solent area your welcome to come and look at mine will go through a couple of upgrades.

I got mine 2 years ago and it has the D4, it uses around 30lt per engine an hour cruising at 20knt, easy to handle and look good cant say enough about them. I compared about 5 boats when I got this and it was beaten by the Targa 38 but at the time it was £75k cheaper so that made my mind up.

Thats the good news, the bad news is that the UK dealer formally Simco is now Powermarine working out of the same office and to be honest I wouldnt buy a bike off them, if you search on here you will find my previous posting about how bad they are, in fact I had several PM's about how bad they are and a few people added to it on here, only one person spoke for them, so please please be aware if you buy from them you will be on your own, David is a nice guy but Simon is a bare faced Liar. Their website still says they will be at SIBS I went and didnt see them it says waiting for stand number, maybe that why they didnt go or its just another fronted lie. If Doral were to go to a new dealer I would buy another but not from Totnes.

On Essex Boatyards website they say they have one coming in, and there was someone on here selling one not that long ago, if you can get the T top is a good touch.

If you need anymore info, visit or help PM me your email and I will help, there is not much wrong with them or things to look for, unlike the cheaper boats they dont age too quickly and if you need any, as part of my legal settlement with Simco Ive got loads of spares.

SP

 

[rubberduck]

Hi

I had the Elegante, one down from the Boca, after about two years of minor & major snag fixing, not helped by the UK distributor as pointed out above, she was finally a good boat. Cant help but think she was made out of bits lying around the factory as Doral where obviously struggling (isn't hind site a wonderful thing)
We traded up to an Absolute 41 & can honestly say how happy we are with the boat, Inwards marine & Trevor (the UK dealer at the time)
I believe we got all the snags on the Doral as I am told the buyer of Rubberduck is also extremely happy, apart from the fact that the sat tele cant see through buildings !!!!!
IMHO a bloody good boat but beware 2007 models onwards, when money was obviously tight. Just make sure you check everything twice, the boats themselves are great. Mine was delivered new with the wrong drives & air con, I wonder how long those units had been lying about, if you get my drift.

 

[mparrish]

Doral

There is one for sale in Brixham marina (on Ancasta's books I think). It is being sold by someone who visits here (there was a thread a month or so ago about it). We previously had a Doral 250SE (much smaller than the Boca), but found it to be a well put together boat with a good strong hull (heavy though !)
The one in Brixham has been up for sale for some time and has dropped in price a couple of times. Good luck.

 

[Tucana]

Thanks

gents,

Appreciate the feedback and offers of help, thank you Rob

 

[Tucana]

PM to Phil

Hi Phil,

Sent you a PM, not sure if you received it or not

Cheers Rob

 

[SolentPhill]

Hi Phil,

Sent you a PM, not sure if you received it or not

Cheers Rob

yep and replied

 

[EddieBlue]

Boca Grande

I am qualified to tell you about the Boca Grande! When I had RIBs I loved the Doral's that I saw at Cobbs Quay when I used the RIB there.

I got fed up with RIBs so ordered a Doral Prestancia, but should have bitten the bullet and ordered the Boca which was the one that I fancied.

We kept the Prestancia about six months and saw the new "T Top" Boca that Simco had just imported! So we bought it. We had every additional extra that you could think of on a boat that already came with a very high spec.

We are in the motorhome business and although we love European motorhomes we always have owned RV's (our current RV is a Winnebago) as the level of specification and the comfort level of RV's is, in the main much higher than that of European motorhomes.

This was our impression regarding the level of finish and specification of the Doral Boca Grande.

Just after taking delivery of our Boca Sabre, our dog was diagnosed with arthritis.

This meant us looking around again and with the Boca a few months old we took delivery of our current boat.

As we had bought the Trawler Yacht new, the brokers offered to sell the Boca commission free.

In hindsight this really was a mistake as I really do feel that human nature being what it is, earning 8% of £200K (the price recommended at the time) or a big fat zero could influence a broker (hard to believe I know!) into selling or showing the boat that will earn the £16K rather than the boat that earns you nothing.

However, the Boca is hardly used, is listed with a the broker at £155,000 including VAT which could be reclaimable if it was going out of the Eurozone or to a qualifying business.

Genny, heating, radar, holding tanks, macerator, vacuflush, fridge/freezer, electric hatch, T Top, engine room camera, E80, Firetrace automatic fire system, C-Pod boat tracking and monitoring system, LCD/DVD, Tuner with remotes in the master cabin and the helm, bow thruster etc etc, Snap Davitts, tender, outboard

Just cant sell it it seems! Don’t know why we paid £230K for it July 2007 and it went on in the Spring of 2008 hardly used at £199,999 Eighteen months on loads of additional costs and we are looking in the region of £155K for a broker sale. Still no offers!

Couldn't make it up LOL

Eddie

 

[terryw]

However, the Boca is hardly used, is listed with a the broker at £155,000 including VAT which could be reclaimable if it was going out of the Eurozone or to a qualifying business.

Genny, heating, radar, holding tanks, macerator, vacuflush, fridge/freezer, electric hatch, T Top, engine room camera, E80, Firetrace automatic fire system, C-Pod boat tracking and monitoring system, LCD/DVD, Tuner with remotes in the master cabin and the helm, bow thruster etc etc, Snap Davitts, tender, outboard

Just cant sell it it seems! Don’t know why we paid £230K for it July 2007 and it went on in the Spring of 2008 hardly used at £199,999 Eighteen months on loads of additional costs and we are looking in the region of £155K for a broker sale. Still no offers!

Couldn't make it up LOL

Eddie

Do not hold out too long to get the £155k you are looking for.
We bought the demo Alegria in June 2007 which had just about every extra you could think of, and then more. Her new price was £535k, and we paid £340k. She went up for sale in 2009 for £300k, reduced to £250k, further reduced to £225k, and finally sold in June 2010 for £160k.
The Alegria costs over twice the price of the Boca, so if you get any offers over £100k I would seriously consider them (especially as the season is now over, but the costs are still mounting).

Terry

 

[EddieBlue]

Do not hold out too long to get the £155k you are looking for.
We bought the demo Alegria in June 2007 which had just about every extra you could think of, and then more. Her new price was £535k, and we paid £340k. She went up for sale in 2009 for £300k, reduced to £250k, further reduced to £225k, and finally sold in June 2010 for £160k.
The Alegria costs over twice the price of the Boca, so if you get any offers over £100k I would seriously consider them (especially as the season is now over, but the costs are still mounting).

Terry

Hi Terry

LOL Trust me we will!

What did you buy after the Alegria? We moved on to a Swift Trawler which is a different style of boat alltogether.

Eddie

 

[SolentPhill]

Do not hold out too long to get the £155k you are looking for.The Alegria costs over twice the price of the Boca, so if you get any offers over £100k I would seriously consider them (especially as the season is now over, but the costs are still mounting).

Terry

Hi Terry/Eddie

Im not sure I agree with this, the boat is worth every penny of £155k and its still a bargain, the Boca is by far a better boat than sealine and they are still selling, Doral make a good boat and this one sounds good. Not many people know about them and the quality and the little touches that you dont get in many boats, like the seats are all hand stitched and have the Doral name in them, the table has the same, the helm is set out the best I have ever seen all this all points to quality not Ikea. Im not having a pop at Sealine but the square cushions and carpet are ****, Doral have their carpet all shaped to the floor, therer is so much storage down below you could hide 20 people on a trip back from France, the engine bay is so big you can keep a 3m tender and engine down there and still stand up to service the engines. I looked at a boat at boat show and engine bay closed about 6 inches from the top of the engines, Doral engines are about 3 feet from the hatch.

What may put people off is where this boat is located to view it, the fact Sinco have gone should not effect it and there is thought Doral have gone so there will be no back up again not true.

Essexboatyards used to be Doral dealers and they still sell a few there, I would be tempted if I was you to spend a bit and speak to Nick at Essex and see if he would put it up there on Brokerage, they had a Boca recently not as good as yours same age and it sold for more, Brighton had one same age sold for £180k again not as spec as yours.

Yes it will cost you to get it there but being a bargain it should sell and I doubt they will charge to store it there if they are seling it.

Good luck

SP

 

[MikeJ42]

"Doral are better than Sealine". "Sealine carpets and cushions are ****". I think you are having a pop at Sealine...

 

[SolentPhill]

"Doral are better than Sealine". "Sealine carpets and cushions are ****". I think you are having a pop at Sealine...

I was expecting this and I guess I walked into it.. I would never slag anyones boat off but when I bought my Boac I walked round SIBS and looked at Cranchi, Sealine, Fairline, Doral, and Baveria, this was just on looks, build first impressions etc. When I walked on the carpets of a sealine I found them hard and the square cushions looked liked they were standard of a boat or caravan, compared to the Doral which were leather 3 coloured and went around with the shape of the seating area. The helm is the best if you like toys.

I stand by what I say and have exhibit 1 attached Just have a look at the 2 pictures and see what you think.

please please dont take this as a pop at sealine have added a sealine helm of a 2007 model

 

[MikeJ42]

I was expecting this and I guess I walked into it.. I would never slag anyones boat off but when I bought my Boac I walked round SIBS and looked at Cranchi, Sealine, Fairline, Doral, and Baveria, this was just on looks, build first impressions etc. When I walked on the carpets of a sealine I found them hard and the square cushions looked liked they were standard of a boat or caravan, compared to the Doral which were leather 3 coloured and went around with the shape of the seating area. The helm is the best if you like toys.

I stand by what I say and have exhibit 1 attached Just have a look at the 2 pictures and see what you think.

please please dont take this as a pop at sealine

I happen to feel the exact opposite, although I wouldn’t express it quite so ineloquently. I personally feel that shiny wood, gold rimmed fittings, deep pile carpet and plump rounded upholstery is somewhat dated. That’s a diplomatic response...

 

[jimg]

I have to say that looks like one of the worse helm arragements I have ever seen!
It looks a total mess and appears to be trying too hard to look "sexy"?

 

[terryw]

Hi Terry/Eddie

Im not sure I agree with this, the boat is worth every penny of £155k and its still a bargain, the Boca is by far a better boat than sealine and they are still selling, Doral make a good boat and this one sounds good.SP

Phil

Where in my post did I mention Sealine?
My Alegria, with TNT platform was 52 foot long, and the flagship of the DORAL range

Terry

 

[[2068]]

That explosion of fake walnut onto a multi-surfaced barrel organ control panel doesn't work for me at all, I'm afraid.

But, the Dorals I have seen are nicely put-together, just a bit USA when it comes to some of the detailing, which is a matter of taste.

 

[Whitelighter]

Big problem with the Dorals (and a lot of continental N. American boats) is the open plan layouts. I know you as an owner love it, but 95% of buyers want two totally separate cabins on a 37-40ft boat. Look at the popular ones - they all have this layout (and probably would sell un the US/Canada.

The Dorals are well made for sure, but they are an unusual/oddball/left field choice here. The value is affected by a good number of people who want to own one already do. It therefor has to be priced to make mr I want 2 cabins to think, what the hell, lets go for the weird choice. And to do that it needs to be a significant wedge under the equivilent Sealine/Fairline/Bavaria/Jeanneau etc etc etc etc etc.

 

[SolentPhill]

Phil

Where in my post did I mention Sealine?
My Alegria, with TNT platform was 52 foot long, and the flagship of the DORAL range

Terry

Yep agree there the sealine was just a comparison just saying that the little touches Doral do unlike the sealine or a few builders really.