New boat (maybe) Azimut 55, 2003

[adey]

We’re close to getting back into boating with an offer on an Azimut 55 in Italy.
Nervous as usual about the boat being a shed the broker being a scammer but that’s all part of it I guess.
Viewed it over the weekend and it seems ok.

 

[jfm]

Best of luck. Nice boat the 55 - they made a few hundred so lots of people must agree.
If it's any encouragement, my brother bought an Italian boat in Italy last weekend - it isn't a shed and no-one was a scammer. All good (Will cover it in separate thread; don't wish to hijack this one).
Are you keeping the Azimut 55 in Italy/Med?

 

[adey]

The boat is currently as far South in Italy as you can go so wife wants 2024 in Greece, preferably Corfu, then back up the West coast of Italy at the end of 2024.
Anything of note in the engine bay?

 

[rafiki_]

We’re close to getting back into boating with an offer on an Azimut 55 in Italy.
Nervous as usual about the boat being a shed the broker being a scammer but that’s all part of it I guess.
Viewed it over the weekend and it seems ok.

Sounds interesting. I’m looking forward to a successful purchase, with lots of pics please?

 

[Sticky Fingers]

Sounds interesting. I’m looking forward to a successful purchase, with lots of pics please?

Plus 1

 

[Portofino]

Answering the Q in post #3 .
You might want to have the exhaust elbows unwrapped to inspect there state .

 

[MapisM]

Anything of note in the engine bay?

I can't see anything obviously wrong.
Also the engines idling sound OK, regular and with no tappets noise.
The accessories and hoses fitting is a bit messy, but that's typical Azimut, so I wouldn't consider that as a warning signal of poor maintenance.
Inspecting the rather long dry section of the exhausts as Portofino suggested is not a bad idea, but the insulation is not something you can "unwrap" and put back on.
It's rather a matter of stripping the old one and rebuild it, so I wouldn't expect the owner to agree, unless you accept to pay for the rebuild.
Which I don't think is worth, since in the worst case you'll have to rebuild the whole pipes if needed - which in a 20yo boat wouldn't be unheard of.
And while certainly not a trivial cost, it's not a deal breaker either, in the grand scheme.
All the best for a satisfactory deal!

PS: is the boat by chance near Taranto?
I went there to see one that was for sale already some years ago, and she was in pretty good conditions.
Then again, as JFM said, it has been a very popular model for Azimut, and there's plenty of them around, particularly in Italy...

 

[adey]

Thanks.
The boat is not in Taranto. It’s the other side in Crotone.
We’re not far apart on price so hopefully a deal will happen. The owner has had it from new, apparently.
The only thing that really needs updating is the original vacuflush toilets. I know we all love a good (hopefully non-exploding) toilet thread.
Oh, and the anchor too

 

[MapisM]

The only thing that really needs updating is the original vacuflush toilets.

Yeah, that was Azi standard, back then.
Also the rather intricated installation in your last pic, with pipes and wires all over the place, is typical Azi OEM, gaffer tape included!
Which is actually good news, because in my experience, a major problem of not so clean original installations is that when something needs fixed, also whoever works on it tends to not bother about making a clean repair, hence entering a vicious circle, sort of...
Another typical problem of that vintage Azis (though they are in good company with Brit builders in this respect!) is the sagging upholstery, on just about every bulkhead and ceilings.

But having said all that, there's a lot to like in the 55 - which is the reason why I also considered it, in fact.
Starting with the full beam master cabin, now de rigueur at this and also smaller sizes, but actually started precisely with the Azi 55.
And also the rest of the internal layout is rather nice.
Another not so obvious nice feature, which is rather peculiar at this size, is the high radar arch, which allows attaching to it the aft side of a bimini.
Some 55 also had a f/b crane installed - does the one you're considering have it?

Apropos, another thing (imho minor, but possibly emphasized by the crane+tender on the f/b): she's widely regarded as rather prone to rolling for her size, which particularly at anchor can be annoying.
Nothing that a gyro couldn't cure of course, if that's your thing. But by heart, I can't recall any good location for retrofitting it...

 

[jfm]

100% agreeing Mapism comments here.
Engines sound good. All the installation messiness is typical Azimut cost cutting at this size of boat, but ok and you can gradually fix/improve it. For sure I would rip out the entire WCs+black tank system+pipework in your shoes, which is not too hard a job
The fundamental design of the 55 is great. Full beam master, and pretty much the only boat in its class that could carry 2 toys eg jet-ski plus tender - one on fly and one on swim platform.. Nice flybridge, and a well styled boat whose looks have stood the test of time very well imho.

 

[adey]

The plan is to rip out all the plumbing and start again.
It’s quite a low spec really; no crane or BBQ on the fly, no washing machine. The good thing though is the owner has replaced every wall covering, carpet and cushion on the whole boat, plus all the electronics are nice. (Axiom, Quantom radar plus yacht controller)
I did get details of a different boat with a Seakeeper fitted but it sold straight away. At least it means it will fit and a Seakeeper 6 (same physical size) would definitely be something we’d like, eventually.
Anybody know of an English speaking surveyor in Italy?

 

[MapisM]

In a sense, your pic of that gyro installation confirms what I had in mind ref. no "good" place for fitting it.
I mean, that location is right under the hatch for e/r access, in between the engines.
And while that's OK per se, I could bet it makes accessibility to gearboxes, shaft seals and genset much harder.
Besides, I half recall that in OEM installation there's a bilge pump right under that spot, which more than likely is the lower point of the whole e/r.
No big deal to relocate the pump of course, possibly with a hose+pickup routed to the lower point under the gyro.
But still, it's a bilge area I'd prefer to keep visible and accessible for cleaning and whatnot.

All that said, I doubt you'll find a better placement, if you really wish to retrofit the gyro.
Anyhow, in your boots, I definitely would use the boat quite a bit before going for such expensive retrofit.
I guess this might sound weird after I mentioned that the Azi55 is known to be a bit prone to rolling - in fact, when I made a very extensive search for this type/size of boat, I always kept an eye to how easy it would have been to retrofit a gyro.
BUT, fast forward a few years, I wouldn't want to have a gyro in my boat if I could get it FoC from Santa Claus.
In fact, it all depends on your typical usage pattern: me, being money poor but time rich, I cherry pick the very best weather for going at sea by boat.
And I'm so used to sleep in total silence that I very much prefer any boat motion to the constant genset noise.
Within reason, of course: if in spite of having checked the forecasts carefully and picked an anchorage accordingly, the wind turns and builds up enough waves to become annoying, I just weigh the hook and move elsewhere!
That's firmly an "each to their own" thing of course, but it's just to explain why I wouldn't fit a gyro upfront, without being sure that you want it first.

Oh, and ref. the surveyor question: if you really want the boat surveyed, in your boots I'd byte the bullet and send there someone from the UK.
Reason being that in Italy - particularly in the deep South - you have no way to be sure of who knows who, if you see what I mean.
And even if obviously the cost of a local surveyor would be lower than flying someone down there, a high cost for a good service is still better than a reasonable cost for a (potentially, at least!) useless service.

PS: judging from the pic alone, it seems that someone made a fantastic refitting of interior upholstery. Alcantara, 'innit?
If you'll have a chance to know how much they spent, I'd be curious to hear it, because there are acres of the original cheap covers, and that's one of the things I was very concerned about with both the Azi55 I came across during my search.

 

[adey]

Is £4120 a lot for a Brit to do the survey?

 

[markc]

Does that cover all the travel & accommodation? Even so, it feels expensive - gut feeling is £1500 max for the survey itself, I think I paid 1200 euros for my similar size / age boat a few years ago to a SoF surveyor.

 

[benjenbav]

I can't see anything obviously wrong.
Also the engines idling sound OK, regular and with no tappets noise.
The accessories and hoses fitting is a bit messy, but that's typical Azimut, so I wouldn't consider that as a warning signal of poor maintenance.
Inspecting the rather long dry section of the exhausts as Portofino suggested is not a bad idea, but the insulation is not something you can "unwrap" and put back on.
It's rather a matter of stripping the old one and rebuild it, so I wouldn't expect the owner to agree, unless you accept to pay for the rebuild.
Which I don't think is worth, since in the worst case you'll have to rebuild the whole pipes if needed - which in a 20yo boat wouldn't be unheard of.
And while certainly not a trivial cost, it's not a deal breaker either, in the grand scheme.
All the best for a satisfactory deal!

PS: is the boat by chance near Taranto?
I went there to see one that was for sale already some years ago, and she was in pretty good conditions.
Then again, as JFM said, it has been a very popular model for Azimut, and there's plenty of them around, particularly in Italy...

Would it be practicable to look at the exhausts with an endoscopic camera?

 

[vas]

good luck Adey, looks like a nice boat!
no idea on surveying costs (never used one and tbh don't know anyone that has used a surveyor down here, not sure they even exist in Greece, ppl just take their mechanic for an engine/geny check!)

Got a Q though: does surveying (no matter how expensive or cheap) gives the prospective owner anything more than the peace of mind that the report gives (and a haggling space for repairs/updates)?
I mean heaven forbid, something surveyor misses that soon after ownership brings up a nice big bill, can owner claim and get some money back from him or his professional insurance or whatever? Or does he simply get in a pointless expensive legal battle?

Sorry, not implying something like that does happen, just curious as I see you lot being v.keen on surveying and guess there is a reason.

cheers

V.

 

[vas]

Would it be practicable to look at the exhausts with an endoscopic camera?

would need undoing the flange and pushing a 1.5m tiny dia tube up there with a tiny led light. All that in a black shoot covered pipe, black on black, god knows what you'll be able to spot there, doubt much tbh.
if there is a leak, it will manifest itself on the outside, granted will take a few more hours to "exit" the wrapping, but will eventually do

 

[DAW]

Is £4120 a lot for a Brit to do the survey?

It depends what the quotation includes ... inclusive/exclusive of VAT, travel, number of visits, etc. ... and the scope of work you have agreed.

The last full survey I had done was in May 2019 on a 60ft boat based in France. The surveyor was from the UK but working in SoF on a regular basis, so no travel expenses. The scope of work included two visits ... one to inspect hull, etc. with the boat out of the water and attend the sea trial and a second to carry out full interior survey and testing of all mechanical systems. He then subsequently assisted me in discussions with the seller and his broker on the scope of possible works. In the end, we could not agree with the seller on the rectification works and I decided not to buy the boat. The final cost was about £3,000 ex VAT.

Based on my experience, UK surveyors are always more expensive than those based in SoF and Italy. However, they are generally more independent. the surveys seem to be more thorough, they are willing to travel and the written reports are usually more comprehensive.

 

[jfm]

Would it be practicable to look at the exhausts with an endoscopic camera?

Not worth it imho. There are disposable/cheap items. Just replace in whichever winter they are approaching end of life.

 

[adey]

It’s all immaterial now. The seller has changed his mind about selling!
The broker said he did the same thing a few months ago with another buyer and not to waste any more time on him.