42 Azimut - italian build.

Checked off so many of the boxes, great social space salon, cockpit, flybridge, two stateroom, good looking boat, etc. Made the offer, now to see if it's as nice as the broker states.
https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/2001/azimut-42-fly-bridge-3589005/
I think this will work as a solid family boat for the next five to seven years until we're looking at the retirement boat. If not, well I have a solid plan B.

Azimut's are laid out well and perform well and the negatives are things encountered under warranty so you're long beyond those. Enjoy.

I agree that layout looks very social. I also like the double wide helm chair both on the flybridge and at the lower helm, the skipper will have some company. The blue upholstery is a very cheerful color. Good luck with the purchase.

Sexy...like a floating Lamborghini.

Have you read the reviews online?
"complained of handling problems on the Great Lakes in Michigan and complained that he thought the beam was not wide enough and that the props are too close together. He also stated that he had a hard time getting support from the Azimut."


"narrow beam" (not sure why that was said it's 13' 8" for 42 that's about right.)


"I'd say their interior joinery and fittings are NOT way ahead of the others"


"I think they're a bit over styled so they could date more quickly than more conservative designs but the current designs look the biz to me eyes, esp the 53 and 58. FWIW and based on my experience with the AZ46, Azimut do seem to use high quality equipment in their boats; mine had stuff like Kohler genny, Cruisair a/c, Vacuflush bogs, Racor filters, PSS shaft seals etc. No HFL or Whittall **** to be found. My boat had some nice practical features like big enclosed fairleads, fuel fillers in spillage traps, big anchor and chain etc
Like any Italian boats, mine had some stupidities too. The helm ergonomics are not great, as you have pointed out, and fixed helm seats are not acceptable on any boat of this value. But poor helms seem to be a general Italian blind spot so Azimut are not alone. Also another Italian characteristic and it's certainly the case with some Azimuts is a large engine bay but at the expense of a storage lazarette, which is disadvantage if you need to carry stuff. Another Azimut thing are the electric side windows which look great at boat shows but fail as I well know. My favorite bit of bone headed design on my boat was the aft facing fridge in the galley which emptied it's contents on to the galley floor every time the boat went on to the plane, unless the tiny door lock was engaged."


"Joinery.

IMHO the joinery work is not up with the others. If not exposed screw heads they are covered with cheap plastic caps. also many I have seen are mild steel and rusting.

Machinery.

Yes. In some ways over engineered, but not thought about. I've seen major electrical junction boxes mounted inline with poor shaft seals causing water to spray over them. Batteries mounted in nearly impossible to access places (az 47), passerells mounted with seriously poor reinforcement."




But there were plenty that loved the boat.

Good luck, enjoy if your offer is accepted

As I tried to state, there are many negative reviews but the vast majority of those deal with electrical problems when new and poor warranty service. On your sea trial, you'll have to judge the ride and comfort. I hadn't seen the review talking about handling problems but would look for that. It does not have stabilizers and would probably benefit from them. It does have Bennett Trim Tabs and used properly they can be used to eliminate or minimize handling issues.

Looks fast even when still! Curious if you plan on running it at planing speed or slower. Seems like a fair price for the pedigree.

Looks like fun

For the price I think it might be difficult to go wrong. Obviously, the engines and other machinery must pass a close inspection. But, if they do, have fun.

Interesting layout.

Hope your survey goes well!

Jim

Cool boat. Its rare to have a lower helm in that style boat, that's a huge plus. Nice to have diesels too.

Good luck

Going to be moving forward to sea trial and mechanical. The good news, owner spent 10k on Cat 1000 hour service! Some smaller cosmetic issues nothing 5 boat bucks won't resolve. Moving forward to bring in the professionals. Yeah I read through most of those reviews. Azimut is a large builder with as few complaints I imagine it will fit the bill well. Going to use it coastal cruising, mainly Oregon/Washington.

bshillam said:

Going to be moving forward to sea trial and mechanical. The good news, owner spent 10k on Cat 1000 hour service! ..

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Have you been to see it? There are a number of boats of that ilk, Sealine is another. I hope it works out.

bshillam said:

The good news, owner spent 10k on Cat 1000 hour service!

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Must have been major, did you get see a work sheet what was done?


please tell us what cost that kinda $$ at 1,000 hours

This is odd. Lipets accused me of "raining on his parade" when I volunteered information about the boat he was buying,after having researched and rejected an identical boat to his over build issues.

Ease up lipets. bshillham knows what he`s doing.

lipets said:

Must have been major, did you get see a work sheet what was done?


please tell us what cost that kinda $$ at 1,000 hours

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CAT 1000 Hour:

First you do all the 250 hour/annual service, which is:

Check auxiliary water pump and impeller and replace as needed
Check battery electrolyte level and voltage
Check engine belts and adjust or replace as needed
Check coolant system levels and add additive as necessary
Obtain coolant system coolant samples
Check engine air filter and clean or replace as needed
Clean engine crankcase breather
Change engine oil and filters
Obtain oil samples
Replace RACOR fuel filters
Replace engine secondary fuel filters
Inspect all hoses and clamps and replace as necessary

Every 500 hours:

Change engine oil and filters.

On top of that the 1000 hour or 4 year service is:

Inspect aftercooler core, clean and bench test for proper function
Inspect heat exchanger, clean and repair as necessary
Inspect turbocharger, repair as necessary
Replace closed crankcase ventilation fumes disposal filter

That could all easily run $10,000, especially if the heat exchanger or turbocharger require any repair.

BruceK said:

This is odd. Lipets accused me of "raining on his parade" when I volunteered information about the boat he was buying,after having researched and rejected an identical boat to his over build issues.

Ease up lipets. bshillham knows what he`s doing.

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You really have some issues, now your his lawyer?


Forget your meds today

lipets said:

You really have some issues, now your his lawyer?


Forget your meds today

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Not just a hypocrite, but rude and offensive too. TF has an overriding "be nice" rule. Check it out.

I have already asked for copies of the 1,000 hour service. Certainly they should have found some major work to spend $10k in the engine room. I had already looked up what the service calls for. My assumption would be cooling system related. When the receipt comes in I'll share with everyone as I am just as curious too.

Based on that receipt you want to check the other engine for same issues as a negotiating point

lipets said:

Based on that receipt you want to check the other engine for same issues as a negotiating point

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The other engine? The 1000 hour check would have been for both engines. The price is not at all high for typical 1000 hour CAT service.

You point out a selection of negative reviews you found but there are many happy owners of Azimut. Yes, some wiring issues but those should be long worked out. In general quality of build, they would certainly be considered at least equal to Beneteau, which you own. In terms of the ride of this specific model, that's something he'll have to see in a sea trial and I recommend really putting a boat through it's paces in one. If there is no rough water, then create some as all boats do fine in glassy smooth water. I think this may well be a boat that needs stabilization.

I would never buy an Azimut new in the US and that's largely due to the warranty service as administered by Marine Max. However, this doesn't mean I wouldn't consider a used one and through survey and sea trial I would determine if all the problems had been addressed over the years.

lipets said:

Must have been major, did you get see a work sheet what was done?


please tell us what cost that kinda $$ at 1,000 hours

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Think marine age. Not surprising at all that a pair of 17 year old Cat 3126s could go for $5K each for a thorough PM and hang on part or two changeout.

I don't know if this is going to work, never done it. Downloaded PDF of the work completed in 2017.

I wrote the name of that yard Ruffing marine on my never go to list.


nvironmental Charge (OIL & FILTER DISPOSAL) $150
20 gallons of oil?
58 hours labor for that work? that's like a week and half


other invoice 10 hours to change an injector, $472? less than $300 anyplace




Good thing you didn't have to pay that bill.


Enjoy the boat

Yeah I thought that was way over the top but then it wasn’t my bill. My mechanic would have been half. It’s all good though better to see some PM then none at all regardless of the price.

bshillam said:

I don't know if this is going to work, never done it. Downloaded PDF of the work completed in 2017.

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The first is not an invoice, it's just an estimate. It provides no evidence the work was done or what it cost. The second is an actual invoice.

BandB said:

The first is not an invoice, it's just an estimate. It provides no evidence the work was done or what it cost. The second is an actual invoice.

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Yes. In addition, the actual work performed on the engine states head removal and work on #6 cylinder. Seems there is a missing invoice for estimated work. Something to pay attention to during mechanical inspection may be elbow and turbo condition and exhaust design. Also does this mean the work was done in FL and boat now in SoCal?

Excellent catch, I didn't even notice that the invoices were being drawn against a FL address.

I'm am continuing to dig to get answers on the estimate and why the discrepancy. I don't believe the boat was in FL.

The quote is dated 10/31/17, 4 months before the invoice for other work dated 2/19/18. Unless something is very odd, the boat must have been in FL. Invoice says mileage was waived, but waiving mileage Naples FL to Socal and vv isn`t likely.
It`s possible the owner lost the invoice for the quoted work,but still had the quote. Either way, it merits inquiry. Makes no sense a seller puts you on notice of significant engine work being required but not done. Barring anything really odd,a call to Ruffing Diesel should resolve it without involving seller or broker.

BruceK said:

The quote is dated 10/31/17, 4 months before the invoice for other work dated 2/19/18. Unless something is very odd, the boat must have been in FL. Invoice says mileage was waived, but waiving mileage Naples FL to Socal and vv isn`t likely.
It`s possible the owner lost the invoice for the quoted work,but still had the quote. Either way, it merits inquiry. Makes no sense a seller puts you on notice of significant engine work being required but not done. Barring anything really odd,a call to Ruffing Diesel should resolve it without involving seller or broker.

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If Ruffing Diesel discusses without authorization from the seller, that would be very wrong. Interestingly, if you try their website as shown on the invoice, it no longer exists. Facebook does.

BandB said:

If Ruffing Diesel discusses without authorization from the seller, that would be very wrong. Interestingly, if you try their website as shown on the invoice, it no longer exists. Facebook does.

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Gets hard if they are out of business.You may have different privacy rules but I don`t regard inquiring direct as improper. In this case I`d prefer going direct without forewarning the sellers, it`s up to Ruffing whether they respond or require customer ok. It`s not as if the info is legally privileged.
Recently I spoke to an interstate Yard who did work on a boat for sale I inspected. I did ask the broker/seller to ok it with the Yard, accepting it could make the info I got less reliable. I`d rather get the info without first involving the seller if I could.