RETRO MADE MODERN

From standard tinnies to centre consoles, cruisers, and even the latest superyachts, there are some hot new boats causing mania in the marine industry at the moment. One of the most interesting boat designs making fast headway into the market is the imported Saxdor brand of boats — when a new model hits our shores, we jump at the opportunity to get a spin on it. This time around it’s their latest 320 GTO with 600hp of pure Mercury grunt on offer, so no doubt an interesting test was on the cards.

There are a number of similar brands all sporting the somewhat odd Euro design, and this is due to one man — Sakari Mattila — being the original designer and founder of Saxdor Yachts, Axopar and XO Boats among others.

Distributed by The Adventure Boat Company in Australia, the Saxdor range is one of the most interesting boat designs on the market. Across the board, first glances of a Saxdor — particularly the 320 GTO — would be