Tested | Stabicraft 2250 Centrecab with 225hp V6 Yamaha

Stabicraft Boats have been built in Invercargill, Southland New Zealand since the late 1980's. Northside Marine is the sole Queensland dealer for these boats. Mark took Steve Morgan and the Fishing Monthly crew out for a ride on a blustery Moreton Bay. Powered by the Yamaha 225HP V6, the 2250 Centrecab is a serious family/fishing boat for Australian conditions.

Here's the full report...

There must be something appealing about the Stabicraft 2250 Centrecab, because it’s the quickest boat test on our YouTube channel to reach 20,000 views (it took a little over a week). We’re unsure if it was the burnt orange colour or the ‘dream rig’ nature of this boat, but it sure got people clicking and watching.

Admittedly, it turned heads at the ramp, too, as Mark Golden from Brisbane’s Northside Marine rocked up with the NSM Landcruiser and this rig behind it. That’s quarter of a million dollars worth of metal coasting into the Clontarf launch.

For many people, this is their dream boat. It looks the part, can play the part on the water in anywhere from glassy to dubious weather conditions and because it’s eminently trailerable, it’ll travel to wherever you want it to go - without “OVERSIZE” signage.

Mark’s a real Stabicraft expert and has visited their manufacturing headquarters in New Zealand.

“These are one of the safest hulls you’ll ever ride in, with the sealed pontoons and 360 Life Ring not only offering amazing stability, but an unsinkable hull,” he said.

Sitting on the maximum 2.5m beam, this hull uses all of that width to provide an excellent balance between ride, walkaround ability and fishing space and the Stabicraft packs all of it in to this rig.

Although this boat is all about a big cockpit space (and there’s plenty of it), the cabin is long enough to sleep in, thanks to a couple of bunk extenders that fold out under the helm seating.

With an enclosed cabin, it’s obviously very comfortable to ride in. The side windows offer plenty of cabin ventilation and the holm and passenger seats deliver great visibility. The helm has a massive, flat dash that will hold all of your electronics, flush mounted. Switching is compressed to the lower part of the dash to keep the main dash free.

The test boat was fitted with a large Simrad unit and a Yamaha digital engine gauge, and there was still room to burn.

Stabicraft have put plenty of thought into how this boat is laid out and how it fishes - at the transom, there’s the integrated live bait tank and bait station, with battery access underneath. We loved that you can fish out your livies right through the bait board. And that there’s a multi leader dispenser incorporated. Classy.

Powered by Yamaha’s 4.2L F225 4-stroke, the rig was 75HP short of its maximum rating, yet still jumped onto the plane when you jammed the DTS throttle down. Planing at 3,000rpm, it cruised most economically at 3,500rpm and 42km/h where it delivered 1.35km/L. Drop the hammers and the economy dropped to just over 800m/L where the engine reached 5,700rpm at 60km/h.

Would I fit the maximum HP to this boat? Definitely! I’m a big fan of having the power there when you need it, but if you’re not as throttle happy as me, then the 225 will do you just fine and keep the package price down a little.

A tested, this Stabicraft hits the register at around $162,900 - that’s with the Minnkota Ulterra and the 12 inch Simrad fitted. Packages start, however, from $139,000. Hit up Mark or the Northside Marine team for full details and for a package price that suits your type of boating and fishing.

All of their details are at www.northsidemarine.com.au or Like their page on Facebook: Northside Marine - your boating partners for life.

PERFORMANCE

RPM km/h km/L
1000 10 1.9
2000 14 1.6
3000 32 1.3
3500 42 1.35
4000 49 1.15
4500 55 1.05
5000 60 0.91
5700 69 0.82

SPECIFICATIONS

Length 6.85m
Beam 2.50m
Max HP 300
Fuel 300L
Test weight 2335kg
Capacity 8 persons