T R A I L E R B O A T S . C O M74 M A R C H 2 0 0 5 T R A I L E R B O A T S M A R C H 2 0 0 5 75

ou’re in a boat dealership, paging through a brochure andmusing about power options for your next worthy craft.You see the word “diesel.” What thoughts spring to mind?

How about, “heavy, slow, smoky and loud?”That’s the way I always thought about diesel-powered

boats, too. I imagined them noisier, dirtier, slower and heav-ier than their gasoline counterparts. Fortunately, a new gen-eration of compact diesel sterndrives is hitting the market.Fueled by high-tech, lightweight and powerful designs fromCummins MerCruiser Diesel and Volvo Penta, these stern-drives are quickly reshaping the way we think about small-boat diesels.

In the past, we’ve covered diesels in boats where you’dexpect to see them — like larger offshore express models(such as the Scout 280 Vintage diesel we tested in July, 2004).And we’ve also evaluated them in nontraditional applications,such as center consoles. This time around, we chose an evenmore unusual platform — a Regal 2250 — to showcase thelatest engine technology — Volvo Penta’s long-legged D3-160turbodiesel.

FEEL THE POWERWe ran Regal’s 22x81/2-foot cuddy in relatively calm condi-

tions off St. Petersburg, Florida, and the company’svented FasTrac hull delivered good perfor-

mance from this inline, five-cylinder design.Diesel power is not a novel idea forRegal since the Orlando-based builderhas a significant international presence,

especially in Europe where gasolineprices are much higher than in the

United States. And while fuel pricesremain a concern for Americanboaters, we Yanks are morelikely to embrace diesels for therange, reliability and durability

they offer.Our rig was fitted with Volvo

Penta’s new D3 design. Rated at 160propshaft hp, it features an aluminum

block with cast-in iron cylinder liners andreplaceable valve seats. It’s also equipped

with freshwater cooling; double overheadcamshafts; and an aftercooled, variable geom-

etry turbine that delivers solid torque when youhammer down.Compact and extremely light, our test engine (in-

cluding outdrive) weighs a mere 692 pounds, per themanufacturer, which equals a power-to-weight ratio of

0.23. When you compare it tothe 0.27 ratio of a DuoProp-

equipped 5.7L Gi, which

YY

What do you get when you combine Regal’s 2250

with Volvo’s new lightweight diesel?

A gorgeous cuddy with really long legs

Story and Photos by Zenon L. Bilas

LegsLongLong

Volvo Penta D3-160 turbodiesel

T R A I L E R B O A T S M A R C H 2 0 0 5 77

arm are stainless. Looking sharp, Regal wentfor the postless windshield, allowing for anunobstructed view.

The adjustable, swiveling seats for the cap-tain and co-pilot are highly supportive and, asa new option for 2005, the helm seat can alsoadjust for height, further improving drivervisibility. The L-shaped cockpit seating iscomfortable and shows the same attention todetail. The bottoms of the seat cushions havea finished look, for example, and the under-sides are stitched to hide the staples.

MOVE OVER, CLEOPATRAThe 2250 is easy on the eye, but there’s stillroom for improvement. Noticeably, the hingesthat allow you to access storage under thecockpit seat were not flush with the uphol-stery. And the styling of the wetbar sinkdoesn’t quite match the boat’s upscale look.Our rig’s Convenience Center option ($1000)includes a portable grill, as well as a wetbarand transom shower. We love these familyfeatures that complement the functionality ofthe cuddy, but the sink needs a makeover.

Thanks to the domed foredeck, the cabinoffers 4 feet, 4 inches of headroom at the cen-ter. And with a V-berth that boasts a maxi-mum width of 5 feet and stretches more than6 feet in length, two people can overnight incomfort. A Kenwood CD stereo is mountedbelow deck, along with two of the boat’s fourspeakers. Regal’s policy of keeping stereodecks housed away from the elements is smart.

The cuddy and surrounding area serve upsome surprises, too. Instead of a folding fiber-glass door, the Regal features a fancier slidingacrylic door as seen on cruisers. The acrylicsurface allows light to shine into the cabin.We also liked the steps leading to the fore-deck. They swivel out to allow quick accessforward, yet tuck away when not needed.

WHAT’S MISSING?How did this 22-footer perform with a dieselsterndrive? Remember, an 81/2-foot-wide,4000-pound cuddy is not a go-fast boat —but Regal’s FasTrac hull doesn’t seem toknow that. This stepped hull is designed toallow maximum performance and fuel econ-omy with minimal power. As such, it wasa good platform for testing the new 160 hpVolvo diesel.

The first thing we noticed after pullingaway from the dock was an absence of en-gine noise. The familiar diesel rumbling wasmissing when idling, accelerating or runningwide open. Shifts were smooth and enginevibration was marginal. Volvo’s use of arigid aluminum cylinder block and wedge-structure bedplate minimize the throbbingassociated with older diesel designs, while acommon-rail fuel-injection system (that bet-ter manages fuel distribution to all five cylin-ders) delivers torquey throttle response. Inconjunction with the engine’s ElectronicVessel Control management system, it alsominimizes smoke. (Volvo officials claim theD3-160 will meet federal emissions regula-tions that will be introduced in 2007.) Itsurprised us that this clean-burning engineproduced little, if any, diesel smell.

■ Regal closes off thetransom walkthrough with aninnovative sunpad extension

that can also be positionedas a chaise lounge. Whennot needed, it neatly folds

under the main pad. Handysteps allow easy passage to

the foredeck, while gaspistons ease the chore of

accessing the sunpad lockeror engine bay that housesthe Volvo D3-160 diesel.

T R A I L E R B O A T S . C O M76 M A R C H 2 0 0 5

makes 280 hp and weighs 1040pounds, the gasoline combo’spower-to-weight advantage isn’tall that great — on paper, at least.But what about on the water? Tofind out, we compared numbersfrom both packages on Regal’shigh-stepping hull.

Diesels are often favored bysaltwater boaters, so Regal choseto mate the D3-160 to Volvo’scomposite Ocean Series Duo-Prop, a drive that is designed tominimize saltwater corrosion.Our rig was equipped with anF5 prop set.

A CUDDY WITH CLASS Before we discuss performance,let’s talk about the boat itself.Perhaps owing to its steppedhull, the Regal 2250 looks moreaggressive than the average cud-dy, and we like its stylishly pro-gressive lines. The design pointthat immediately draws your eye

is the broad V-cut in the centerof the transom. The layout in-vites passengers to move fromthe cockpit to the swimstep forsunning, swimming or just kick-ing back.

The cut of the stern makes theswim platform more spacious.Instead of mounting a tow eye

low to the platform, Regal in-stalled a stainless pylon just aftof the sunpad. Although thisraised towing point is advanta-geous for ’skiers and wakeboard-ers, it would be convenient ifthe pylon could drop away flushwhen not needed. And thoughthe 2250 will appeal to the sports-

minded, the cuddy design ex-cludes the in-floor ski lockerthat’s located amidships on thecompany’s 2200 bowrider.

The 2250 has an upscale lookand features generous use ofstainless steel — including onthe windshield, where the major-ity of the frame and supporting

■ Burlwood accents on our Regal 2250 test platform help dress up the helm, and a new, height-adjustable seatimproves both driving comfort and visibility.

Long LegsLong Legs

T R A I L E R B O A T S . C O M80 M A R C H 2 0 0 5

P E R F O R M A N C E A T A G L A N C E

T E S T R E S U L T S 1

REGAL 2250Base Price

(w/ 5.0L gas) $42,077Price as Tested $56,202

Length 22’ 2”Beam 8’ 6”

Weight 3950 lbs.Fuel Capacity 54 gallons

Maximum Horsepower 320

Regal, Dept. TBM, 2300 Jet Port Drive, Orlando,FL 32809; 407/851-4360; regalboats.com

S P E C I F I C A T I O N S

Although our sound meter showed slightlyhigher decibel (dBa) readings at low throttlesettings than what we typically register withgasoline engines, the tone of the sound wasnever obtrusive. And at wide-open throttle,the D3-160 hit 90 dBa at 38.1 mph (measuredat the helm), similar to a gasoline engine run-ning at the same speed.

THROTTLE REACTION An acceleration time of 10.4 seconds from0-to-30 mph or a top speed of 38.1 mph is byno means blazing; even so, the D3’s throttlenever felt like mush. Acceleration was steady,without the lag time often experienced withother diesels, and the responsive helm made the boat fun to operate.

How does this fare against a gas engine? The Regal 2250 is alsoavailable with MerCruiser or Volvo Penta 5.0L or 5.7L gasoline stern-drives. Mated to a DuoProp SX drive and swinging an F6 prop setthrough 1.95:1 reduction, the 280 hp Volvo 5.7L Gi reached 30 mph

in only 7.0 seconds. That’s 3.4seconds faster than the turbo-charged D3-160. At 53.8 mph,it also posted a 15.7 mph top-speed advantage over the diesel.That’s hardly a surprise. Com-pared to the diesel, the gas pack-age packs an additional 120 hp.

When it comes to fuel econ-omy and range, however, thediesel rules. At each rpm point,the I-5 diesel smoked the V-8 gaspowerplant. Across the board,the diesel averaged 5.6 mpg andits range averaged 273 miles.Bringing up the rear, the gassmall block posted 3.0 mpg andhad a 143-mile range from thesame 54-gallon tank.

TOUGH CHOICEIf you couple that kind of econ-omy and range with the price offuel, you may give serious con-sideration to one of the new-generation diesels. But there’smore to the equation, such asthe price of the engine.

The Regal 2250 lists for$42,077 with the base, 270 hpVolvo Penta 5.0L GXi gas pack-age. Upgrade to the 5.7L Gi andDP-SX outdrive, and the stick-er jumps to $46,206. Go dieselwith the D3-160, however, andthe base price soars to $53,063.

Sure, diesels have a reputationfor being reliable, tough and fuelstingy — but there’s an $11,000upcharge as you go from the baseengine to the D3 diesel. Thenthere’s power. The 5.0L VolvoPenta gasoline sterndrive has anextra 110 hp to work with, and the5.7L has a 120-pony advantage

— and both have better price-to-power ratios, too.

In Europe, where gas pricesare three to four times higherthan in the United States, choos-ing diesel makes sense as thefuel savings will make up for theinitial purchase price. That’s aharder sell stateside, at least forboaters considering runaboutssuch as the 2250. But for thoseinterested in diesel, the D3-160is an excellent example of howrapidly technology is improving.

As diesels continue to becomesmaller, lighter and more power-ful — and as the price discrep-ancy between these engines andgasoline sterndrives narrows —diesels are becoming more at-tractive. For Regal, including adiesel option in a small familycuddy shows its interest in pro-viding consumers with choices.We won’t tell you which way tolean, but we guarantee if you test-drive the D3-powered Regal, youwon’t think “loud and smoky,”and your senses will appreciatethe boat’s seamless power andquality construction.

Throw in the long legs of thatsmooth-running diesel, and she’sa beauty in anyone’s eyes.

Long LegsLong Legs ■ Volvo Penta D3-160 diesel■ Volvo Penta 5.7L Gi gas

Engine Speed Fuel Range2

(rpm) (mph) (gph) (mpg) (miles)1000 6.0 6.1 0.5 1.5 12.0 4.1 583 1991500 7.7 7.9 1.3 2.7 5.9 2.9 286 1402000 10.8 13.0 2.6 5.1 4.2 2.5 204 12125003 18.4 24.3 3.4 7.2 5.4 3.4 262 1653000 25.2 29.1 5.0 8.7 5.0 3.3 243 16035004 30.4 34.7 6.6 10.0 4.6 3.5 223 1704000 36.4 41.0 9.0 16.0 4.0 2.6 194 1264100 (WOT) 38.1 9.5 4.0 1944500 48.7 22.2 2.2 1064960 (WOT) 53.0 24.1 2.2 1061 Diesel mated to composite Ocean Series DuoProp drive with stainless F5 propset; data gathered by TBM. Gas engine mated to SX DuoProp with stainless F6prop set; data supplied by Volvo Penta 2 Based on 90% fuel capacity3 Diesel’s optimum cruising speed4 Gas engine’s optimum cruising speed

■ Volvo Penta D3-160 diesel■ Volvo Penta 5.7L Gi gasBase Price P.O.R.1 $16,050Horsepower(propshaft) 160 280Number of Cylinders I-5 V-8Displacement 2.4L (146 cid) 5.7L (350 cid)Fuel Delivery Direct Injection MPIWeight 692 lbs. 1040 lbs.Maximum RPM 4000 5000Gear Ratio 2.11 1.95Propeller F5 stainless F6 stainless

prop set prop set1 Price available on request

Volvo Penta, Dept. TBM, 1300 Volvo PentaDrive, Chesapeake, VA 23320; 757/436-5100;volvopenta.com

E N G I N E S P E C S

■ Volvo Penta D3-160 diesel1 ■ Volvo Penta 5.7L Gi gas2

ACCELERATION 0-30 MPH (seconds)

1 Diesel has composite Ocean Series DuoProp drive. 2Gas had SX DuoProp

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

10.4

7.0

TOP SPEED

0 6 12 18 24 30 36 42 48 54 60 66 72

38.1 mph

53.0 mph

OPTIMUM CRUISING SPEED

0 3 6 12 15 18 21 24 27 30 33 36 39

18.4 mph

34.7 mph

MAXIMUM RANGE AND ECONOMY

0 25 50 75 100 150 175 200 225 250 275 300 325

5.4 mpg

3.5 mpg

ENGINE WEIGHT (lbs.)

0 1200200 400 600 800 1000

692

1040

262 miles

170 miles

2500 rpm

3500 rpm

4100 rpm

4960 rpm