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The Corvette motoryacht originally was a British-built trawler yacht with a nominal hull length of 32 feet (9.75m, SSR rating) and with twin engines. The styling was traditional rather than contemporary, with a raised aft deck, wide walkaround side-decks, flybridge and fore & aft twin cabins, both with their own shower and toilet. Particular attributes were the spacious internal accommodation facilitated by the very wide beam and the full use of the two-level external deck space, providing comfortable seating for 11. The very wide side decks, running on one level all around the boat, also facilitated safe movement and working around the decks. Unusually for a “trawler” yacht, speeds in excess of 20 knots were achievable, depending on the engines used. The Corvette was also noted for its good sea-keeping qualities, by virtue of its somewhat unorthodox hull form. Production started in 1974 with the Corvette 32 and through a number of company changes and developments became the Corvette 320 and finally the 340, when production moved to Taiwan in 2009 and continues currently. ==History overview== First era: Corvette Marine, Lymington: 1974-1977. Corvette production started in 1974 in Lymington by Corvette Marine with the introduction of a 32 ft British-built, "trawler"-styled family cruiser designed by naval architect, Terry Compton of Compton-McGill. This was a trawler yacht with a difference, however; the Corvette 32 had a most unusual hull shape (round bilge sections flanked by shallow vee flats out to the chine). This "semi-planing" design gave the Corvette significantly better performance than normally achieved by the more traditional displacement hull used on this type of craft. The engines favoured by the original builders were twin 106 hp Volvo Penta D32s, linked to sterndrives, and 105 hp Mercedes-Benz OM352s, with V-drives, top speed being about 16 knots in each case. This configuration generally required more use of the trim tabs to travel at the optimum angle. In the boats built in the 1970s, the aft cabin was quite limited, much of the space at the stern being taken up by the sterndrive or V-drive engines that were then installed, although there was still space on the port side for a double berth (the foot of which stretched under the after part of the saloon seating) and a small toilet/shower compartment. Access to the engines was via a door in the cabin. The Corvette 32 exhibited at the 1974 Southampton Boat Show was priced at £25,500 ex VAT (equivalent in 2014 to about £269,000) with a pair of 106 hp Volvo Penta D32A diesel sterndrives. About 30 were made before the company went into liquidation in 1977. Second era: Corvette Cruisers, Nottingham: 1984-1991. In 1984 the moulds were bought by a new company, Corvette Cruisers of Nottingham, who redesigned the interior and built another 70 up to 1991. During that time significant changes were made to its design to improve handling and overall performance. The V-drive engine arrangement (which was only used on the first 10 boats) was upgraded to a traditional shaft system, with the engines being moved mid-ships for better weight distribution and enhanced seakeeping characteristics. Thus in boats built since the 1980s the aft cabin was an altogether more spacious affair. Corvette Cruisers also managed to increase the width of the front berths so they were big enough, at a squeeze, to sleep two people on each. Corvette Cruisers offered a great variety of engine options, including Volvo TAMD41s up to 200 hp, which produced a top speed of 18-20 knots, and Cummins up to 210 hp, for 20-22 knots. The shaft driven Volvo Pentas were a great leap forward in handling, as the engine weight was no longer at the transom but centred around the middle of the boat. Whilst one would expect the craft with shaftdrive installations to handle better at idling speeds, the rather small rudders fitted by Corvette Cruisers made them susceptible to being blown about in a strong wind. Handling at tickover, or when manoeuvring in and out of locks or marina berths for example, was not one of their strong points. The Corvette 32 displayed in 1986(?) by MDL Boat Sales, agents for Corvette Cruisers, was priced at £51,300 ex VAT (equivalent to about £136,000 at 2014 prices) with two 105 hp Volvo TAMD30As working through conventional shaftdrives. Unfortunately the company’s quality control was suspect and some of the Corvette 32s produced became as well known for their faults as for their excellent design. One of the biggest problems was rusting of the mild-steel fuel tanks that were fitted as standard. The engine air vents were not really large enough for the larger engines and a vacuum was being created in the saloon causing some air to be sucked in. Some rain and spray could enter through the windows and door, as well as through the engine air vents themselves. This water was absorbed by the foam beds surrounding the mild-steel tanks causing them to rust. Poorly fitted windows and doors contributed to this problem. Some of the boats were fitted with stainless steel tanks and these do not appear to have had any problems. Other problems included poor engine alignment and teak decking that was poorly stuck down. There were also some local weak spots in the deck and superstructure. Corvette Cruisers made some modifications to improve the situation and added the suffix Classique to its name, probably to enhance their marketing. (There were models called the "Classique 600", "Classique 500", "Classique 420" and the "Classique 400" - these apparently referring to the total engine installed hp and not the boat length!). The company started to run into financial difficulties at this time and there was some cost cutting in materials and fittings. None of these problems was insurmountable and whilst the company was still trading, some owners had their problems corrected under warranty, including fitting new fuel tanks. Corvette Cruisers built two variants on the same hull shape in the late 1980s, one called the Corvette Mediterranean and the other the Corvette Europa. It is thought they only built two each of these boats (possibly only 1 Europa in 1986?). The Mediterranean featured a large deck area in lieu of the aft cabin. An extension to the flybridge afforded some protection from the sun. Pictures of this model can be found on http://www.inautia.com/used-boat-68957070141610198545198975256454.html. The Europa had no flybridge and low air draft (2.6m) for canal use. Corvette Cruisers built about 70 boats, before they too went into liquidation in 1991 Third era: Seacoral Motor Yachts, Reedham: 1992-1994. In 1992, the company changed hands from Corvette Cruisers Nottingham to a new owner, Michael White of Seacoral Motor Yachts of Reedham. They changed the model name to Corvette 320 and set out to resolve the quality issues and build boats that would ensure the continuance of this exceptional trawler yacht. It was not long before Seacoral were producing a far superior vessel terms of construction, engineering and overall finish. The Corvette 320 that Seacoral took to Southampton in 1992 was priced at £94,300 ex VAT (equivalent to about £177,000 in 2014) with two 200 hp Volvo TAMD41s. Volvos and Cummins were fitted by Seacoral as standard and in some of the boats they exported to Japan they increased the size of the engines to a combined 600 hp of Cummins or Yanmar, giving 30 knots. Seacoral also improved handling at idling speeds by adding 3in to the length of the rudders. Seacoral took advantage of the change of engine spec and siting, to make the double bed in the aft cabin larger and swivel it round at an angle from the port corner creating a walk-around oval bed and more room in the toilet/shower area and more stowage space. They also rounded off a lot of the sharper corners throughout the accommodation and dispensed with the balustrade rails to the shelves. The boat's level of performance caught the attention of journalists and avid cruisers, and the popularity of the Corvette 320 grew. Seacoral had built 12 boats when in 1994 the owner decided to leave the boatbuilding business. Fourth era: Corvette Marine, Reedham: 1995-2008. There was an employee’s buy-out by Rod Nixon and Steve Robson in 1995, who then founded and renamed the company Corvette Marine, which ran until 2008. The popular 320 continued to be refined, resulting in a series of rave reviews and solid sales throughout Europe and Japan. The quality improvements started under the Seacoral banner continued and the hand-built boats produced at the Reedham factory were of the highest standards in boat-building. The Corvette Europa (referred to above in the "second era") was also shown in their 2002 and 2006 brochures as an alternative model, yet it is uncertain whether any were actually made since the 1980s. They also undertook re-fits of earlier boats. Their customer service aftercare was legendary, and there are many accounts of customers who have been impressed by the quality of service and help that was available at that time. The most popular choice of engine from the early 2000s was the 315 hp Yanmar 6LPA but the Volvo D6 was also an option. The downturn of the global economy and the unique challenges of the hard-hit boat building industry, however, caused Corvette Marine to close its doors in the UK in 2008. New construction of the Corvette 320 ceased as of 2007–08, the last UK-built 320 being commissioned in October 2008. 46 Corvette 320s were made by this company, Corvette Marine. Fifth era: Corvette Marine, Taiwan: 2009-date. Following the closure of the Reedham yard, the Fleming team of Cowie and Shard came to the rescue, and production of an all-new model, the Corvette 340, began in 2009–2010 at the Tung Hwa yard in Taiwan. Although using much of the 320's infrastructure, the 340's most significant change was the creation of a full-width aft cabin. This, together with other developments, added some 1200 kg to the displacement, but the main hull dimensions remained the same (as can be seen in the later table). Tung Hwa's craftsmanship is highly respected throughout the boating world, being associated with the Fleming Yachts brand, and it is already proving instrumental in adding to the overall quality of the Corvette. The iconic Corvette family cruiser continued in the form of the 340, produced alongside Fleming Yachts, but to date (Oct 2015) only 5 have been made. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Corvette Motoryacht」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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