De Antonio D29 review: ‘A very cool and distinctive character’

Can a wholesale revamp bring the new De Antonio D29 even greater success than the old De Antonio D28? Alex Smith gets behind the wheel to find out

The boat you see here is the smallest proper De Antonio you can get, the new De Antonio D29. Yes, you could argue that the yard’s recently launched De Antonio E23 electric powercat is now the formal entry point to the range but if you want the traditional De Antonio formula – a voluminous monohull with a plumb bow, hidden outboards, an extended aft end and some surprising overnighting spaces to supplement the class-leading day facilities – this De Antonio D29 is where it all begins. And it does so because the old De Antonio D28 is no more.

But don’t be fooled by the name. This De Antonio D29 is not a big boat. It’s actually only a shade over 26ft. If you add the extended aft platform, it pushes on toward 28ft and if you also chuck in the forepeak-mounted anchor, the magic 29ft mark does eventually hove into view.

But as on previous models, the hull shape certainly helps make up for that. You get a generous beam of 9ft 10in (about 38% of the overall length) and because the gunwales are narrow, the hull sides are vertical and the outboard is tucked inside a cushion-topped sunbathing unit, the internal space feels remarkably strong.

Day boating purism

As you would expect, the deck is broadly split in two – a dinette that backs onto a sunbed aft of the helm and a deep-set bow lounge for five to seven people ahead of it. Unlike the De Antonio D32, however, the De Antonio D29 lacks the space for dedicated helm seats. Instead, the skipper and co-pilot are expected to perch themselves on the dinette’s forward bench in one of two ways.

Recommended videos for you

You can either hinge the backrest aft and take a seat at the wheel; or you can hinge it forward and brace your bum against it in the semi-standing position. Trouble is, when you sit down, the seat is too low and too far aft and when you stand up, the swing-over backrest runs away when you try to put any weight on it.

In short, a lifting seat and a catch to secure the backrest would be very welcome upgrades, because as things stand, it’s a glaring ergonomic weak point.

That said, the rest of the day spaces feel well up to scratch. The bow lounge, for instance, is so deep, safe and accommodating that it feels reminiscent of the brilliant bow lounge on the old Fjord 38 Open. And when the boat is not being helmed, the aft dinette is very good too, particularly when paired with the optional sunroof-equipped hardtop.

It comes with an optional fridge built into the port side of the forward bench, which makes plenty of sense; and a shore power socket in the starboard side, which seems to us to make a lot less sense. But if the raised sunbed is usefully integrated both with this section of the boat and with the aft platform, then like the bow lounge, it becomes all the more useful when partnered with the optional bimini.

Article continues below…

Best Day Boats of the year: All the Best Day Boats we’ve tested this year

5 of the fastest motor yachts tested: 40+ knot motor yachts

The style-conscious are also likely to enjoy how clean-cut this boat feels. It comes with sunken cleats with stainless steel strips to prevent the lines rubbing on your gelcoat.

De Antonio’s classical rectangular fenders nestle neatly in purpose-built gunwale recesses to keep the walkways clear. There’s some slick (but subtle) stainless steel and carbon-fibre trim, as well as engaging angles in the mouldings and diamond-stitched detailing in the upholstery. And in spite of the fact that the D29 is quite short, fat and slab-sided, these painstaking details mean that it’s actually a remarkably good looking boat.

As you might already have gathered though, a lot of the elements you need to help maximise the De Antonio D29’s potential tend to appear on the options list. We’ve already mention the hardtop (or softtop) and the fore and aft sunshades.

Then there’s a rubbing strake, both for the hull sides and for the low-level aft platform. There’s the bow thruster and trim tabs, the outdoor fridge, the fenders and mooring lines and the VHF and audio system. You might also want a table for the bow, some stern doors to keep the cockpit secure and a towing ring for watersports. In the form of our 400hp test boat, the inclusion of these various options increases the base price of €165,000 to around €227,000 ex VAT.

That’s not a problem in itself. It is, after all, common practice to start simple and then spec up. But it does invite direct comparison with some very serious contenders in the form of the Axopar 29 Sun Top and the Saxdor 270 GTO.

Occasional cuddy?

Access to the cabin is achieved by means of a new door with a lifting section on top and a sliding section at the base. It provides remarkably easy access to the cabin’s entry point, where you find around 6ft of headroom and decent light from an angled window built into the leading edge of the console that looks out onto the foredeck.

There’s a sink unit to port and an optional loo beneath the cushioned lid of the changing seat on the starboard side. It’s entirely open plan down here, so privacy is not a strength but there are apparently some modesty screens on the options list should you want them.

There are no other windows in the cabin so it’s not the brightest space in the world either but the test boat does have recessed LED strips with an intuitive colour dial so you can pick any shade of lighting you fancy.

There’s also a set of narrow shelving units right around the periphery of the bed and the bed itself is a decent size for two. Such is the bow taper and the dipping deckhead that you obviously have to sleep with your head aft but of course, this is not a cruising cabin.

This is a changing zone, a storage locker, a heads compartment and a weekending space. It’s essentially a supplement to the day facilities up top and, given the nature of the D29’s lovely sunken bow lounge, that was all this cabin was ever likely to be.

Riding the swells

As intimated, this is an entirely new boat but it does adopt many of the same design influences as we’ve seen before. So on the one hand, we have a new hull shape with twin steps, a finer entry and a shallower planing surface for extra efficiency and stability. On the other, we get De Antonio’s trademark hull extensions, one on either side of the engine, almost like a cat.

And as on other boats in the fleet, this additional aft buoyancy is required to help compensate for the extra stern weight incurred by a raised sunbed and swim platform, both of which extend well beyond the transom.

When you get the new De Antonio D29 underway, the results of this fusion of new and old is very interesting. With the auto tabs activated, the system seems overly keen to keep the nose low and the boat flat, whether the seas are on the bow, the stern or the beam. That much we’ve already seen in terms of natural trim from De Antonios in the past. But once the auto tabs are turned off, the De Antonio D29 proves itself a far more dextrous boat than its predecessor.

With the leg and the tabs under the full control of your right hand, you can elevate the bow, push the waterline further aft, improve dryness, increase pace and bring a degree of ride softness over aggressive chop that your electronic assistant is unable to match.

You also get better running efficiency and about three knots more at the top end, transforming the D29 from a bit of a blunt instrument into a remarkably fun and agile boat. Drop that bow too low and it can get a bit wet, as you would expect of a boat with steep hull sides, a fine entry and very little bow flare.

But even with persistent 3-4-footers rolling through, we manage to get right up to 46 knots by working the troughs in a beam sea before we have to throttle off.

In calmer conditions, the guys at De Antonio claim that this boat should be good for around 48 knots but either way, that broad twin-stepped hull seems to deliver some pretty positive fuel flow figures too. On the day, we’re burning between 1.7 and 2.0 litres per mile from 20 to 30 knots for a range of between 160 and 190 miles – and that only increases to 2.8L (for a range of 115Nm) at the very top end.

But there are of course engine options. You could opt for a single 300 or 350 for speeds in the low to mid 40s; you could stick with the test boat’s uprated 400; or you could go with our inclination and opt instead for a pair of 200s. At a stroke, that ought to deliver extra stability, grip and grunt – and according to early R&D testing, it will also confound expectations and bring an even more generous top end of around 50 knots.

De Antonio D29 specifications?

LOA: 26ft 3in (7.99m)
BEAM: 9ft 10in (2.99m)
DRAFT: 1ft 7in (0.50m)
DISPLACEMENT: 2,500kg (light)
FUEL CAPACITY: 400 litres
WATER CAPACITY: 88 litres
ENGINES: 1-2 outboards of up to 400hp
RCD CATEGORY: C10
CONTACT: deantonioyachts.com

De Antonio D29 costs and options

From: €165,000 ex VAT Test boat includes the following options:
400hp outboard: €12,700
Hard Top with sunroof: €22,500
Bow thruster: €4,300
Auto trim control: €4,300
Second Simrad 12in MFD: €4,500

---

If you enjoyed this….

Motor Boat & Yachting is the world’s leading magazine for Motoryacht enthusiasts. Every month we have inspirational adventures and practical features to help you realise your sailing dreams, as well as tests and news of all the latest motorboats.

Plus you’ll get our quarterly Custom Yachting supplement where we share the last on offer in the superyacht world and at the luxury end of the market.

Build your knowledge with a subscription delivered to your door. See our latest offers and save at least 30% off the cover price.

---