When I saw this heading I imagined a motor yacht with masts but the image was of a sailing yacht, prosumably with larger sized diesels than would normally be carried. While this is no doubt the most efficient design it is not what I expected. To me a modern motor sailor has to have more superstructure so as to have better views, not have the quests cut off from the sea. The best such design I have come across is the Australian built Islander/The Other Woman. I love this motor sailor, waterjet propulsion as well.
At least she is a hint of possible future conversions of motor yachts... My idea of motor sailers are more like the larger Perini or Jongerts.
Being the owner of a Motor-slooper (as Carl refered to it), I sense Lars has a soft spot in his heart for these craft; I think they make a lot of sense. At the smaller end of the scale, the Seaton/Neville Cheoy Lee 63 & 78, which is what I'm familiar with, had tremendous interior volume, great range, and-- being able to point up to ~45 degrees--sorta/kinda sailed. Great boats and there isn't much like them in today's market.
You are right Loren, I like motor sailers of all sizes. The Cheoy Lee 63 has a lot of volume and is a good buy on the second hand market. But I also like the new Burger to be, looks like some of the sweeter Palmer Johnson boats from the past.
I also like motor-sailers. The ones' of Phil Rhodes stand out with a sort of elegance missing from many of the yachts today. One of the first boats I fell in love with as a kid was Blue Leopard, a 112'motor ketch that could hit 14 knots with her twin Rolls-Royce engines and sail almost as quickly in the right breeze. In the early '70s, with her deep blue hull, just watching her was bliss. One of Laurent Giles' finest. Fish
Here she is: http://www.yachtforums.com/forums/burger-yacht/10199-burger-s-s-develop-motorsailors.html
Looks a bit like Irishman, an older 92 PJ: https://www.boatwizard.com/soldboat...1&photo_name=Photo+1&photo=1&url=jwoodsmarine
The other interesting motorsailor is the 156' MITseaAH. This 156ft, high performance aluminum motor sailer, was the first Superyacht to combine the ability to perform well under sail with the high performance of a semi-displacement motor Yacht under power – a Yacht that can both run and fly. Desiring both the feel of a large sailboat and the 25-knot speed of his current motor Yacht, MITseaAH’s owner inspired designers Liebowitz & Pritchard and naval Architect David Pedrick to think radically. Liebowitz sought a balance between sailing-Yacht lines and the volume needed for luxurious motor-Yacht accommodation and performance machinery, while Pedrick developed the naval architecture. Pedrick proposed a planing hullform for a relatively lightweight sailing cruiser. Telescopic rudders, a swing bulb keel and planing flaps morph the underbody from sailing sloop to power boat in minutes. Then, twin 3,500-hp Paxman diesels deliver speeds in excess of 20 knots. In addition, a shallow 6.5 foot draft under power and a retracting top-mast section give MITseaAH a choice of cruising grounds. Inside, MITseaAH features five luxurious staterooms in the owner’s party, along with a well-appointed crew apartment for eight professionals. http://www.yachtforums.com/forums/general-sailing-discussion/4372-pictures-mitseaah-2.html P.S. I love the pic showing someone skiing behind a smaller sailing yacht lol. Prosumably outboard.