Beneteau Antares 580 (5.80) Review and Used Buyer's Guide

The smallest wheelhouse in the Antares family

Search for the Antares 580 and you are looking at the baby of Beneteau's outboard pilothouse line from the late 2000s and 2010s. Beneteau's own heritage page groups it with the Antares 6.80, 7.80 and 8.80 as the entry point of a family it pitched as a serious alternative to an open boat, offering a roof, a berth and a sliding door on a hull you can still tow behind a large SUV or pickup.

The official spelling is Antares 5.80, but owners and brokers use 580, 5.80 and 5 80 interchangeably. Used listings we found carry build years from 2009 through 2017, and Beneteau's last general equipment list for the model is dated June 2016 with 2017 option packs, which matches the end of the run. Its successor in the small-boat slot was the outboard Antares 6 introduced for the 2018 season, a different hull of similar size.

This is not a cruiser in the American sense. Think of it as a weatherproof fishing and picnic boat with a place to nap, built in Vendee by the company that has been building Antares wheelhouse boats since the first 7.50 of 1977.

The numbers that define an 18-foot pilothouse

Overall length is 5.70 m (18 ft 8 in) on a 5.51 m (18 ft 1 in) hull, with 2.43 m (about 8 ft) of overall width, which keeps it inside the 8 ft 6 in trailering limit with room to spare. Beneteau quotes 990 kg (2,182 lbs) without engine and 1,150 kg (2,535 lbs) in EC light displacement, so with a 90 hp four-stroke, fuel and a galvanized trailer you are towing roughly 3,500 to 4,000 lbs depending on the trailer.

Draft runs from 0.30 m to 0.60 m (1 ft to 2 ft) with the engine up or down, and air draft is 2.25 m (7 ft 5 in). Tankage is modest: a 100 liter (26 gallon) rotomolded fuel tank under the cockpit and a 20 liter (5 gallon) water jerry can under the pilot seat with a hand pump. CE certification is C6 and D6, meaning six people in coastal and sheltered water.

• LOA 18 ft 8 in, hull length 18 ft 1 in, overall width 7 ft 12 in (2.43 m)
• Light displacement 2,535 lbs (EC), 2,182 lbs without engine
• Fuel 26 gallons, water 5 gallons
• Engine certification up to 100 hp; Beneteau pre-rigging packs from 40 to 90 hp
• CE C6 / D6, six persons

Inside a 5 ft 3 in wheelhouse

Beneteau's equipment list gives the wheelhouse as 1.61 m long and 1.55 m wide (5 ft 3 in by 5 ft 1 in) with a generous 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) of headroom, which is the real selling point: a six-footer stands upright at the helm. The helm is to starboard with a bolster-style swiveling seat, a compass, rev counter and fuel gauge, and a single clear glass windscreen with an electric wiper. Facing it to port is a two-person bench saloon with a removable wooden table, and a two-leaf PMMA door closes the cabin off from the cockpit.

The kitchenette is clever rather than generous. It lives under the pilot seat: a polyester sink, the hand pump, the water jerry can and a space for a single-burner cartridge stove. Forward, under 1.36 m (4 ft 6 in) of headroom, a V-shaped bench converts into a berth of about 1.72 m by 1.90 m, with three storage bins below and a position for a chemical toilet. There is no enclosed head, so plan on a portable toilet or day trips.

Finishes are Alpi walnut joinery, brown oak laminate floors and beige or navy fabrics. Later boats wore a thin red hull stripe, and a beige wheelhouse roof was an option.

A cockpit sized for two rods and a cooler

The self-bailing cockpit is 1.37 m long and 1.93 m wide (4 ft 6 in by 6 ft 4 in). That is tight for four anglers but fine for two. The aft bench has a removable back and removable side sections so the outboard can tilt fully and you can clear floor space when fishing. A lockable cockpit locker gives access to the fuel tank, and the boat came with two rod holders, two aluminum hawser posts, solid wood gunwale caps and a swim ladder on the platform.

Side decks are narrow, as on every pilothouse this size, but there are stainless grab rails on the wheelhouse uprights and roof and an open bow pulpit. The foredeck has a self-draining anchor locker with a bow roller, and five stainless cleats are standard.

Choosing the outboard, 60 hp or 90 hp?

Beneteau delivered the 5.80 with engine pre-rigging rather than a fitted motor, and dealers installed the outboard. The 2016 list shows Suzuki packs from 40 to 90 hp with a 4 in SMIS display, Yamaha from 50 to 80 hp, Honda from 40 to 90 hp and a mechanical Mercury pre-rig from F40 to 80 hp, while the certification plate allows up to 100 hp. A 2017 boat on the market today carries a Suzuki DF90, and others we saw run Yamaha 100 and Honda power.

Beneteau never published speed or fuel figures for this model, and we found no independent instrumented test, so treat any claimed top speed with caution. As a rule of thumb, the 40 to 60 hp choices suit lakes, estuaries and slow fishing, while 90 to 100 hp is what you want if you carry four adults or run in coastal chop. A small four-stroke at a fast idle is also an excellent trolling motor, which is part of the appeal.

What to expect underway

Small pilothouse boats trade some stability for that tall cabin, and the 5.80 is no exception. With 2,500 lbs of hull on an 8 ft beam it is lively at rest when two people stand on one side, and it rewards trim tabs or careful load placement. The flared bow does a good job of keeping spray off the windscreen, and the injection-molded hull has built-in flotation, which Beneteau lists as a floating hull.

In a US context it fits best on protected bays, lakes, the Intracoastal and calm nearshore days. Treat the CE C rating literally: winds up to Beaufort 6 and waves to about 2 m are the design limit, not the comfort zone.

Buying a 5.80 in 2026

Because the boat was sold mainly through European dealers, most of the Antares 580 for sale listings we found were in France and Spain, with asking prices between about 18,000 and 30,000 euros for boats from 2009 to 2017. In the US you will see occasional imports and Canadian boats. When you compare prices, compare engines first: hours, brand, whether it has been serviced annually and whether the controls are the original Beneteau pre-rig.

The 5.80 makes sense as a first boat, a tender-free fishing platform for a waterfront home, or a weekend camper for two. If you need an enclosed head, a fridge or space for a family of four, step up to the Antares 6.80 or 7.80, which share the same design language.

Running costs on a trailer budget

This is one of the cheapest ways to own a cabin boat. Storage on a trailer at home costs nothing, a ramp-launch season keeps antifouling optional, and annual service on a 90 hp four-stroke typically runs a few hundred dollars plus impeller and water pump work every few seasons. Insurance on a 20,000 to 30,000 dollar boat is modest. Our estimate of 3,000 to 7,000 dollars a year covers service, insurance, registration, trailer upkeep and fuel for typical use, with marina slip fees on top if you keep it in the water.