Navan C30 Review, the Pilothouse Boat That Launched Navan

Navan boats, explained in one model

Navan boats is Brunswick Corporation's newest brand, and the C30 is the model that best explains it. Brunswick, which also owns Sea Ray, Boston Whaler, Bayliner and Mercury Marine, watched Axopar, Nimbus, Saxdor and Wellcraft build a booming market for plumb-bowed, stepped-hull, outboard-powered adventure boats, and it entered that segment at the Cannes Yachting Festival in September 2023 with two boats on one hull: the C30 with an enclosed pilothouse and the open S30.

The name is pronounced to rhyme with baton, according to Boating. The design came from Brunswick's Boat Group Technology Center in Edgewater, Florida, on the Boston Whaler campus, not from Scandinavia. European boats are built in Poland; North American boats are built in Merritt Island, Florida, where Sea Ray builds its largest models. The Florida-built C30 made its US debut at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show in October 2024, and Navan returned to the show in 2025 with both models.

Motor Boat & Yachting admitted it expected cheap and cheerful Axopar copies, since Navan grew out of Brunswick's budget-minded Quicksilver operation in Europe. It came away describing premium-feeling boats with genuinely fresh ideas.

The T-Step hull and the engine menu

Both Navans ride on what Brunswick calls the T-Step hull, a patented twin-step deep-V and Brunswick's first vented stepped bottom, which feeds air under the hull to cut friction. Transom deadrise is 20 degrees, and the beam is a slender 9 feet 10 inches. Motor Boat & Yachting found the hull a little longer, wider, taller and around 400 kg heavier than a comparable Axopar 29, which means it wants a bit more power.

There is plenty on the menu, up to a 600 hp maximum. In Europe the C30 starts with twin Mercury 225 V6s; other choices are twin 250 or twin 300 Verado V8s, with Mercury joystick piloting available on the V8 packages, and single 300 or 400 hp Verados. On the S30, Boating notes that twin 300s come with joystick as standard and that the twin 225 and single 400 packages can take a bow thruster instead.

Speed is the headline. Motor Boat & Yachting expected both versions to reach 50 knots on twin 300s or 43 knots on a single 400 V10, and early C30 sea trials showed just over 170 nautical miles of range at 25 knots with the twin V8s, or about 200 with the single V10. Boating's editor drove a pre-production C30 off Cannes at almost 50 knots with nine aboard on twin 300s and kept pace with a Boston Whaler 420 in real chop.

• Maximum power: 600 hp (twin 300 V8 Verados)
• Single-engine options: Verado 300 V8 or 400 V10
• Projected top speed: 50 knots on twin 300s, 43 knots on a single 400
• Range at 25 knots: about 170 nm (twin V8s) or 200 nm (single V10), early sea trials
• Fuel: 400 liters, about 105 gallons

What the S30 tests tell a C30 buyer

The open S30 shares the C30's hull and lower deck, and it has been tested properly on both sides of the Atlantic. Boating ran a Florida-built S30 with twin Verado 300s on the Indian River and saw 57.1 mph (about 49.6 knots), planing in 4 seconds and 30 mph in 7.1 seconds, with 1.8 mpg at 30 mph and 3,500 rpm. Motor Boat & Yachting reached 53 knots in Solent chop, measured 2.2 liters per nautical mile from 21 to 35 knots and noted the S30 beat the 2.7 liters per mile of a Saxdor 320 GTO with the same engines.

Expect the C30 to be a touch slower, since the pilothouse adds weight and windage. The same tests flagged some stern slip if you throw a stepped hull into a full-lock turn at speed, which is normal for the type and a reason to learn how to drive steps before pushing hard.

A pilothouse that opens up for summer

The C in C30 stands for cabin, and the pilothouse is the reason to choose it. Boating's editor noted that the enclosed model has proven more popular in northern climates, where owners want to stretch short seasons. What impressed Motor Boat & Yachting was how open it can become: a lifting aft window, two big sliding side doors and a sliding sunroof turn a heated wheelhouse into a breezy one. The hardtop has sliding skylights and a rack for paddleboards or kayaks.

Inside is a two-person helm bench with a reversible backrest and a second bench further aft, with a cabin table and dinette arrangement. The cockpit is smaller than the S30's but keeps the rear bench, gains fold-down seats flush in both coamings and has a wet bar hung off the back of the wheelhouse under a big flip-up window. Optional exterior prep centers range from a sink and ice box to a sink with electric grill and inverter.

Up front is a sun lounge with an adjustable backrest. Standard kit in Europe includes Zipwake dynamic trim control, digital switching, hydraulic steering, a 12-inch Simrad display and windscreen wipers on both sides; air conditioning, diesel heating, radar and a bow thruster are options.

Below decks: a real head compartment

Access to the cabin is beside the helm. Below, the C30 and S30 share a smart bow cabin with long hull windows, recessed lighting and padded panels, and Navan rates the boat for three berths. Crucially, there is a separate enclosed head with an electric toilet, a sink and a pull-out shower; hot water and a full shower are options. There is no standing headroom, but Motor Boat & Yachting judged it more private and comfortable for overnighting than an Axopar 29 or a Saxdor 320 GTO.

On Florida boats, Boating noted a 12-volt Mabru climate-control unit in a box on the starboard side of the cabin, powered by an optional LiFePO4 battery bank, which lets the boat run air conditioning at anchor without a generator.

Buying and owning a C30

Navan sells through dealers rather than direct, and Motor Boat & Yachting warns not to be fooled by the base price. In the UK, the C30 starts at 186,636 pounds including VAT with twin 225s, yet a desirable spec runs past 200,000 pounds. In the US, the S30 starts at $216,496 with a single 400 and Boating's twin-300 test boat came to $351,350; our estimate for a C30 is roughly $235,000 to $385,000 depending on options.

Running costs are those of a twin-outboard 33-footer: two engine services a year, Zipwake and electronics upkeep, insurance and a slip or rack. Budget $18,000 to $38,000 a year plus fuel. The upside of a Brunswick product is dealer and parts coverage through the Mercury network; the open question is resale, because the brand is young and the market is crowded with Finnish rivals.