President 42, One Name and Two Very Different Taiwan-Built Boats

The President 42 name means two different boats

Search listings for a President 42 and you can land on boats separated by more than a decade and a completely different design brief. Both were built by President Yachts in Taiwan, but one is a late-1980s aft-cabin flybridge motor yacht and the other is a trawler yacht that debuted in 2001 after three Annapolis brokers decided the under-40-foot trawler market was poorly served.

That matters because the boats are valued, used and surveyed differently. The 1980s boat is a classic twin-diesel family cruiser with an owner's cabin aft. The 2001 boat is a modern trawler aimed at couples and liveaboards. This guide explains both, flags what we could and could not verify, and tells you what to check before you buy either one.

A word of honesty up front: President never published widely available specification sheets for these models, and neither was the subject of an instrumented magazine test we could find. Where a figure is missing from our spec table, it is because we would rather leave it blank than guess.

Who President Yachts were

President is one of the Taiwanese yards that built boats for American and European importers from the 1980s onward. Yachting magazine, reviewing the President 47 in 2002, credited the yard with building the first WhisperJet 44s and the larger Offshore Yachts models, and argued that by then the leaky-teak days of Taiwanese building were long gone, with yards like President producing work on par with better North American and European builders.

The yard's managing director at the time was Eddie Yeh, whose stated philosophy for interiors was light and more light. The yard built to ABYC standards for the US market, with superb gelcoat, polished stainless welds and frameless ports on the boats Yachting inspected.

The 1980s President 42 aft-cabin flybridge yacht

The older President 42 is the one most often seen in Europe. A 1989 example we found listed in Germany measured 12.98 meters (about 42 feet 7 inches, listed as 43 feet) with a 4.5-meter (14-foot 9-inch) beam, weighed about 14,000 kilograms (roughly 30,900 pounds) and ran twin Caterpillar diesels. It was asking 109,962 euros.

The layout is a classic double-cabin flybridge plan. A large aft deck gives access to both the flybridge and the salon through a big glass door. The salon has a galley, an L-shaped settee with coffee table and cabinetry, with a lower helm at the forward end and duplicate instruments on the flybridge. Steps lead down forward to guest accommodation and a head, and the owner's cabin is aft under the aft deck, the arrangement that makes these boats popular with couples who want privacy from guests.

We could not confirm when this generation entered or left production, its tankage, draft or the range of engines offered, and buyers should treat any listing's figures as claims to verify.

The 2001 President 42 trawler, conceived in Annapolis

The newer President 42 has a better documented origin. According to Yachting, three Annapolis-based industry veterans, Bob Hoffman, John Stewart and Clarence Blackwell of Yacht Haven Yacht Sales, saw a gap for trawlers under 40 feet: the boats on offer were either overpriced museum pieces or lackluster knockoffs. They began drawing a 38-footer, and like many projects it grew, in this case to 42 feet. Design team member Robert Noyes worked with the group, and the boat was built by President in Taiwan.

The President 42 debuted in 2001 and several sold in its first year. Buyers praised its performance, yacht-like appointments and liveaboard accommodation. One prospect wanted more room for himself and three sons and challenged the team to do on 47 feet what they had done on 42. Less than a year later, the President 47 arrived in Annapolis.

Yachting noted one layout lesson learned from the 42: it had no port-side deck entrance to the salon, which meant an awkward walk from the starboard deck around to the port aft quarter to climb to the bridge. The 47 added that door. If you are looking at a 42, walk that route yourself and decide whether it bothers you.

What the President 47 tells you about the 42's build

Because the 47 was built by the same team to the same standards, its review is the best available window into the 42. The 47 was built to ABYC standards, as Yachting noted the 42 was. Its hull was fully cored, with solid glass around every hull penetration and fully cored bulkheads, and it weighed about 36,000 pounds. It used a semi-displacement hull with propeller tunnels for a 3-foot 1-inch draft, and twin diesels from 330 hp Cummins to optional 420 hp Caterpillars gave a 16-knot cruise.

Do not assume those numbers apply to the 42; they belong to the bigger sister. But they suggest what to look for: cored hull construction that needs a careful moisture survey, twin diesels with tunnels, and an interior with satin cherry joinery and generous headroom. Ask the seller for the original builder's paperwork, which will settle tankage, engines and dimensions for that hull.

Surveying an older President

Every President 42 is now between roughly 25 and 40 years old, so a full survey with engine oil analysis and sea trial is essential. On the 1980s boats, look hard at teak decks and their fastenings, window and hatch frames, the flybridge and its supports, and the fuel tanks and their accessibility, since tank replacement on many boats of this era means cutting into the interior. On the 2001 trawler, a moisture meter on the cored hull and decks around every fitting is the priority, along with the condition of the twin diesels, shafts and any propeller tunnel areas.

Budget around $20,000 to $45,000 a year for a 42 to 45-foot slip, insurance, haul-out, twin-diesel service, varnish and canvas, depending on region. Parts for mainstream Caterpillar or Cummins diesels are easy to find in the US; boat-specific parts such as windows, hatches and trim are not, so factor fabrication into your budget.