Boat test for the 2003 Viking 56 Convertible including boat specifications, photo galleries, boat videos, boat layout diagrams, boat test numbers, boat test results, and boat speed graphs. Also includes pricing, engine test reviews, ratings, standard features, and gear for the 2003 Viking 56 Convertible.

Then there was hands-on performance. At one point during our run, I put the 56 into a series of tight S-curves, which I hoped would test her agility and give me a thrill. It did both. Thanks to a Hynautic hydraulic steering system with two engine-driven power-assists, both the wheel—and, of course, the boat—were ultra-sensitive to the touch and instantaneously responsive. More to the point, I found I could make quick, controlled turns by simply giving the wheel a momentary push with a finger, allowing it to spin quickly or slowly through the palm of my hand (depending on the intensity of the push), and then adjust or stop the turn with the same finger.

The savvy, robust way the helm area was protected from the elements was the last place I figured my sense of confidence was emanating from. The optional hardtop was secured with tree-trunk sturdiness, and although we had the three-sided enclosure (also optional) deployed for the entire run up the coast, there was never a hint of blowout, even at top speed. Watertight, gasketed Lexan hatches covered all electronic nav aids at the steering station, keeping everything dry inside dedicated lockers. Moreover, an Icom VHF was installed in a locker under a gasketed, waterproof hatch, and a set of dial-type emergency engine controls (throttles and shifts) were protected in the same waterproof environment. Does Viking try to cover every contingency? You bet.

Once we hit Lauderdale, Viking's marketing rep Pete Frederiksen and I spent the afternoon examining the 56 dockside. The interior's layout is much like the 55's on the main deck: a saloon and galley to port, stocked with top-shelf appliances and equipage, including a home-entertainment system with an optional, pop-up plasma TV. The lower deck's been changed considerably, although the three-stateroom, two-head basics remain. The queen-size berth in the amidships master has been reoriented from fore-and-aft to athwartships. Sculpted teak vanity fronts have been added in the heads, along with a solid-granite option for countertops and soles. And by moving the Kenmore washer and dryer from the companionway nook it occupied on the 55, Viking's been able to add a sizeable hanging locker to the starboard stateroom as well as extra space to the starboard head.

The engine room was what put the finishing touches on my impressions of the 56, though—it was flat-out spectacular. From the companionway-style entry forward, everything was either powder-coated or Awlgripped white, including the overhead, the underside of a four-inch-thick layer of fiberglass composite that supports the saloon sole. Lighting was ample—ten lights overhead. Batteries—each being a Delco, replaceable just about anywhere in the world—were ensconsed in fiberglass boxes with lids. Engine mounts were gutsily installed atop steel-beam engine bearers gusseted into dedicated, intermediate bulkheads, the point being to maintain bulls-eye drive-train alignment, improve under-engine access, and reduce the transmission of vibration. Delta T demisters guarantee clean, dry intake air.

"Given the level of engineering I'm lookin' at here," I noted as Frederiksen and I finished up, "it's no wonder this baby's so darn confidence-inspiring."

"Go a hundred miles offshore," he responded with a grin. "It gets even better."

Viking Yacht Company
(609) 296-6000

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