Lavey Craft 2750 NuEra: Performance Test
Lavey Craft's 2750 NuEra is an all-around performer.
February 27, 2003
The 2750 excelled offshore. (Photo by Tom Newby)
Looking at the notes from our Test Team on the Lavey Craft 2750 NuEra and terms like, "straight," "excellent," "nicely done," "clean" and "well-executed" pop up again and again.
No surprise, there, really. Lavey Craft has been building some of the nicest custom boats on the West Coast for years. The company is famous for its in-gelcoat graphics and high build quality, and the 28'6"-long, 8'6"-wide 2750 NuEra was no exception.
It came to our Long Beach, Calif., round of Trials with a price tag of $82,022. For that money, the 2750 came with such options as a MerCruiser 496 Mag HO, Kiekhaefer 30S K-Planes, IMCO single-ram hydraulic steering, a locking cabin door, Bluewater mechanical tab- and drive-trim indicators and dual batteries. To our way of thinking, that's a lot of custom boat at a production-boat price.
Performance
Trailer inspections revealed a 24-degree deadrise twin-step hull with a sharp entry. Each step came to a point at the keel, aft, then led to the chine, but not all the way, because it had a spray rail outside the running surface and outside the chine.
The steps, 5 feet and 3 feet forward of the transom, had large vents and measured about 1 1/2" tall. The innermost strakes featured speed rails—"lips" that curve downward from the outer edge of the strake—and were about 16 inches apart.
At the transom, beneath the nonskid swim platform, the 2750 NuEra had the big-boy 30S K-planes, with Bluewater mechanical indicator cables. Rather than being aligned with the deadrise, the 30S K-planes were mounted horizontally.
The drive was a dual-water-pickup standard Bravo One with a 1.5:1 ratio, fitted with an Eddie Marine drive shower and a Bravo One 15 1/4" x 26" prop.
Matched with the 496 Mag HO's 425 horsepower, that combination propelled the NuEra to a top speed of 72.3 mph on the GPS. From a standing start, the Lavey climbed on plane in 3.6 seconds with the tabs down, and 5.2 seconds when not engaged.
During acceleration drills, the Lavey hit 22 mph in 5 seconds and 39 mph in 10 seconds on its way to 62 mph in 20 seconds. Midrange punch provided a 6.1-second time to go from 30 to 50 mph. All respectable scores, but we'd love to see what it would do with a Mercury Racing HP500EFI—but then it would no longer be an $80,000 boat, would it?
Where the 2750 excelled was offshore. Outside Long Beach Harbor, the Pacific had dished up a healthy dose of swells and wind chop. Testers gave the 2750 the best marks possible in all conditions, from head-on, to quartering and following. The boat performed adequately in turns at cruising speeds, but adding more throttle made them better.
Workmanship
The 2750 NuEra's gelcoat and mold work were well-executed, among the best we'd seen at this year's Performance Trials. Hullsides were as perfect as machined billet. In-gelcoat graphics exhibited a glossy shine and crisp transition between the colors. There are those adjectives again.
Underneath it all, Lavey's lamination schedule was as sound as its mold work. After the gelcoat was shot, Lavey applied 3-ounce mat and a 2-mil core mat in the deck and hullsides, a layer of 1708 cloth, followed by 1 1/2-ounce mat, three-quarter-inch balsa core, D155 and another layer of 1708 cloth. On the bottom, the schedule was slightly different in that Lavey replaces the 1708 mat with 40-ounce quad-directional cloth. All coring was vacuum-bagged, and the hull and deck is joined while each is still in the mold. The rubrail was a black aluminum extrusion with a rubber insert. Flawless.
Under the engine hatch, which raised to about a 20-degree angle on a single electric screw jack—we'd like to see it lift higher—the 496 Mag HO was through-bolted to L-angles with the standard transom mount. Both batteries were secured in place with Gil boxes and all plumbing and wiring was wrapped in plastic conduit and fastened with aluminum adels.
Interior
At the forward-most point of the interior, Lavey built in a small locker. In addition to being thickly padded, berth cushions held that locker door closed and were long enough for all but the tallest passengers.
Just aft of the berth bulkhead, to which were fastened four reading lamps aimed fore and aft, there were twin facing lounges. Equipped with package trays above and additional stowage behind the backrests, the facing lounges would accommodate four people seated facing one another, with enough room for their knees. Ideal for getting out of those brief summer showers.
Walking out through the lockable sliding acrylic door to the cockpit revealed similar attention to detail. Lavey provided lay-in carpeting in the one-piece fiberglass cockpit liner, something the company tooled up in response to requests from dealers and customers on the East Coast, where a wooden cockpit floor doesn't cut it.
At the helm, Lavey fitted the boat with Beede gauges, race-toggle-type ignition switches, a Dino steering wheel and Mercury Zero Effort levers, angled forward. Lavey mounted an accessory-switch panel on the gunwale right by the throttle.
Elsewhere, the co-pilot and outside rear-seat passenger benefited from gunwale-mounted grab rails. Rear passengers also get nice foot rungs on the framework beneath the forward bolsters.
Overall
It is somewhat difficult to believe that you could get this much boat for just over $80,000. The build quality is top-notch and the attention to detail is evident. If you can figure a way to afford an HP500EFI, do it. The Lavey Craft 2750 NuEra can handle it.
Hull and Propulsion Information
| Deadrise at transom | 24 degrees |
| Centerline | 28'6" |
| Beam | 8'6" |
| Hull weight | 5,100 pounds |
| Engine | MerCruiser 496 Mag HO |
| Cylinder type | V-8 |
| Cubic-inch displacement/horsepower | 496/425 |
| Lower-unit gear ratio | 1.5:1 |
| Propeller | Mercury Bravo One 15 1/4" x 26" |
Pricing
| Base retail | $68,250 |
| Price as tested | $82,022 |
Standard equipment
MerCruiser MX 6.2 MPI engine, customized gelcoat colors and graphics, gelcoated fiberglass lined cockpit, full instrumentation, color-coordinated interior, auxiliary plug, drink cupholders, foot rests, molded integrated windshield, international running lights, powder-coated trim package, molded integrated swim platform, deluxe marine carpet under-deck, Zero Effort dual controls with trim switch, stainless-steel prop, ice chest in rear bench seat, ski tow/transom rail, stainless-steel bow and stern eyes, deck hatch, stainless through-transom exhaust, CD stereo with speakers, power engine hatch lift, courtesy lighting, sleeping berth, pop-up bow light, pop-up deck cleats and grab handles.
Options on Test Boat
Upgrade to MerCruiser 496 Mag HO engine ($5,145), Mercury trim tabs ($3,927), single-ram steering ($2,108), locking door ($1,386), Bluewater indicator for drive and tabs ($889) and dual batteries with switch ($317).
Test Results
Acceleration
| 5 seconds | 22 mph |
| 10 seconds | 39 mph |
| 15 seconds | 52 mph |
| 20 seconds | 62 mph |
Midrange Acceleration
| 30-50 mph | 6.1 seconds |
| 40-60 mph | 8.8 seconds |
Rpm vs. Mph
| 1000 | 7 mph |
| 1500 | 8 mph |
| 2000 | 13 mph |
| 2500 | 24 mph |
| 3000 | 31 mph |
| 3500 | 43 mph |
| 4000 | 56 mph |
| 4500 | 61 mph |
| 5000 | 70 mph |
Top Speed
| Radar | 71.4 mph at 5000 rpm |
| Speedometer | 75 mph |
| Nordskog Performance Products GPS | 72.3 mph |
Planing
| Time to plane | 3.6 seconds |
| Minimum planing speed | 15 mph |
Fuel Economy
| At 25 mph | 3.4 mpg |
| At 35 mph | 3.8 mpg |
| At 45 mph | 2.8 mpg |
| At 55 mph | 2.8 mpg |
| At WOT | 2.5 mpg |
| Fuel capacity | 100 gallons |
Test conducted at Long Beach, Calif.
For More Information
Lavey Craft Performance Boats, Inc.
Dept. PB
210 Benjamin Drive
Corona, CA 92879
(909) 273-9690
www.laveycraft.com.
