Quintrex 590 Cruiseabout
The Quintrex 590 Cruiseabout has the size, space, seating, and comfort to cater for boaters with large families and lots of friends.
Quintrex, the largest volume boat manufacturer in Australia, has been producing first class bowrider runabouts for decades. I recall testing one of the first of these innovative, family-friendly craft back in the late 1990s. A revolutionary craft at the time, the early Quintrex bowrider was called the 500 Freedom Sport.
The 1999 model 500 Freedom Sport may not have been the very first Quintrex bowrider, but it was the first to be fitted with a variable deadrise, concave-shaped V-hull. Appropriately named the Millennium hull for its debut very late in 1999, this early Quintrex variable deadrise hull was acclaimed for its smooth, dry ride, coupled with excellent stability.
The 500 Freedom sport was also among the first of the locally made aluminium bowriders, giving customers an alternative to a traditional forward windscreen alloy runabout — and the many fibreglass bowrider boats on offer.
The 500 Freedom Sport was not as fast, as glamorous, or as luxuriously appointed as most fibreglass bowrider boats, but it was cheaper to buy and bigger in volume. It was also more versatile — the Freedom Sport could double as a bay and harbour fishing boat. These attributes led to sales success in just a few months, along with the launch of subsequent Freedom Sport models in a range of sizes. The rest, as they say, is history.
The Quintrex bowrider boat range has fluctuated in size over the years. There was also a name change in 2013 from Freedom Sport to Cruiseabout. In today's Quintrex bowrider range, customers have a choice of five hull sizes and two different levels of fitout. Models include the 481, 500, 520, 540 and 590 Cruiseabout and Cruiseabout Pro.
For this review, we secured the flagship 590 model Cruiseabout, albeit with the standard level of fitout. This fine looking craft was presented on a Quintrex tandem axle alloy trailer and powered by a Mercury 150hp Pro XS four-stroke outboard motor.
Quintrex Boat Bundles
Each Quintrex Cruiseabout is available as a standard boat or as a deluxe Cruiseabout Pro model. The latter comes with more kit, but you can add individual features to the standard boat package to achieve the same thing.
There is also the option to add one of three Quintrex Boat Bundles to up-spec the standard boat with a selection of the most desirable options. The Boat Bundles for the Quintrex Cruiseabout include the Comfort Bundle, the Fishing Bundle, and the Captain's Bundle. Comfort Bundle options include a bimini cover and envelope, bow seating cover, cockpit table, sound system with speakers, bow seating infill board and cushion, deluxe folding rear lounge and backrest, and upgraded Maritime bucket helm chairs. The Fishing Bundle is not as expansive but contains a burley bucket, cockpit lights, bait board, VHF marine radio, ski pole, and a Contura rocker switch upgrade. Finally, there is the Captain's Bundle, which adds a tilt-adjust sports steering wheel and hydraulic steering — although all Cruiseabouts above 5.0m come with hydraulic steering anyway.
Notably, the options contained in each of the above Boat Bundles are included in the Pro version of the Cruiseabout. So, if you’d like all the extras, just order the Cruiseabout Pro. To pick and choose your options, order the standard Cruiseabout and upgrade.
Our test boat was the standard 590 Cruiseabout model, albeit with an upgraded Lowrance multi-function display, bimini cover, Fusion stereo, upgraded seats, a starboard side transom door, and a three-quarter width folding rear lounge.
Bow Seating/Lounging
For its modest 6.0m hull length, the 590 Cruiseabout packs in plenty of features, storage space and seating. Standard boats come with a vinyl-cushioned U-shaped front bow seating compartment along with a pair of deluxe pedestal chairs at the helm as well as a rear lounge. The latter can be upgraded from the base rear lounge to the deluxe rear lounge. Eight people can comfortably be seated onboard.
The bow seating/lounging area is particularly comfortable thanks to the deluxe back rests which fold up and over the deck coaming for maximum comfort and back support. With the optional infill board and cushion slotted into place between the front side seats, the forward seating area converts into a large sun pad for two people.
For fishing trips, anglers can leave all the front cushions at home and use the carpeted front deck as a sturdy casting platform. You can also option the boat with a bow mounting plate to accept an electric trolling motor for stealth fishing estuaries, dams and impoundments.
Beneath the front deck there are two safety gear storage bins. Each has a stainless steel hinged, plywood hatch/lid which is carpeted front and back to protect against mould. Surrounding features include a decent sized anchorwell with bow roller and cleat up on the foredeck, along with cup holders and low-set bow grab rails.
Helm and Dual Consoles
The 590 Cruiseabout has a modern, sharp looking curved windscreen which opens in the centre so you can move back and forth between the bow and the stern seating areas. The acrylic windscreen is mounted above port and starboard side aluminium consoles. Each is topped with a roto-moulded plastic dash and fascia panel with matching trim pieces which wrap around and behind the helm chairs.
Built into the port side console there is an open storage nook, a lockable glove box, and a storage compartment underneath - behind a So Pac hatch. The helm console opposite also has the So Pac hatch compartment, but overhead is the tilt-adjust sports steering wheel and flat panel space for a modest sized multi-function display, along with engine instrumentation.
Our test boat was also fitted with a VHF radio and 3-gang Contura switch panel, along with upgraded Quintrex Maritime sport seats which have flip-up front bolsters so you can sit or stand comfortably before the helm. The pedestal chairs swivel 360 degrees and slide fore and aft for maximum comfort and adjustment. I found the helm and driving position to be quite comfortable, particularly when seated. There were no issues with visibility, and the steering wheel and side-mount throttle were easily within reach.
Overhead, the optional bimini cover provides valuable sun-shelter, but does little to shield the crew from wind or rain. For maximum shelter, I would consider fitting a more elaborate bimini cover with clear front and side drop curtains.
Cockpit and Fishing Features
Behind the helm chairs, the carpeted aft cockpit extends about 1.75m aft to the transom wall. It is flanked by full length, above-floor side pockets with 270mm wide side coamings overhead. The latter are comfy enough to perch on when the boat is at rest, and easily wide enough for anglers to flush-fit rod holders — in addition to the two plastic versions included.
The cockpit is safe and secure for youngsters to walk around, thanks to the 680mm high freeboard along the sides — and 400mm freeboard at the transom — above the starboard side transom door step. Of course, children can climb up on the optional aft bench seat easily enough, but this two-seater bench can be folded down so you can walk right up to the transom wall. The folding aft bench also enables anglers to stand and fish over the stern unimpeded - although you can't fit your feet/toes under the bench cushion when it is folded down.
Beneath the cockpit floor there is a 110L fuel tank, along with a fender/rope storage bin aft.
There is more storage beneath the transom in the form of a full with, carpeted shelf. The battery is stowed in the bilge compartment under the shelf, alongside the bilge pump.
The optional port side transom door is cleverly designed so that it folds forward for use as a step leading out to the aft boarding platform and telescopic stainless steel ladder. Flanking coaming rails provide a useful hand-hold too.
The battery is enclosed in standard battery box, but it is difficult to access and I would worry about it getting wet in an emergency situation. I'd much prefer the battery to be mounted on top of the transom shelf rather than recessed into the bilge.
A range of fishing options are available for the Cruiseabout, but they weren't fitted to our test rig. Among them is a port side live bait tank, burley bucket and a cutting board. The two latter options are standard on the Pro version of the Cruiseabout.
A Sporty Performer
Our test boat was paired with the maximum size motor for 590 Cruiseabout — Mercury's super-quick, 150hp+ Pro XS four-stroke outboard. Based on the standard and enormously popular inline four-cylinder Mercury 150hp motor, the Pro XS version offers scintillating performance when matched to the right boat — and the 590 Cruiseabout is the right boat. It couples up nicely with the 150hp Mercury Pro XS, the combination working a treat to provide sports boat acceleration and performance. Flat out across the Gold Coast Broadwater, trimmed out so that the boat was skimming along on the last meter or so of the hull, our test boat recorded a top speed of 44.5 knots (82.4 km/h). Now that is really shifting along for social family boat.
Of course you don't need this level of performance to enjoy the 590 Cruiseabout, but it does make the boat a whole lot of fun to drive — especially when coupled with silky-smooth hydraulic power steering and Mercury's digital throttle and shift.
Given the extreme performance of our test boat package, I would expect satisfactory performance from outboards as low as 115hp. That said, I would recommend a minimum of 130hp to best utilise the performance potential of this excellent alloy bowrider.
We weren't able to conduct full performance trials on the test boat/engine combination, but according to figures supplied by Quintrex, the combination is most economical while cruising at 3000 rpm at a boat speed of 18.4 knots(34 km/h). At this point in the Mercury rpm range, this smooth running motor burns 13.7 l/ph for a maximum range (with ten percent in reserve) on the standard 110L fuel tank of 132.2 nm.
Evolutionary Improvements
The Quintrex Millennium hull launched in 1999 was such a game-changing aluminium hull design that a variation of this original hull bottom shape is still used today. The modern Quintrex Blade and Apex hulls can trace their origins back to the Millennium hull.
Twenty years of evolution has seen handling and ride improvements to each generation of Quintrex variable deadrise hulls, keeping these craft at the forefront of alloy trailer boat hull design. The latest Quintrex Blade and Apex hulls are still the best in the business.
The Quintrex Cruiseabouts are fitted with the latest Blade hull. This sophisticated, variable deadrise, concave-shaped hull bottom has been upgraded again in recent times, most notably with a more relaxed stem shape to improve handling.
On the water it is hard to see how Quintrex could improve the design any further. In a beam and following sea, the hull now rides comfortably between the waves, and surfs easily out of deep wave troughs.
As ever, however, the Quintrex blade hull works best in the chop, that finely drawn stem and hull bottom parting cleanly through the waves, whilst the reverse flare to each side of the keel pushes spray out to each side of the boat.
Is it perfect? No, but with the latest improvements, the Quintrex variable deadrise monohull is approaching the best it can be. I struggle to see where it could be improved, given the constraints that exist in shaping sheets of aluminium.
The Wrap
The latest Quintrex Cruiseabout bowriders are terrific family all-rounders. With five different sized boats available, there is a model for most coastal boating applications. Our flagship test boat has the size, the handling and the performance to double up as an enclosed water social family boat as well as a coastal fishing boat for keen anglers.
The 590 series hull is a beauty — the Mercury 150hp ProX over-delivers on performance, and the interior seating, storage and deck space easily caters for boaters with large families.
Package prices for the Quintrex 590 Cruiseabout start from around $73k when paired with a Mercury 135hp outboard and a tandem axle trailer.
Optioned with the big Mercury 150hp Pro XS outboard, tandem axle trailer, Lowrance FS7 Elite fish finder/GPS, Maritime seat upgrade, bimini cover, Fusion stereo, transom door, aft bench seat, and more, our test boat package has a cruise-away price of $79,673.
SEA TRIALS
Two people onboard.
RPM SPEED (KT) FUEL BURN (L/H) RANGE (NM)
1000 4.0 3.5 113.1
1500 5.9 5.4 108.2
2000 7.6 8.6 87.5
2500 11.1 11.3 97.2
3000 18.4 13.7 132.2
3500 22.9 17.2 129.5
4000 26.4 23.6 110.7
4500 30.2 29.8 100.3
5000 35.6 34.2 103.0
5500 39.4 44.1 88.4
6000 44.3 55.8 78.9
*Sea trial data supplied by Quintrex. Fuel figures calculated leaving 10% in reserve.
FACTS & FIGURES
PRICE AS TESTED
$79,673
OPTIONS INCLUDED
Lowrance Elite FS7 fish finder/GPS
Deluxe folding rear lounge
Upholstered side pockets
Starboard side transom door
Fusion stereo with speakers
VHF radio
Upgraded switches
Volante steering wheel
Bimini cover and envelope
Cockpit lighting
Smartcraft white speedo/tacho
12 months QLD registrations
Inshore safety kit — 7 people
PRICED FROM
$72,314 (with Mercury 135hp)
GENERAL
TYPE Bowrider
MATERIAL Aluminium
LENGTH OVERALL 6.21m (20ft 4in)
BEAM 2.3M (7ft 5in)
DEADRISE Variable
HULL WEIGHT 724kg
TOWING WEIGHT (est.) 1450kg including engine and trailer
CAPACITIES
PEOPLE 8
REC. HP 90-150hp
FUEL 110L
WATER FRESH
ENGINE
MAKE/MODEL Mercury 150hp Pro XS
TYPE 4-Stroke 8 valve SOHC Inline 4
WEIGHT 207kg
DISPLACEMENT 3.0L
GEAR RATIO 2.08:1
MANUFACTURED BY
Quintrex
SUPPLIED BY
Caloundra Marine
8 Baldwin Street, Caloundra QLD 4551
P: 07 5491 1944
E: sales@caloundramarine.com.au
W: caloundramarine.com.au