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Model profile · for Great Loop buyers
Navigator 50 Classic
What the published record establishes about this model, what owners report,
and the questions worth asking while a boat is still a listing. This page is about the
MODEL — a specific hull always gets its own homework.
A semi-planing 1990s motoryacht with a Loop-friendly layout and draft; engine reliability and real slow-cruise range are the things to pin down per-hull.
The Navigator 50 Classic is a mid-1990s semi-planing motoryacht in Navigator's "Classic" flybridge family, sharing a platform with the closely related 5000/53 Classic. It carries a three-stateroom, two-head layout on a slender-for-its-length ~15' beam and was fitted with twin diesels — commonly Volvo Penta, with other fits (including Cummins Diamond Series) appearing hull by hull, so confirm what this particular boat carries. Note: we could not find a dedicated owner forum thread or published boat test specifically for the 50 Classic; most model-and-year discussion clusters on sister hulls (42, 44, 46, 48, 53, 56) and on the 5000 Classic, so platform-level findings below should be confirmed against the specific hull. Navigator the company is effectively defunct, which matters mainly for model-specific hardware rather than engine support.
How to read this: 🟢 Fact = confirmed against a document, spec sheet,
or owner. Everything else — Claim, Pattern, Question, Context — is not yet
verified: things to check, not settled truth. Sources are linked where published.
Model identity
QUESTION
Is this a 50 Classic or a 5000 Classic, and does the LOA/beam match the listing?
Navigator's naming across the Classic family is confusing and the '50 Classic' appears closely related to the '5000 Classic.' One explicitly-1996 5000 Classic listing showed 55' LOA and 15' beam. LOA, beam and layout you rely on may come from a sister hull rather than this exact model, so the figures behind the listing can be inconsistent.
src:
Boatzon (1996 Navigator 5000 Classic listing); YachtWorld broker description
Your move: Ask the broker for the builder's hull ID and original spec sheet, and confirm LOA, beam and model designation against the actual hull rather than a generic Classic-family spec.
Range and cruising speed
CONTEXT
Run slow for Loop range; planing-cruise burn is high
On the Volvo 370hp installs, planing cruise burns roughly 12.2–12.7 gph per engine (~24–25 gph total) at ~2,400 rpm, with one owner seeing about 20 gph at 20 knots. A semi-planing hull run at displacement speed burns far less. I could not find a verified slow-cruise gph figure for this specific hull, so range at Loop speeds is uncertain and should be measured, not assumed.
src:
The Hull Truth; YBW Forum; Amnautical (Loop fuel planning)
Your move: Run a fill-to-fill fuel-burn test at intended displacement cruise rpm on sea trial to establish real gph and range for this hull.
CLAIM
Fuel capacity in the Classic family is around 600 gallons
Sister Classic models (42, 53) and the 56 list roughly 600-gallon fuel capacity. Treat this as a platform indicator, not confirmed for this hull.
src:
PowerBoat Guide (via navigatoryachts.com); Tampa Yacht Sales; Power & Motoryacht (56 Classic)
Your move: Confirm actual tank capacity from the builder's spec or a tank gauge/sounding.
Air draft
CLAIM
Flybridge with radar/mast/antennas — measure the real air draft
Published bridge-clearance figures for Classic-family hulls (~16'9"–18') likely do not include radar, mast or antennas, so the measured air draft to the highest fixed point can be meaningfully higher. This is the number that governs the lower fixed-bridge routes.
src:
AGLCA; Southern Boating / Capt. Chris
Your move: Measure actual air draft to the highest fixed point and identify what (mast, antennas, radar) can be lowered before committing to low-clearance routes.
Draft
CLAIM
Roughly 4'6" draft is comfortable for the Loop
Classic-family listings cite about 4'6" draft, which sits within common Loop norms. Confirm loaded draft for this hull, as running gear and load can add to published figures.
src:
PowerBoat Guide (42 Classic); Tampa Yacht Sales (53 Classic)
Your move: Confirm loaded draft on the actual hull, accounting for full fuel/water and any running-gear projection.
Systems
CLAIM
DC electrical system is basic — plan a house-bank refit for anchoring
Owners describe the DC system as based on 8D truck batteries with a poorly laid-out switching arrangement, typical of production boats of the era — fine marina-to-marina but under-built for extended anchoring. The Loop involves anchoring out, so budget for a house-bank/electrical upgrade.
src:
Trawler Forum
Your move: Inspect the battery bank and switching layout and get the age of the 8D batteries; budget for an electrical refit if you plan to anchor out.
CLAIM
Aging caulking and deck/window leaks
Owners of Navigators in this family report several frustrating leaks and caulking needing attention with age. Water intrusion over decades can affect core and joinery, so this is worth scoping on a boat now ~30 years old.
src:
Trawler Forum (5600 Sundance owner)
Your move: Have the surveyor moisture-test decks and check window/deck-joint caulking for leaks and any resulting core damage.
Parts and support
CONTEXT
Navigator the builder is effectively defunct
Navigator is reported out of business (now foreign-owned and not shipping to the US), which chiefly affects sourcing model-specific hardware and trim rather than engine parts, since Volvo/Cummins support their own engines.
src:
Trawler Forum
Engines
The engines research — factory options, tested performance,
and the engine-specific questions our members' dossiers carry — is part of the
full profile inside the product. It travels with every dossier and survey brief
built on this model.
Looking at a specific 50 Classic?
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