Scanner 650 L: a heap of agility and design. Perfect for every occasion

In these 6.50 metres designed and built by the master craftsmen of the Scanner shipyard there is everything you need for a yachting day out. Agility reigns supreme on the 650 L, which looks like it was designed to be pushed to the limit with its important entertainment features, but its line and attention to detail also make it a decidedly elegant craft, perfect for heading out to a lakeside restaurant at sunset.

On the water it is always responsive to commands with great speed, even at high revs. The 2.55-metre width is well thought out, there is room for 12 people and 7 comfortable compartments, making it versatile in a variety of situations, from fishing to camping to simply relaxing.

Perfect in any situation the Scanner 650 L is made to entertain, and to make us remember how good it feels to push the throttle down.

Scanner 650 L Sea Trial

I arrive at the Marina di Varazze and the Scanner 650 L is there waiting for me with its grey tubulars and cream-coloured cockpit: sporty lines, few frills, lots of practicality.

Between the stern platforms is a Yamaha 150 outboard. Considering the maximum power that can be installed, 175 hp, I’d say I’m well on my way and so I’ll be testing it almost to its maximum attainable performance. But I have to hurry because the sky is black and the first drops of water are starting to fall; on the other hand the sea is calm.

I don’t know why, but ever since I got on it I have had the feeling that it would be perfect for a night-time Navy Seal operation. I can see them holding on to the rubber handles, attached directly to the tubulars, ready to launch. Maybe it’s the fibreglass V-shaped bow that looks like it’s aiming at a target, maybe it’s the agility it shows me right from the start, maybe it’s the speed of its thrust and the way it slices through the water, but I can just see it in an adventure film as a raiding craft. So let’s test it out. Throttle test: throttle down all the way, in 8.7 seconds we’re at 30 knots; this Scanner travels through the water brilliantly, and allows me to make a couple of port and starboard turns that send me into ecstasy. Without the T-Top it’s like surfing on the water, everything feels wilder to me.

Planing had already started at 2500 rpm, around 9 knots. Now the boat is at 4,500 rpm, traveling at almost 28 knots, and I am consuming 30 l/h, I could call it the perfect cruising speed for this Scanner. Everything is running smooth apart from the fact that it’s raining cats and dogs, but I still have some so I’m lowering the throttle again. The rain in my face with this late summer temperature gives me some chills, or maybe it’s the emotions: I reach 5,600 rpm and touch 34.2 knots.

I’m soaking wet, yet I’d stay there and play for another good hour. As soon as I land and get ashore the rain stops and the sun comes out: ‘What timing. – I think – someone up there wanted to show me a good time today.

The Scanner 650 L in detail

Scanner’s quality is indisputable, and even in an Entry Level like this it is clearly recognizable thanks to an attractive design and the quality to which we have become accustomed.

Its purpose is evidently to be practical and fast, and always ready to cast off. At 6.50 metres long and 2.55 metres wide, manoeuvring it is a piece of cake, and this entices you to use it in a variety of situations: from a day out on the lake with your family to a day out with friends and fishing rods.

In fact, there is no shortage of space, with room for 12 people, and 7 compartments to store everything you need for your hobbies or simple relaxation: at the bow a comfortable sundeck is always ready to remind that ‘dinghy’ also means lying down and letting yourself be pampered by a gentle pitch.

The V-shaped fibreglass bowplate, fitted with a fairlead, is integrated into the two solid tubes that wrap around the hull up to the stern platforms, while in the centre of the boat is the helm station. There is no T-Top and no chemical toilet, but under the pilot’s double seat we find a very comfortable and accessible retractable compartment.

The line is tapered and, with a 150 hp engine like the one fitted today, the hull flies over the water. The work of the craftsmen can be felt in the quality of the navigation, which is very clean and linear, but capable of sudden sharp turns and agile manoeuvres.

All these characteristics make it a thoroughly enjoyable boat that can provide both great driving joy and carefree days out with friends. In fact, I can imagine myself on my beloved Lake Orta, going from one little beach to the next before landing on the Island of San Giulio at sunset and enjoying a nice aperitif: yes, in a context like this it would find one of its greatest expressions for me.

Test Data