Tested By Capt. Bob Smith
I went up to the Georgian Bay in Midland, Ontario to test Doral’s latest releases. New owners took over the company about three years ago and are setting their focus on delivering some of the highest quality boats in the business. In three short years it seems they have taken good aim and are well on their way to meeting that goal.
This year’s 190 Sun Quest replaces the 186 of last year and does not have many visible differences. Most of the significant changes are in the liner and hull where you don’t see them. Weight has been reduced which should also improve top end performance. She has 18 degrees of dead rise.
There is 316 stainless steel is used throughout her construction including grab handles, gunwale moldings and cleats. Up front she has a non skid deck for boarding across the bow. Bow seating wraps around from helm to companion fronts with removable seat cushions with storage below.
Cockpit seating is two bucket seats with swivel and slide adjustments and side panels that create an armrest. The companion pod has a smoked plastic cover over the glove box which houses the stereo with CD player. A cup holder is on top just above this and to the port corner.
The helm has heavy duty power steering, Faria instrumentation and our test boat had the deluxe wood steering wheel. Both foot wells had angled foot rests for more comfortable cruising. Rather than the dull straight bench across the back, the 190 has a sculpted bench with has storage under it. A long center floor hatch cover is over the floor storage for wake boards and long skis.
The stern sun pad lifts up to expose the power plant. Watch out for screw heads from the mounting of the sun pad from underneath! The manufacturer said they had not noticed that and would make changes to the attachment so you want pierce your knees when kneeling on this pad. There is room on both sides of the power plant to store items like the life jacket bag on the starboard side and a bottle of water over on the port. The integrated swim platform offers a center low tow point and room to sit on the stern with the engine off and cool your heels.
When I drove the 190, she handled well in the marina and on the water. Tight turns resulted in little loss of power or cavitation and she rose onto plane smoothly. The trim indicator on my test boat was not functioning but she trimmed out nicely. I had some tendency for chine walk, but trimming it back a little solved that problem quickly. We had a hole shot of about 3.4 seconds with a 0-30mph run of 6.6 seconds. At 3000rpms, she was running about 36.5mph and burning 6.6gph. She topped out at 4700 rpms and 53.3mph and a fuel burn of about 18 gph. Sound levels ranged from 68dBa at idle to 95dBa at top speed.
This year’s 190 Sun Quest is 18’6” long, 22’ with the swim platform. She is 7’3” in the beam making it easy to manage on the road and in the garage. With the drive up she draws 17” and with the drive down she draws 33”. With A 4.3L engine, she weighs in at 2250lbs. She can carry 27 gallons of fuel for a rather full day of fun on the water.
If you are looking for a step up from entry level in a boat with elegance, function and performance, the 190 Sun Quest delivers that and much more.
