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The following opinions are solely,
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those of BoatTEST.com and its test captain.
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Hi, Captain Steve from BoatTEST.com,
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and today I'm on an all new boat from Chaparral the 277 SSX.
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Now, the SSX series has been around for a while,
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but with this new model, the 277 SSX,
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it takes the DNA into a whole
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new direction of look and feel.
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Let's take a look ourselves, as I do a full features
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inspection and sea trial.
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The new look is self evident
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when you look at the sides.
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There's new styling and detail,
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a lower profile, and the arch has been completely redone.
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As we board from the swim platform,
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I notice it comes out 33 inches.
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It's got a nonskid surface all across.
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Notice the integrated grab rail
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with the tow hook,
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six inch pull up cleats to both sides
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and additional cleats are up the sides,
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along with the beautiful stylized detail.
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Now obviously, we've got the seating across the stern,
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but this is convertible and we've seen different versions
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of convertible seating before,
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but this seems to be the best that I've seen in class.
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We've got the out-facing seating for the platform,
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the forward-facing seating for the cockpit,
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and to convert it,
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all we do is grab the handle and pull.
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And now we have a chaise lounge,
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four feet, four inches,
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by four feet, two inches.
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Plus, notice how we still have a little jump seat,
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right along side,
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so we can sit and have a conversation
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with whomever might be on the sun pad.
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Of course, in the starboard corner,
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we have the requisite four step reboarding ladder,
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and I do like how Chaparral has kept their characteristic
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stereo remote with Transom trim switch.
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To the starboard side is the entryway to the cockpit,
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and notice how there's a door, acrylic,
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can be closed off,
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drops into the lock position,
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and when it's open,
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it falls flush against the bow works
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and still leaves us 15 inches of room to walk through.
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In the closed position,
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it exposes a door leading to the main electrical panel
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that includes the battery switch and jump start lugs.
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Now, as we enter the cockpit,
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well, look at this,
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seating everywhere, almost all the way around
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and it starts with L-shaped seating to the port and stern.
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There's a side mount base for a pedestal table,
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so we can turn this into an al fresco dining area,
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or certainly, a cocktail area.
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Opposing seating just across.
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And notice how the two bucket seats
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can swivel around to join the crowd.
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And of course, we're already seeing the Chaparral quality
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with regards to fit and finish.
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Take a look at this upholstery.
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Custom embroidery,
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tri-tone materials,
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diamond stitching,
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and different densities of foam throughout the seat.
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Plus, we've got storage under this seat,
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with a 36 quart cooler,
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and under this one,
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probably the deepest storage we've seen in class.
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The bow works to both sides,
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have the speakers, stainless steel drink holder,
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and the grab rails.
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And I like how they're all recessed
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so that they're not cutting into the back
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of whomever might be sitting in the seat.
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Moving forward,
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the bucket seats, both identical,
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the captain and the passenger share the same seat.
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It's got a flip up bolster,
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wrap around sides,
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different densities of foam and it's open
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in the back for great ventilation.
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And I love how on all Chaparral boats,
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they have the patented adjustments up front, not underneath,
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where they're going to cut into your leg,
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or they're hard to find.
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Plus, when you're standing in a position like this,
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it's easy to move it
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however you'd like.
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Now, it's not unusual to have storage
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in between the two seats in the deck,
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however, this one is a bit unusual in that
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the hatch is held open by gas assist struts,
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It's extraordinarily deep, plus,
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there's storage within storage.
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Now let's take a look at the observer side.
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There's a grab handle and a recessed armrest,
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stainless steel drink holder,
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lockable glove storage,
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storage space just above the door.
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And inside the door,
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which has a double latch,
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look at this head compartment.
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It features a solid surface counter
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with a stainless steel sink,
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includes a pull out sprayer,
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there's an opening port light
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for natural light and ventilation,
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a porta potty is standard,
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we can upgrade to this electric flush toilet with pump out.
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Above all, is this electrically actuated arch tower
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that collapses at the push of a button.
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All of the components are inside the base,
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which transfers easily from one Chaparral to the next.
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So it's easy to fabricate the tower
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so that it fits the base.
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There's a wrap-around windshield with a stainless steel cap.
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And naturally, there's a walk through portion that opens up,
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and it locks with a double latch that's interconnected.
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Down below, there's an air den that can be closed off,
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that works in conjunction with the walkthrough windshield
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to make it nice on the cool mornings.
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But more importantly,
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when this is in the closed position
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there's a storage drawer and storage underneath that,
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leading into the console.
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Exceedingly, comfortable bow seating,
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nice and deep,
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the seat backs are curved,
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flip-up armrest,
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and there's another mount for the pedestal table
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so we can transfer it from the cockpit to the bow.
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There's storage under all the seats,
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including a self-draining built-in cooler fully forward,
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and notice the cushions,
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like all the cushions on the boat,
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these are hinged.
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The helm has an all glass dash consisting of a pair
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of standard seven inch Simrad evo2 displays,
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and notice how they're angled slightly,
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to face the operator.
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Push-button controls surrounding the bottom of the panel
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are lighted when activated,
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and are grouped logically.
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The steering wheel is mounted to a tilt base,
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and check out how the floating logo
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in the middle always points up,
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even when the wheel is turned.
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To the right, a Polk audio stereo
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is just ahead of the engine control.
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And Chaparral insured that the accessory and MP3 plugs
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are right next to a beverage, slash phone holder.
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Fully forward, there's a hatch with non-skid,
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a lift and lock latch,
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brings it open and notice that it's held
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in the open position by tension hinges, underneath.
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A Lewmar Windlass with a chain and rope rode
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leading to a through the stem ankle roller.
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And here we've got a stainless steel plow anchor.
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There's a cleat on the side for securing the rode.
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Just ahead, the nav light rotates into place.
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The Windlass controls are to the side.
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Plus, there are additional controls at the helm.
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And we have two, six inch pull up cleats,
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one to each side.
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Fuel fills on both sides,
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so it doesn't matter which side we have the pump on.
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Plus, we can open one and ventilate the tank
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while we fill from the other.
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The engine is in it's usual place,
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underneath the aft seat,
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lifts easily by pulling up on the handle.
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Here we've got a 6.2 350 horsepower Merc cruiser engine.
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Roomy installation, plenty of access to both sides.
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Steering pump over to the starboard side.
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To the port side, the house and start batteries,
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plus, the 15 gallon water tank.
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The Chaparral 277 SSX, has a length overall of 27 feet,
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beam of eight feet, six inches,
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and a draft of 35 inches.
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With an empty weight of 5,500 pounds,
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37% fuel and two people on board,
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we had an estimated test weight of 6,100 pounds.
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With a 350 horsepower Merc 6.2 liter engine
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turning a bravo three outdrive with 26 pitch prop sets,
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we reached our top speed at 50.8 miles per hour at 5415 RPM.
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Best cruise came in at 3500 RPM and 29.9 miles per hour.
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At that speed, the 9.2 gallon power fuel burn translated
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into 3.2 miles per gallon and a range of 233 miles,
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all while still holding back a 10% reserve
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of the boats 80 gallon total fuel capacity.
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We reached planing speed in an average 3.6 seconds,
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accelerated to 20 miles per hour in 5.4 seconds,
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and continued through 30 miles per hour in 7.5 seconds.
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As for handling, just like the rest of the brand,
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this boat handles, exceptionally well.
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In fact, it takes a practiced hand to hold it back
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because it does everything so gracefully,
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no matter how heavy handed or aggressive you get.
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Performance turns it up with just a gentle roll
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and just enough slide to grab the water
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while not causing everyone and everything
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to be thrown to one side.
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Spray is kept to the sides,
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made tanning our dry ride.
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If we keep the turn on,
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there's virtually no chine walk
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and even with the trim of the outdrive maintained,
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we experience no ventilating of the props.
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It's just flat out,
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an all around, great handling boat.
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Great looks, comfort, innovations,
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and the handling characteristics
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that we've come to expect from the brand,
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all seem to come together in the new Chaparral 277 SSX.
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And that's my full features inspection
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and performance evaluation.
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From BoatTest.com, I'm Captain Steve.
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We'll see you on the water.