Haines Hunter 675 Enclosed with Mercury V8

There’s no doubt that this is a great looking (and sounding) rig on the water. There’s plenty of cockpit space and lots of comfort up front.

by Steve Morgan •

I’ve only been testing boats in the west for a short time, but I’m quickly learning that the boat you need here is a little different from the craft that would be normal on the East Coast. Plenty of East Coasters want a rig that can do multiple jobs – maybe estuary and inshore plus offshore on a good day. There are plenty of sheltered waterways to support that.

West Aussies also need a multi-purpose boat, but it’s for multiple purposes in the ocean!

Midway Marine specialises in big rigs that get the job done on the big water, and their dealership is spotless and well run to match their appetite for man-sized rigs that get you where you need to be.

Warwick Rann runs the joint, and even after years of boats and boating, his face lit up when he got to take this Haines Hunter 675 Enclosed for a run. Granted, that may have been because it was powered by a new Mercury Verado 250hp, which is the latest 4-stroke V8 model. It boasts a ridiculous power-to-weight ratio, smooth operation and fuel economies that make its supercharged predecessor seem downright greedy with the gas.

The Enclosed is ideal for many locations along the coast, providing shelter from the sun, wind and rain. It also packs the kind of open water ability that gives you confidence that you’ll get to where you’re going and back in comfort and safety.

As a demonstration boat in Midway’s yard, this rig ticks plenty of boxes when it came to options. The dash fits a full sized display for your sounder/GPS and there’s also flush-mounting room for your digital engine gauges and accessories.

The side door is always a super-practical addition, and the mixing of seat bases allows the user to take a secured cooler for food while storing tackle under the driver’s seat.

The cabin is easily large enough for overnight trips, and the hard top is high enough to fit your biggest mates. It’s also ventilated by side and overhead hatches and windows. The test model even had lights and speakers inbuilt.

Drop the hammers and this rig gets along, although as the rpm rises above 4,000, economy drops significantly.
Out in the open water, the Haines was a fun ride. The testing arena at Rockingham Bay provides both calm and open water options.
The Haines Hunter arrived on a Mackay alloy trailer with electric over hydraulic brakes. It makes for a sharp looking rig at the ramp.
You can tell if a new Mercury is a Verado version by the presence and colour of the mid sections. Verados feature an AMS (Advanced Mid Section) that’s silver and adds some weight while dampening engine vibrations.
There’s plenty of height in the hard top, which includes storage for nearly a dozen rods.
Once you’ve had a side door on a boat, you’ll never want one without it. Even at the ramp it makes for easy loading.
That’s what we like to see in a fishing boat ╨ the ability to mount a MFD flush in the dash. The bigger the better. There’s even room for the ZipWake auto tabs beside it.
Plenty of room and a couple of shelves in the cabin makes it functional and easy to maintain.
Midway has set up this boat with one seat base of storage and the other able to take a third party cooler. Talk to the team about customising your boat.
The trailer is designed to drive on and off, even though the club rules disallowed this at the launch.
Twin livewells on each side of the transom with windows allow you to load up on livies and to check easily that your pumps are working and that they’re in good nick.
The transom lines are clean and there’s plenty of height in the gunwales to keep lines down in rougher weather.
In the test model hard top there was built-in ventilation and radios fitted.

The rig comes on an alloy Mackay trailer with electric over hydraulic brakes, which usually means that it’s out of the zone of towing with the family car. Still, it will tow with nearly all twin cab utes. Warwick yanked it around easily with his LandCruiser.

Out on the water, the Haines was fun to drive and surprisingly trim sensitive. Visibility was predictably good, and the helm position comfortable.

Performance-wise, the rig jumped out of the hole with an Enertia 17” propeller. Wide open, it was fast-ish and thirsty, delivering 870m/L at 75km/h. Ease up on the stick and economy jumps; at 3750rpm, you get just under 1.5km/L.

Rigs like this aren’t cheap; the test rig weighed in at $158,000 as tested, with packages starting from $135,000.

Contact the team at Midway Marine if you want more information on this boat (www.midwaymarine.net.au) and make sure you Like their Facebook page if you want to stay up to date on what they have happening locally.

Alternatively, you can watch the video that we made on the test day, and you can check it out on YouTube or scan the QR code hereabouts. There are some great running shots and a walkaround. (You may have heard a rumour that we ditched a drone filming it. Rumour confirmed!)

SPECIFICATIONS
Length Overall………………………….. 6.75m
Beam…………………………………………… 2.40m
Height…………………………………………. 2.30m
Hull weight………………………………… 1300kg
Fuel………………………………………..  270L

PERFORMANCE
RPM…………………. km/h……………….. km/L
650……………………… 4.5………………….. 1.55
1000………………………. 7………………….. 1.42
2000……………………… 12………………….. 1.04
3000……………………… 25………………….. 1.16
3500……………………… 36………………….. 1.50
3750……………………… 42………………….. 1.46
4000……………………… 44………………….. 1.33
4500……………………… 54………………….. 1.31
5000……………………… 60………………….. 1.18
6000……………………… 75………………….. 0.87

* 17” 3-blade Enertia stainless steel propeller.