Nimbus C11 (2021-)

Brief Summary

The C in Nimbus' new C11 is for Commuter. She can carry 9 people in the protected confines of the salon and convert easily to a family yacht for day boating. Belowdecks, she sleeps four and has a full galley and private head. She’s available with outboard or inboard power.

Test Results

Specifications

Length Overall	40'7" 12.36 m
Beam	11'4" 3.46 m
Dry Weight	12,345 lbs. 5,599 kg
Tested Weight	14,640 lbs. 6,640 kg
Draft	3' 0.9 m
Fuel Capacity	224 gallons 850 L
Water Capacity	36 gallons 135 L
Total Weight	14,640 lbs. 6,640 kg

Acceleration Times & Conditions

Time to Plane	4.4 seconds
0 to 30	13.0 seconds
Props	16p
Load	5 persons; 128 gal. fuel; 50 lbs. gear
Climate	68 deg.; 45 humid.; winds: 5-10; seas: 0

Engine Options

Tested Engine	2 x 350-hp Mercury Verado
Std. Power	2 x 300-hp Mercury Verado
Opt. Power	2 x 350-hp Mercury Verado 2 x 400-hp Mercury Verado

Captain's Report

Captain's Report by Eric Colby

Mission Statement

Nimbus C11 is a commuter intended for use by families who travel between the mainland and a second home on an island or similar destination. The captain and eight passengers can travel in protected confines all facing forward when necessary, but Nimbus also designed her to be versatile and comfortable for a day or weekend on the water. In the salon, she has convertible lounges and there are outdoor gathering areas fore and aft. Below, she sleeps four in privacy and she has a full galley and private head with a separate standup shower. The twin-stepped hull can be equipped with twin outboards or inboards.

Nimbus C11 Features Inspection

• Indoor seating for 9 with all facing forward
• Aft salon lounge converts to dinette
• Forward and aft outdoor gathering areas
• Available with inboard or outboard power
• Joystick piloting and bow thruster
• Full-length raised bulwarks
• Private mid-cabin
• Full galley
• Private head w/standup shower

The Salon. The heart of the C11 is the salon and the Swedish builder focused on providing outstanding views for everyone on board. The seating is configured in rows so nine people can travel facing forward. The aft lounges can be converted to create seating on three sides of the table or a booth-style setup with the outboard bottom cushion removed. The table can also be lowered to create an extra berth.

In a nod to Swedish practicality, there are dedicated storage racks for the bottom cushions as well as snap-down vinyl storage pockets on the port inwale. There’s also plate and glass storage in drawers in the seat base. Sliding doors on each side adjacent to the helm open 38” (96.52 cm) fore to aft. Overhead, there’s a series of opening skylights and headroom is 7’ (2.13 m).  The C11 comes standard with heat and air conditioning.

The Aft Deck. A sliding door opens a 27” (68.58 cm) wide passage to the aft deck where there’s a 61” (154.94 cm) wide bench seat with a padded backrest. The bottom cushion for the seat folds up to provide more space for fishing and on the trailing edge of the hardtop, there are eight rocket-launcher style rod holders. A rack on the back of the seat has storage for six fenders. Stainless steel gates close off passageways to the stern. Swim platforms extend past about half of the length of the outboards.

Our test boat had the optional second station and it is fully stocked with a joystick, digital controls, chartplotter, thruster controls, Zipwake panel and emergency lanyard.

Additionally, the C11 is available with twin Volvo Penta D4 320-hp diesels that would be beneath hatches in the aft deck. The benefit of the outboards is that this space is left open and creates a storage compartment that measures 78” x 68” x 28” (198 cm x 172.27 cm x 71.12 cm).

The Bow. At the aft end of the pilothouse, the side decks are 16” (40.64 cm) wide with bulwarks that are 29” (73.66 cm) tall and have rails that top out at 35” (88.9 cm). Just ahead of the sliding pilothouse doors on each side, two 8” (20.32 cm) steps lead up to the foredeck where the bulwarks are 17” (43.28 cm) tall with rails that top out at 22” (55.88 cm). On the inboard side, there are rails on top of the pilothouse and on top of the trunk cabin. Hinged stainless-steel plates in the side decks open to reveal the fuel and water fills and wastewater and pump out fittings. There are a total of six 10” (25.4 cm) cleats positioned appropriately on each side of the boat.

The top of the trunk cabin is covered by a thickly cushioned upholstered pad and fully forward is a two-person forward-facing lounge finished in the same material. The seat is 44” (111.76 cm) wide and just ahead is a table that folds down the middle.

The Ground Tackle. A hatch in the foredeck opens on a gas strut to reveal the Lewmar windlass that has an all-chain rode that connects to the 16 kg (35.27 lb.) stainless steel anchor via a swivel. The anchor passes through the stem on a roller. There are foot controls for the windlass to starboard and the bowrails are split to all for bow-in docking and boarding.

The Helm. The C11 has a symmetrical deck layout so it’s easy to head aft on each side. Let’s head aft to check out the helm. It’s to starboard and on top has a compass in-line with the tilt steering wheel. All navigational and systems-monitoring data is provided on two 12” (30.48 cm) Simrad multifunction displays. Just below, the Mercury VesselView screen keeps an eye on the twin 300-hp Verado outboards. To the immediate left of the steering wheel are accessory switches that illuminate when activated with the controls for the Zipwake trim interceptors just below. Farther to port are the Fusion stereo and just above is a storage tray with 12-volt and USB plugs.

To starboard of the steering wheel are the optional Mercury joystick and the digital shifts and throttles. Just below are the remote control for the bow thruster and windlass, plus a fixed rocker switch for the bow thruster. To keep the dash uncluttered, the Simrad VHF radio is in a cutout in the starboard gunwale.

The captain and a companion travel in individual bucket seats with folding armrests and many adjustments can be made for individual comfort. Our test boat also had a shock-mitigating suspension system for both seats. There are angled footrests on the bottom of the console as well as fold-out footrests on the seat pedestals.

Nimbus C11 Accommodations Deck

The Cabin. A sliding hatch to port of the helm opens to access the C11’s cabin. There’s 5’10” (1.78 m) of headroom at the bottom of the stairs. Immediately to port is the galley that has a two-burner stove, Corian counter and a double-basin stainless-steel sink, plus a small drawer-style refrigerator. A fiddle rail atop the counter contains any spills.

The Bow. Forward, the berth is 77” (195.58 cm) at its longest, 36” (91.44 cm) wide up front and 66” (167.64 cm) across at the foot. There’s storage outboard on each side on long shelves and large hullside windows let in lots of light while opening ports bring in fresh air. At the foot of the berth is a locker with many shelves.

The Head. Opposite the galley, a door opens to provide access to the head that has a private shower, which is rare for a boat in this size and category. There’s also abundant natural light that gives the compartment an open feel.

The door abaft the head opens the private owner’s cabin that has 5’11” (1.8 m) of standing headroom at the entry. Above the 78” x 48” (198.12 cm x 121.92 cm) berth, headroom drops to 19” (48.26 cm), which is still plenty. There’s a small seat at the foot of the berth in the taller aft section plus a full-length mirror on the inside of the entry door.

Nimbus C11 Performance

The Stats. The Nimbus C11 measures 40’7” (12.37 m) with an 11’4” (3.45 m) beam and she draws 3’ (.91 m). With an empty weight of 12,345 lbs. (5,599.6 kg), 5 people, 128 gallons of fuel and 6.9 gallons of water, we had an estimated as-tested weight of 14,640 lbs. (6,640 kg).

The Numbers. Testing in calm conditions, we wound up the twin 350-hp Mercury Verado outboards to 6000 rpm and hit a top speed of 50.7 mph on the C11’s twin-stepped bottom. Backing off to just 5500 rpm gave us our best cruise. We recorded 45.9 mph and a fuel burn of 43.6 gph. That translated to 1.1 mpg and a range of 212 statute miles with 10 percent of the boat’s 224-gallon (847.93 L) fuel capacity held in reserve. She held minimum plane at 10.2 mph. When we slammed the throttles forward, the C11 planed in 4.4 seconds and ran to 20 in 7.6 seconds and through 30 in 13.

Handling. From the helm, we appreciated the outstanding visibility that came courtesy of the narrow mullions and expansive wraparound glass. In wet weather, the side wipers will come in handy. In turns, put the C11 into a mild arc at cruise and she’ll scrub minimal speed, maybe 5 to 10 mph. Put her hard over at 40 to 50 mph and the speed will scrub, but the only time someone will do that is likely to be in an evasive-maneuver type of situation.  

Observations

She has all the ingredients that make her a qualified commuter, but clever ideas make her a fun family boat as well. The suspension bases for the helm seats are a worthwhile upgrade and if a captain plans to load her to capacity to bring provisions out to the second home, go with the most powerful engines possible. The choice of outboards versus inboards offers an owner choices. But again, if hauling provisions is in an owner’s plans, it’s hard to beat the under-deck storage capacity in the cockpit when the boat is equipped with twin outboards.