Hatteras GT45X Open Boat Review

For years the Hatteras nameplate has been associated with big offshore sport fishing yachts that combine comfort and performance. That’s still very much the case with the Hatteras GT45X Open, although the boat does come with a few quirks.

The Hatteras offshore fishing heritage is clearly evident as one boards the GT45X, with the cockpit presented as a large open space with plenty of room for a centrally-mounted leaning post or fighting chair. The gunnels are pocked with flush-mounted rod holders, and the center of the transom holds a large aerated bait well. To the starboard side of the transom, a walk-through transom door provides easy dockside access.

The GT45X cockpit is open for fishing, with plenty of space to install a leaning post or a fighting chair.

To each side of the cockpit floor of the Hatteras GT45X Open, large hatches open to reveal insulated fish boxes – each stretching four and a half feet long, and each fitted with a macerator. There are both raw water and fresh water wash-down connections provided under the forward end of the starboard side gunnel, making it easy to quickly hose off the deck and rinse any fish scales or slime out through the transom corner drains.

A pair of aft-facing cockpit seats provide space to watch the rods, in the form of a multi-position bench with full back rest to port, and a single seat to starboard. Both the bench and the single seat are positioned on elevated platforms, which open to reveal insulated storage spaces beneath. The seat cushions can also be lifted to reveal further surprises – the bench seat hides a freezer at one end, and access to the engine room at the other. Lifting the starboard-side single seat cushion reveals an electric grill, with tackle storage below.

A split aft-facing cockpit bench seat conceals a freezer under one end, and access to the engine room under the other. The single seat to starboard hides a grill.

So far, so good. But theHatteras GT45X Open also has its quirks, one of which is the positioning of the control panel that operates electrical accessories like the cockpit lights, the bait well pump and the macerators for the fish boxes. It’s almost like Hatteras doesn’t want you to find it, with the panel hidden under the starboard-side gunnel just above the wash-down connections. Why Hatteras couldn’t locate this control panel in a more convenient spot is a real head scratcher, since it’s something people tend to use every time out.

That small row of dark colored dots at the tip of the red arrow is a row of switches that control cockpit electrical accessories, such as lights, the bait well aerator pump and the fish box macerators. Why they’re mounted here, and not someplace more readily accessible, is one of the quirks of the Hatteras GT45X.

Also curious is why Hatteras stores the fire extinguisher inside the footrest storage compartment at the starboard-side seat. Apart from being out of sight and inconvenient to access in an emergency, it renders the space just about useless for stowing gear.

The boat’s main deck helm station provides two bucket seats with fold-down arm rests and flip-up footrests for comfort underway.

The Hatteras GT45X Open offers an optional tuna tower, complete with a tower helm station that’s accessed by ladders positioned on either side of the cockpit. While the tower helm is definitely simpler and more compact than the main deck helm station, it offers elevated, 360-degree, completely unobstructed views to facilitate docking or navigating tight spaces.

Heading inside, the salon is abbreviated but functional, with an L-shaped settee facing forward and continuing up the port side of the boat. There’s also a centerline helm seat, and a companion seat to starboard. Helm seats are nicely finished, and feature both fold-down arm rests and flip-up footrests for driver comfort.

The helm console provides plenty of space for flush-mount electronics, like the twin Raymarine displays shown, while leaving plenty of space for additional controls for trim tabs, thrusters, radios and stereo equipment.

The helm is an interesting mix of old and new. New, in the digital dash arrangement and space for installing large multi-function displays along with radios, stereos and other modern, high-tech gear, and not a single old-school analog dial gauge in sight. Old, in the wood steering console with its chromed steel trim, complete with individual throttle controls for the twin engines positioned on either side of the wheel. The design reflects Hatteras’s offshore fishing heritage, with the throttles positioned in such a way to allow easier operation when backing down on a fish, an operation where the Captain faces aft and uses varying engine output to steer. Not everyone will find this an attractive arrangement, however, nor will all buyers appreciate the near-horizontal mounting position of the steering wheel, or its lack of a tilt function. Tradition to some, quirks to others.

What all buyers will agree on is that the Hatteras GT45X Open is equipped with a delightful wrap-around windshield design that puts the vertical supports off to the sides for an unobstructed forward view. Kudos for going modern on that one.

The galley and standard lounge arrangement is quite attractive, with a well-equipped U-shaped galley starboard, a long L-shaped settee to port with a height-adjustable table and facing a large HDTV.

Access to the belowdecks accommodations is located to the right of the helm. A well-equipped U-shaped galley sits to starboard, with an L-shaped settee opposite that’s served by a longish table – more of a coffee table than a proper dinette, but it can pull double-duty. The settee faces a large screen HDTV, making it a comfy spot for evening relaxation.

The head sits forward of the galley, while the bow space is reserved for an island queen berth, with an overhead hatch for ventilation and storage closets to either side.

The forward V-berth is spacious, and enjoys an overhead skylight vent.

Hatteras offers an optional two-stateroom layout for this boat, where the port-side settee is deleted and a tight guest cabin with bunk beds shoehorned into place opposite the head. Quirkiness returns, because while the resulting second cabin does now allow the boat to sleep four, the small dinette that replaces the settee can realistically only seat two, mainly due to the compact dimensions of its small, square table. Presumably, occupants have to either take turns and dine in shifts, or take their meals into the salon or the cockpit – neither of which have tables at all.

An optional two-cabin configuration allows the boat to sleep four people, but replaces the port-side settee with a small dinette that’s sized for just two.

Adding the second cabin also means you lose the lovely big HDTV, which is replaced by a much smaller screen located directly over the dinette seat, where viewers are looking up at an almost 45 degree angle. It’s not nearly as comfortable an arrangement as that of the standard, single-stateroom version with its long settee and waist-level flat screen.

Twin Caterpillar C-12.9 diesels provide a top speed of over 35 knots.

Standard power for the Hatteras GT45X Open is twin Caterpillar C-12.9 diesels that churn out 985 horsepower apiece. At full throttle, they’ll drive the boat to between 35 and 40 knots depending on load and sea state, which is impressive for a yacht pushing 50,000 pounds. The company offers twin 1,135-horsepower Cat C18s as an available upgrade, but the boat runs so well with the standard power most buyers will likely just stay with that.

On the whole, the Hatteras GT45X Open is a comfortable and appealing offshore fishing boat for couples that might like to do some extended travels as well. But it is a boat that has its quirks. Like a house with “character,” this will delight some buyers, and alienate others.