advice on PRIVILEGE needed

[alexxx]

HELLO PRIVILEGE OWNERS !
i'd be really grateful by your feedback on the Privilege 615, and Privilège Marine itself - how do they fare in their AFTER-SALES customer care approach, compared to other cat makers?
fot those of you who own a Privilege, have they responded to your emails and phone calls quickly, and have they covered/reimbursed costs covered by the guatartee promptly and with care?
how do they take care of their clientèle?
- very slowly, i'm zoning onto the 615 or the 515 (not sure yet) , of course i'm continuing to study other makers , and i'll take my time, but what impresses me is the build quality of the Privileges, their apparent solidity, the high quality of the whole build and of minute details.
I really like that, but having your own experience and advice on the matter would be priceless.....
nothing equals that
alexxx

[Jeannius]

Privilege Marine have only been existence since about this time last year so there isn't that much experience with them as a company. Alliaura Marine, the previous company, was very good in regard to after sales service. I only had ONE warranty issue and that was dealt with promptly and fully, even though the boat was then in the BVI.

Privilege Marine is mainly run by the people who were in charge when my boat was built back in 2002. Many of them left when Alliaura stupidly left Les Sables d'Olonne just before the worldwide recession, for a new factory, miles away, to build the 100ft boat. PM is now back in the original factory and seems to be doing everything just right.

I went aboard a 615 earlier this year and it is certainly a beautiful boat.

[alexxx]

hi Mike,
thank you for those comments, very helpful info. Do you think Privilege Marine got all of their former employees back into Sables d'Olonne? or did they have to recruit new people who don't have the craftsmanship experience of the older team?
cheers Mike

[Jeannius]

I believe it is pretty much all the old team. Send me a personal message or email and I'll send you contact details for the people I know at Privilege.

[eccellente]

Hi Alexxx,
we are also looking for a cat to cruise around and liveaboard in the near future.
We came across the Privilege 615 during the Multihull show in La Grande Motte (France) last April and were crasy about it from the first minute.
The looks, design, finishing, etc... no remarks at all.
We went to visit Privilege Marine @Sable d'Olonne during their open days and were welcomed very personally and were shown around the factory.
I can confirm that most of the old employees came back to work for Privilege Marine.

We are now planning to go to the boat show in Cannes next September and will compare the Privilege 615 with other cats.
But my mind is defnitely set on the Privilege 615. It is now just a matter of personalising the cat to our requirements for a circumnavigation.
The Privilege 615 stays quit expensive however and are looking into this financial matter.

Johan

[alexxx]

hello eccellente
thanks for your reply, good to know that you had a good and personnal welcome at La Grande Motte from Privilège, it does count. I have seen their new 515 when invited on it by an owner i got to know in Bordeaux the other day, beautiful boat, but i won't go and buy it, only because of the way the saloon windows are designed..... i'm tall, so sitting down i don't really see the outside so well , and standing up, it's worse.... other than that, the finish and the beauty of the cabins are out of this world. Shame about the poor outside visibility from the saloon. Then i was in san diego last week, and i got lucky again to encounter a 615. The owners invited me on it for a tour (and a coctail!!!), and oh my gooowd, what a beauty. The saloon outside visibility? no problem there. The finish and quality of materials just outstanding inside out. So i'm hooked on the 615 now, but i'm also hooked on the Nautitech 541, the new version. Different boat, but also a fantastic quality, big boat, great for self handling, and faster, BUT Privilège 615 is top of the game in it's class, so we'll see.......i'm also going to try to be in Cannes next month, so perhaps i'll see you there.......

[Steamer]

Originally Posted by alexxx

... but also a fantastic quality......

Alexxx,

As You advised earlier in Your above post You can only judge of FINISH quality. The rest remains unknown to You unless You control entire building process. Sorry for my short post containing some shadow-paint. Hv a good luck buying new cat!

[alexxx]

thanks Steamer....... one question, if you don't mind... what would be your advice on how to control the entire building process?
cheers

[Steamer]

Originally Posted by alexxx

thanks Steamer....... one question, if you don't mind... what would be your advice on how to control the entire building process?
cheers

Alexxx, on this I have the answer placed on neighboring forum.
Having a chance to build a catamaran, I would do it on my chosen smaller yard, where I personally could control entire building process.

++

In case I have a client with his choice of Privilege, I will then recommend my client to get the yard (mean Privilege Marine) acceptance for having him or his representative placed there.

Rgds

[EllesBelles]

The newly reorganized Privilege back in Les Sables d'Olonne has a new CEO/owner who does not sail or have a boat. How does that compare to the old CEO/owner of Alliaura Privilege? Do you think this matters or will affect quality or the new designs, or are they separating engineering & design from business?
I heard the new Privilege has brought back some but not all of the original workers. I wonder how long it will take them to get back to full strength if ever?
Please share if you have any insight on the new Privilege Marine v. the original Alliaura Privilege

[Steamer]

Originally Posted by EllesBelles

The newly reorganized Privilege back in Les Sables d'Olonne has a new CEO/owner who does not sail or have a boat. How does that compare to the old CEO/owner of Alliaura Privilege? Do you think this matters or will affect quality or the new designs, or are they separating engineering & design from business?
I heard the new Privilege has brought back some but not all of the original workers. I wonder how long it will take them to get back to full strength if ever?
Please share if you have any insight on the new Privilege Marine v. the original Alliaura Privilege

Afiard I personally will take me "closer to danger". New Privilege is not landed the Earth from any other planet. Original Privilege workers and new Yard owners/stuff - they had and again have to compete with the others. Since competitors do not improve overall building quality but mainly target on visual perception of their boats, the new Privilege's "way of doing business" will closely follow the paths of the other builders. IMHO.

Regards,

[EllesBelles]

Originally Posted by alexxx

hello eccellente
thanks for your reply, good to know that you had a good and personnal welcome at La Grande Motte from Privilège, it does count. I have seen their new 515 when invited on it by an owner i got to know in Bordeaux the other day, beautiful boat, but i won't go and buy it, only because of the way the saloon windows are designed..... i'm tall, so sitting down i don't really see the outside so well , and standing up, it's worse.... other than that, the finish and the beauty of the cabins are out of this world. Shame about the poor outside visibility from the saloon. Then i was in san diego last week, and i got lucky again to encounter a 615. The owners invited me on it for a tour (and a coctail!!!), and oh my gooowd, what a beauty. The saloon outside visibility? no problem there. The finish and quality of materials just outstanding inside out. So i'm hooked on the 615 now, but i'm also hooked on the Nautitech 541, the new version. Different boat, but also a fantastic quality, big boat, great for self handling, and faster, BUT Privilège 615 is top of the game in it's class, so we'll see.......i'm also going to try to be in Cannes next month, so perhaps i'll see you there.......

Alexx, We saw a gorgeous(!) used 615 at the Privilege boatyard in excellent shape, especially given that it had been a charter boat. You may want to reach out to sale mgr Catherine Relandau at Privilege to inquire if it's available (if you're still looking)