New Doral Elegante owner

[WhySoSearious?]

hello everyone,

After shopping for a Formula 37pc for a long time, my wife and I ended up buying an 06 Doral Elegante. The cockpit and cabin layout is perfect for us. Compared to the Formulas we looked at, there's more usable room and imo better fit and finish in the Doral. We can't wait to spend more time on her on the Chesapeake Bay.

Within the short period of ownership, i've invested A LOT of brain power figuring our how to do my projects. I've taken many things apart and have learned quite a bit. I hope I can contribute to this forum and help other Doral owners. GREAT BOAT!

-Searious

 

[CHIEF915]

Re: New Doral Elegante owner

Where are you on the bay? We are in the Upper Bay off of the Bush River.

 

[WhySoSearious?]

Re: New Doral Elegante owner

we boat out of the middle bay, near Annapolis. looks like the weather is turning sour this weekend. ugh

 

[Halifax Shipfaced]

Re: New Doral Elegante owner

Funny, My wife and I were talking about what other boat (if not a Doral) would we see ourselves in and the PC37 would be the choice.
I prefer the Doral because it's the best layout for entertaining and the construction is very good.
Welcome to the group.

 

[BSAFlash]

Re: New Doral Elegante owner

G'Day Searious,

You've chosen a nice vessel there.
After 6 yrs of ownership I have clocked up 850hrs. Apart from some dealer and manufacturer issues I'm very pleased with it.

I have made many changes along the way and would be interested in the changes you have decided on.

 

[WhySoSearious?]

Re: New Doral Elegante owner

since our boating season is rather short and it was cold when we bought the boat, i invested the first month of ownership to completing some projects:

-installed plastic grommets on transom door handle/rod - no more rattles
-installed 32in LED TV in place of mirror (might CNC a new backing, the frosted acrylic is too transparent, but matches the lights)
-installed home theater pc - XBMC
-installed wifi router
-router and pc are hidden, so i installed a remotely operated power strip.
-reversed the outlet near galley sink to run a super flat extension cord up the shelf to mount a tablet.
-replaced Clarion head unit with Fusion IP700
-replaced all cockpit speakers (JL Audio M650-CCX, M770-CCX)
-added gasket material around helm seat storage bin to stop subwoofer vibration
-added Raymarine E7D
-installed gunwale mounted fishing rod holders - mainly to hold the grill

the idea is to NMEA 2000 connect the C70 and E7D chartplotters, and with the Fusion IP700 head unit and each of the 3 NRX-200 remotes. Each remote can repeat NMEA data and control the stereo. The android tablets and android phones would be able to control the stereo and theater, as well as repeat the E7D screen. PC and DVD player routed through stereo via hdmi and aux input.


then as we started boating, i did the maintenance-type projects:
-replaced transom shower mixer valve
-installed 2nd house battery (2 x 31M)
-replaced water pump - 4 GPM
-replace all lights with LED bulbs


other projects on the list:
-install 3 Fusion remotes (still on waiting list)
-finish my espresso bar (still prototyping the platform)
-replace cockpit fridge with AC/DC version
-change both fluorescent light strips with 12v LED light bars
-add power inverter for router, pc and tv.


projects i don't have firm solutions in my head for yet:
-move water pump (location?)
-trash (where do the trash cans go?)
-paper towel holder (cockpit and cabin)
-security cameras (hidden in cockpit, cabin, and arch) for monitoring when i'm away.
-cabin lights - need a better switch system

Using the power panel to control the lights and the lack of trash space are my biggest complaints on the design of the boat. otherwise, the more we use the boat, the more we're loving it.

if there is interest, i may create threads on my projects and how-tos. let me know what you want to see. it looks like we could use some more activity in here.

 

[BSAFlash]

Re: New Doral Elegante owner

Interesting list there.
I too am looking to replace the Clarion system with a Fusion, Clarion are too hard to deal with and have no dealer network in NSW.
I like the LED conversions, there are more LED replacement units coming on to the market by the month so the option are getting better, the early ones I looked at didn't have a long life expectancy and often didn't fit into the light fittings properly.
My fishing rod holders are in the transom above the fender holders and BBQ is mounted on 60mm SS stern rails as well as a removable SS table/baitboard.
The other additions so far have been a catch for the aft cabin door, a block out cover for the main hatch in the bow (sleeping children) and a SS catch for the transom door to replace the ever rusting magnet fitted by the factory.
Oh, and I isolated the battery charger from the insulation in the engine bay by fitting a timber mounting block.
Looking forward to seeing your espresso bar, I've been considering one myself. At the moment I use a percolator and milk frother on the cockpit cooktop, better than drip coffee but espresso would be better

 

[WhySoSearious?]

Re: New Doral Elegante owner

running 3ft of cables for the head unit to the pc/tv was extremely difficult. i don't know a way of running the NMEA 2000 cables from the head unit to the helm for the remotes. instead, i reterminated the Clarion remote cable which has 6 conductors to NMEA 2000's 5 conductor cables. i'm still waiting on the remotes so we'll have to see if it works.

as for the transom door catch, i emailed SouthCo and they sent me a new M5-70-051-8 replacement for free. upon installation, i think when Doral welded the catch in place, they melted the epoxy backing. this exposed the catch to water and rusted the magnet. instead of rewelding the catch, i dremel'd the old one out. i then drilled/tapped new holes and installed the new catch with screws. care must be taken to keep the old weld spots in place so the new one is at the right angle/location to align the two pieces correctly.

 

[BSAFlash]

Re: New Doral Elegante owner

as for the transom door catch, i emailed SouthCo and they sent me a new M5-70-051-8 replacement for free. upon installation, i think when Doral welded the catch in place, they melted the epoxy backing. this exposed the catch to water and rusted the magnet. instead of rewelding the catch, i dremel'd the old one out. i then drilled/tapped new holes and installed the new catch with screws. care must be taken to keep the old weld spots in place so the new one is at the right angle/location to align the two pieces correctly.

I seem to recall a similar story when the first one corroded, after the second one I gave up and had a Riviera unit fitted.
The cable to my dash remote was faulty from new according to the experts, not sure what transpired but after a few attempts it all worked. My head unit will not allow any selection but CD and Radio and for the 4th time the screen remains blank even when the unit is operating, the fusion units are available at most retailers and seem to have a good reputation, can't be worse than the Clarion!.

 

[WhySoSearious?]

Re: New Doral Elegante owner

Interesting list there.
My fishing rod holders are in the transom above the fender holders and BBQ is mounted on 60mm SS stern rails as well as a removable SS table/baitboard.

do you have photos of your setup? i was thinking of adding a table to the rails around the back of the transom seats, but they seem too high. here's a photo of mine.

 

[AlanTh]

Hello!
We are trying to remove the TV in the bedroom to install a bigger one, any idea on how to get it out without ripping everything apart?
Thanks!

 

[jbcurt00]

Hello!
We are trying to remove the TV in the bedroom to install a bigger one, any idea on how to get it out without ripping everything apart?
Thanks!

Start a topic about your Doral and ask questions there about it, rather then hijack another members topic.

Include if yours is an Elegante or whatever the model name/number is

closed