Rinker Fiesta Vee 342 for Survey at Norfolk Yacht Agency

Today's assignment was at Norfolk Yacht Agency in Brundall surveying this Rinker American Sports Cruiser. Rinker Boat Company is one of the oldest names in the US marine industry. They introduced their "Fiesta Vee" line of sport cruisers over 20 years ago in 1986 with the Fiesta Vee 250. This Fiesta Vee 342 continued the company's tradition of offering affordable boats with spacious interiors and an impressive array of standard equipment.

This model was introduced in 1998 as the 330 Fiesta Vee. Slight changes to interior arrangements resulted in a name change, to the 340 Fiesta Vee for the 2000 and 2001 model years. After retooling the deck mold, she became the Fiesta Vee 342 from 2002-2005. In 2006 Rinker dropped their signature "Fiesta Vee" from all their models and she became simply the 342 EC - EC indicating express cruiser. The model was discontinued at the end of the 2006 model year.

The 12-foot beam allows for a spacious and open interior with a few twists on more traditional arrangements. 

Surveyors comments: The hull of the 342 Fiesta Vee is constructed of a combination of chopped strand fibers, hand-laid woven roving fiberglass cloth and polyester resin. Structural member are fiberglass encapsulated wood. For interior components, Rinker uses a single piece fiberglass cabin liner which is set into the hull and secured using adhesive sealants. The decks are fiberglass composites with balsa core and the hull and deck are joined in a shoebox fashion with adhesive sealants and stainless steel screws. The method and quality of construction are typical of other manufacturers of production boats in this size and price range and the 342 Fiesta Vee can be expected to stand up well to normal service. That said, she may not fare as well as more robustly built boats in extreme use or abuse.