Good Question
I owned a catalina 25 for over 12 years and think it was great boat. As they added features, I liked some and hated others but all in all I think it was an excellent design. I was able to retrofit some of the improvements. I did not see a 25.5 until after I sold my cat and bought another boat. It was not until after I bought that I saw my first 25.5 and I am impressed with the room, cockpit and cabin. Really liked the layout of both and I think the quality is on a par with catalina. Hunter should stay with a model longer and refine. Look at the Catalina 25, 27 and 30. The replacement 250 and 270 are horrendous and have no appeal. The 30 is still out there and doing fine. I believe that constantly changing has a negative effect on resale and certainly replacement parts. You can look at some of the popular Hnter models such as the 28.5 or the Cherubini models and can imagine what improvents would eventually come along if the owners were asked for input. Example: The 28.5 's table can not be dropped to form a berth and the setees are a little too narrow for some. The cushions could be oriented better, especially the forward curved one which is difficult to store. The next model made some of these changes but had a new exterior look and components. I think most of the changes could have been incorporated into the 28.5 hull. Perhaps I have tunnel vision but I have always been somewhat old fashioned.
