2850-2858 Command Bridge

A popular boat for several years, the Bayliner 2850/2858 Contessa Command Bridge (called the 2858 Ciera Command Bridge in 1989) was marketed as an affordable family sedan primarily designed for coastal and inland cruising. She’s built on a solid fiberglass hull with a relatively wide beam and moderate freeboard—still a fairly good-looking design today in spite of her age. Inside, the original floorplan had a single stateroom with a convertible dinette to port, a convertible settee opposite, and a privacy door forward. In 1986, a new mid-cabin interior layout was introduced with a second stateroom positioned ahead of the aft bulkhead and below the dinette settee. A wide ten-foot beam makes the 2850/2848 Command Bridge a roomy boat inside. Standard features include a lower helm, sport arch (on later models), swim platform, and swim ladder. Not surprisingly, storage space is at a premium. There’s seating for four aft of the helm on the console. Built on a lightweight hull, most were sold with a single 260hp Volvo sterndrive engine that provides very adequate performance (17–18 knots cruise; mid 20s top). Note that Bayliner introduced an all-new 2858 Ciera Command Bridge model in 1996.