I think the transom door option also came from customers.
Kids swimming, fishermen landing a catch, divers wanting easier ingress and egress...
The optional door eliminates the barrier to access the swim platform.
I am curious about the color though. I'd like to see one in person before passing judgement.
I've parked my Parker next to a number of Gradys which have a lighter shade of 'white' than the Parker.
In every case, I've liked the Parker shade better. The Gradys either looked washed out (especially when chalked up), or a very light shade of pink when new.
My guess is that the 'new white' is an outgrowth of the new pastel hull colors. I'm just not sure just how 'white' it actually is.
So far as the "no wood" crowd is concerned, my guess that is a combination of marketing, and boaters who don't know the strength of using wood in the construction of a quality hull.
I think wood gets a bad reputation from the construction practices in place 30 to 40 years ago (think SeaCraft, Mako, and even Parker) combined with owners who don't know the core needs to be protected when they mount things to their boats.
The people here in these forums know how to stop water intrusion into the core, but the 'typical' boat owner does not.
Using composite materials is a marketing tool, as well as saving the low information boater from himself.
