Two European 40s We Could Love
Two European 40s We Could Love
The field at last year's Boat of the Year Awards competition (see SW Dec./Jan. '03/'04)
included several 40-something footers. They all couldn't win awards,
but that didn't mean there weren't several damn good boats. Two of
these deserving recognition were the Grand Soleil 40 and the Elan 40
(the later won Cruising World's Best Performance Boat award, both European-built and designed, and both with easily traced raceboat heritage. Grand Soleil 40
The Grand Soleil design philosophy has been to build one-off raceboats,
see how they go, then use the knowledge gleaned from a year of hard
campaigning on the European circuit to design and build a fast
production boat that will race well and be reasonably comfortable
downstairs. After sailing their 40-footer, we can say that the theory
not only makes sense, but works well. We sailed the Grand
Soleil 40 on a day when not many other boats came out to play; a cold
front had brought winds that gusted well over 35 knots. Nevertheless,
when it was time for our test sail, the GS 40 was waiting for us,
tacking back and forth in front of the Naval Academy with two reefs in
the main and the genoa rolled in partway. Our first
impression on getting aboard was that the 5'3" diameter Solimar wheel
felt good, and the foot blocks were in the perfect spot. We averaged 7
knots during our sail, and thanks to the 6'10" rudder, we never spun
out or broached; rather the boat just squirted ahead when the big puffs
hit. BOTY judge and multihull aficionado, Meade Gougeon declared that
the GS 40 was the best monohull he'd ever steered. The
cockpit had room for the seven of us sailing that day. The seats are
contoured, with raised edges, and the portside locker is large enough
to store bricked sails. It was no problem for BOTY judge Chuck Allen to
access the rudder quadrant and get at the steering cables, something we
tested on each boat. The deck hardware and winches are Harken,
and the solid vang by Bamar worked well during our spinnaker-less
downwind legs. All control lines and halyards led aft to the cockpit
and its four winches. Two additional winches for the main trimmer are
optional, but would be priceless necessities for buoy racing. The
roller-furling drum for the headsail is built by Facnor. Lifeline
stanchions mounted inboard of the toe rail won't be popular with crews
or skippers, as they lend some difficulty and discomfort when hiking,
and you can't get your weight out as far as you could were the
stanchions mounted outboard. Designed by Massimo Papperini
and built by the Cantiere del Pardo yard in Forli, Italy, the hull is
solid glass with vinylester and the deck is cored with foam. The
standard mast, which is an aluminum rig by Sparcraft, uses wire rigging
and steps on the keel. The keel is solid lead, and the rudder has a
solid steel stock and steel webbing. The GS 40's core strength comes
from a built-in structural grid composed of ribs, bulkheads, and
longitudinal stringers around the keel and mast step amidships.
There are two and three-cabin versions available, the main difference
being another head forward and an extra cabin aft under the portside
cockpit seat in the three-cabin version.The fuel filters for the
40-horsepower Yanmar diesel, which powers a Saildrive unit, are easy to
access. At presstime there are boats in inventory on the East Coast of
the United States for $249,000; a new boat's price will depend on the
fluctuating value of the dollar versus the Euro. If you want a full-on
race version, a GS 40R, with rod rigging, carbon rig, SCRIMP hull, and
a 7'10" keel is available. Elan 40
The Elan company may be more familiar to Americans as a manufacturer of
skis, but across the street from their ski manufacturing facility in
Begunjie, Slovenia, is a boatbuilding plant that's been producing boats
for 40 years. We had the pleasure of sailing the Elan 40, a Rob
Humphreys (Kingfisher, GBR Challenge) design in a 16-knot breeze.
The deck gear is a mix of Harken and Lewmar, with a Furlex furler for
the headsail. The rig is an aluminum Selden section popular with
European builders, and, with the performance package we sailed,
equipped with rod rigging and Spectra halyards. The boat has a split
backstay with a hydraulic adjuster on the port side. The main sheet is
set up grand-prix style, running down from near the gooseneck, which is
handy when you need the sail pumped or pulled in quick for a jibe. As
with the GS 40, all halyards are led to an organizer forward of the
companionway. Behind the traveler, which is raised and runs between the
cockpit seats, the stainless steel wheel mounts on a binnacle with room
for instruments. The helmsman's seat tilts forward for easy boarding
through the open transom, which incorporates a handy swim platform/man
overboard recovery area. And yes, the bow roller can easily be removed.
The Elan 40's hull is solid fiberglass, the deck cored with balsa. The
keel is solid iron fin with a lead bulb, and draws 6'9". We
hit 7.2 knots upwind with the optional 155-percent genoa, and the boat
felt solid and tracked nicely. When we did take a blast, the rudder
gave plenty of warning before an actual stall-and recovered instantly
once the main traveler was eased. Downwind in 17 knots true, sailing
under spinnaker, the boat felt on edge and the cockpit a tad crowded
during jibes, but we hit speeds between 7.7 to 8.2 knots; the
trade-offs are well worth the performance. This is a boat that won't
take long to get used to, and will reward a competent driver.
The first thing you notice as you go below are the two handholds in the
companionway; somebody had their offshore thinking cap on. The fit and
finish below is excellent, especially if you order the upgraded (more
wood) interior. There are two different cabin versions, with the only
difference being a head in the forward berth in one version. There are
two cabins aft under the cockpit benches, both with closets. The
J-shaped galley is to starboard, opposite that, the head. The nav
station is at max beam, and faces forward. The electronics panel is
well laid out and easy to get behind, but there's only a small space
left for instruments, and no cabinetwork directly forward of the desk
itself where you'd like to put a display screen. With the
IRC measurement rule heading for the States, it's good to know that an
Elan 40 won the British National IRC Class 2 in 2002, and you can
own one for $215,000. Both the Elan and the Grand Soleil 40 demonstrate
a trend in European boatbuilding towards good looking racer/cruisers
that race well, so if you're in the market, do yourself a favor and
sail each.
Soleil 40 LOA 40'4" LWL 39'4" DSPL 15,000 lbs. Beam 12'6" Draft 7'1"/7'10" Upwind SA 915 sq. ft. www.grandsoleil.net
Elan 40 LOA 40' LWL 39' DSPL 16,755 lbs. Beam 12'7" Draft 6'9" Upwind SA 779 sq. ft. www.elan-marine.com
