The design comes from Italian Matteo Polli. In January 2020, the Cantiere del Pardo shipyard announced the new collaboration with the well-known and successful rating specialist at the boot trade fair in Düsseldorf and also announced the Grand Soleil 44 Performance as the first joint project (YACHT 2/2021 test). In the meantime, the 44 has already won two ORC (category B) world championship titles, setting the stage for its smaller sister Grand Soleil 40 to follow.
Like its bigger sister, the Grand Soleil 40 is available in two versions. The standard boat is the Performance version with a self-tacking jib and double mainsheet guide on two winches in front of the steering columns. The Race version has a significantly longer bowsprit (+70 centimetres) and is also equipped with an overlapping genoa (108%), with hollow points on the cabin superstructure and additional winches on the cockpit coaming. Keels in three different draughts or a carbon fibre rig can be combined, depending on requirements and optimised dimensions. The long and very efficient traveller on the cockpit floor remains the standard in both cases.
Strong under sail, beautiful below deck
The new Grand Soleil 40 has been nominated for the European Yacht of the Year award in the performance cruiser category and was available for trials with the international jury in Port Ginesta near Barcelona. In the test with YACHT, the Polli design proved to be extremely agile and demonstrated a high performance potential. The boat appears to be in no way inferior to her larger and successful sister. The Italian also scores highly in terms of handling during manoeuvres, which once again demonstrates Grand Soleil's extensive experience in the planning and design of regatta yachts.
The layout below deck provides for a simple layout with three cabins and a wet room aft. The only layout option is to install an additional toilet room for the owners in the foredeck. The galley is attached to the side of the saloon as a long row. This keeps the passageway nice and wide, and the sails can be stowed well below deck during a regatta.
The new Grand Soleil 40 has been announced as the German premiere at the boot trade fair in Düsseldorf in January 2023. The price for the market launch is listed at 395,100 euros including 19% VAT. As is generally the case with performance cruisers, this price does not include the sails. The detailed test in YACHT will be published before the presentation at the trade fair in Düsseldorf, planned for issue 2/2023.
Technical data Grand Soleil 40
- Construction: Matteo Polli Yacht Design
- Interior Design: Nauta Yachts & Cantiere del Pardo Design Team
- Hull length: 11.90 m
- Overall length with bowsprit: 12.90 m (Performance) / 13.60 m (Race)
- Width: 4.07 m
- Draught/alternative: 2.40 m (Std.)/2.10 m/1.85 m
- Weight: 7.5 tonnes
- Ballast/proportion: 2.5 t/33.3 %
- Mainsail: 46.0 m² (Perf.) / 50.0 m² (Race)
- Genoa (108.0 %): 45.0 m²
- Self-tacking jib: 38.0 m²
- Gennaker: 160,0 m²
- Motorisation / drive: Volvo Penta 30 hp / Saildrive
- Fuel capacity: 170 litres
- Fresh water capacity: 300 litres
- Price: 395,100 euros (gross, without sails)
