The new Diva 40 should be characterised by good all-round performance, which is one of the most important specifications the shipyard gave the designer. To achieve this, the boat must be built with as little weight as possible. The hull and deck are therefore manufactured as a GRP sandwich composite using a vacuum infusion process with a foam core. Vinyl ester resins are used as standard, but the shipyard also offers the option of using epoxy resins. With a calculated total weight of just 7.0 tonnes ready to sail, the Diva 40 will be comparatively light.
The sail area can be somewhat smaller so that the boat is still good, safe and easy to sail for family crews and sailors with small crews. The short genoa with 106 per cent overlap is standard, as is a conventional mainsail with only a small overlap in the leech. It is also possible to set up a self-tacking jib. All halyards, spreaders and sheets are fed directly back to two winch platforms in the cockpit, where they can also be easily operated from the helmsman's position.
The standard interior layout provides for a basic layout with three cabins (owner's area forward, plus two aft cabins) and a bathroom. Layout variants allow an additional bathroom for the owners in the foredeck and/or the addition of a shower to the aft wet room on request. As is customary with Diva Yachts, the customer is largely involved in designing the interior according to their wishes.
The basic version of the Diva 40 is announced for an attractive price of 215,000 euros. The shipyard also offers cruiser versions (with additional boiler, self-tacking jib, furling system, etc.) for an additional 13,250 euros or a sports version (additional winches, Dyneema halyards, Dyform rigging, backstay tensioner, etc.) for an additional 16,500 euros.
The new Diva 40 is presented by the shipyard as a modern new edition of the well-known and successful Diva 39. This boat has been built over 250 times since 1982 and is still regarded in Scandinavia as a reliable tourer as well as a guarantee of success on the regatta course. The new Diva is now set to do the same.
Michael Good
Editor Test & Technology
