Jeanneau Leader 36: Review

At Jeanneau’s recent 2016 Press Sea Trial in Cannes, we got talking to the head of domestic sales. He was sharing some of the long-range cruising trials he had pulled off on the Med’ in the smart Leader 36 sportscruiser.

He had nothing but good things to say about the hull, which is a Michael Peters’ design and, therefore, one expects a certain degree of wet-track form.

But let’s face it, on Australia's diverse waterways, a sportscruiser like this is seen predominantly as an entry-level family weekender for backyard touring.

A keenly priced, high-volume inboard-powered boat, the Leader 36 now comes more options
including a snappy new walnut interior to increase its Gen X-Y appeal some more.

PRICE AND EQUIPMENT
- Today's family sportscruiser
While a new sub-30 Leader will be released at Cannes boat show in September this year, this 36 is for now the best all-round affordable family cruiser in the range than includes a smaller 8 and bigger 40 and Leader 46 as we reviewed here.

But you might want a few extras like a barbecue and cockpit fridge, the inverter with extra batteries for the optional microwave oven, and a few toys such as a roll-up tender. Matt Willett Marine quotes a package costing about $515k with Volvo Penta D4-260hp diesel engines and options for local boating.

Since it’s launch 18 months ago, some 90 of these Leader 36s had been sold to global markets, we were told at the time of our testing. The boat was lauded in Europe last year, where sportscruisers with diesel power still hold considerable sway. We know of at least one Leader 36 that has been sold in Australian waters, too.

The signature grey hull colour and hardtop with sunroof are part of the Leader DNA, but so too the sterndrive power options that run from 300hp 5.7L 350MAG petrol MerCruisers to D4 Volvo Penta diesels in 260hp and 300hp guise on this boat. Either way, you will want the optional bowthruster.

ACCOMMODATION AND LAYOUT
- Social day-boating layout and family-friendly interior
The cockpit layout doesn’t stray, with familiar aft sunpad that gains lounging space at anchor when you flip forward the backrest otherwise employed by the internal transom lounge.

With the backrest in place, there’s C-shaped seating around a lunch table, opposite an amenities centre with fridge and electric grill option. As this grill will require shorepower or a generator, we’d opt for a decent gas barbecue on the transom instead (or just use a Weber Q on the amenities centre servery).

Forward is a co-pilot seat to port with aft-facing Cleopatra daybed alongside. The single helm seat opposite is wide enough for a fit couple. Pretty much all of the boats helm-deck seating rests under a moulded hardtop with electric sunroof and small aft awning, so you can entertain or lunch mainly in the shade.

The hardtop has complementary lines and enough room with the sunroof closed to drive on your feet, though we cruised with it open on a sunny day off Cannes. The driving ergonomics were really very good.

Below decks is a new tweak on this previous release: a fresh walnut interior that adds visual contrast and a richer feel to this keenly priced sportscruiser. The interior is from Garroni Design, a popular choice for Jeanneau, and a superyacht stylist known for Italian touches like the strip lighting and bathroom fittings.

It's not breaking new ground in the accommodation department, however, with an open bow with inbuilt single beds that convert to a double, gaining privacy from a sliding door, and a lounge at the base around a dinette table that can seat a family or sleep one extra.

There’s a small galley module with upgraded 240V cooktop if you don't want gas, an optional microwave oven and inverter that we would select, bathroom with a full shower opposite, and an aft cabin that sleeps two/three kids, thereby creating your full family pad.

Opening portlights and big hull windows, unlike some other European sportscruiser brands, are features and Jeanneau has gone to great lengths to fashion a modern apartment-like ambience with this updated Leader 36.

ON THE WATER
- Plenty of fun driving behind the wheel
With the Volvo Penta D4 260hp diesel engine pairing, this boat pulled more than 32 knots and cruised at 22-23 knots for a range of a 175nm-200nm. Ergonomically, it’s a nice boat to drive, running and turning flat, and affording good vision across the rev range.

Engine access is great via an electric lift of the aft sunpad, while the upgraded Joystick on the test boat was there to appeal to newbies wanting optimum docking control. We would just add the bow thruster as there are twin engines after all.

On face value, the Leader 36 will serve as a social conveyance for a
comfortable Sunday cruise to your favourite bolthole, but it is also a
boat for beating at least a backyard path to your favourite overnight
anchorage, friendly marina or motor boat club and, if you are feeling adventurous, at a nearby port of call. The performance is there.

VERDICT
- Backing the sportscruiser market return
Right now, the traditional US sportscruiser market remains stuck in the doldrums. But Jeanneau is going all out to own a bigger slice of what it hopes will be a rebounding inboard market before long. Time will tell.

It’s building its Leader “express family for the family,” Jeanneau said at its press conference, where 2016 was declared the Year of the Leader.

The enthusiastic performance of the Leader 36 was kind of contagious and the new walnut interior looks and feels like it’s straight out of an inner-city apartment. This is a keenly priced modern sportscruiser for young families.

LIKES
>> Very nice performance and handling
>> Abundant seating for entertaining
>> Accommodation for weekending with the family of four
>> New walnut interior looks snappy

NOT SO MUCH
>> Sportscruiser with the galley down aren't as popular as Jeanneau's NC line-up
>> The big transom sunpad is a very European design