Summerland 40

Exotic yacht builder Fountaine Pajot has put paid to that perception with its Summerland 40; designed by Coste & Partners under the architectural guidance of Joubert/Nivelt. It’s big on work and play areas with large well appointed cabins and an entertaining flybridge. Just the place for a sunset cocktail party or time out sanctuary from the rest of the crew.

Navigation is via a 10” Furuno Navnet chart plotter/depth sounder and an autopilot is wired at both helms.

A pair of 700-litre diesel tanks with individual starboard/port fuel line circuits are installed with an electric gauge and indicator wired to the chart table at the helm.

Plumbing-wise the Summerland features a 600-litre freshwater tank with pressurised storage and a 40-litre water heater. The holding tank is 50-litres with pump-out facility on the starboard side with the option to pump to sea when in a suitable area.

Automatic bilge pumps are fitted to each engine hold and both hulls with full 12-volt circuitry including 240v inverters.

The large saloon door slides to port and the port half is unlockable to allow it to be centred so draft may flow down that side of the saloon over the rear of the dining lounge.

Once inside, the galley is located in the aft starboard corner. It features a single sink and draining board and a four-burner gas-fired cooker. A vertical bin is accessed in the bench top and the garbage bag under its lid is extracted from the side of the galley module near the saloon door.

A low-set 130-litre fridge services the galley and will need to be optioned up or complimented with another if you are looking at extended cruising. One of the future options on this boat is a freezer on the deck aft of the portside saloon door.

There is no shortage of drawers in the galley with larger units for pots and pans. There is no dishwasher installed but like most other aspects of the Summerland 40 the options are endless.

The picture windows are fixed toughened glass but each side window has a sturdy waterproof porthole for ventilation.

The fixed furniture in the saloon is generally square shaped but some effort has been put into getting rid of the hard lines by sloping the vertical sides of the cabinets and rounding the corners off.  It looks quite smart.

The dining suite is an eight-seater in a long ‘U’ shape bench with ample table space and in close proximity to the galley for food service.

The fixed furniture mid saloon all but partitions off the helm but there is clearance above it to keep the saloon open and aired.

That helm is situated mid ships with a neat console and a chatty passenger seat with footrest to port of the main pedestal seat.

Even though the front window panes are high set, the skipper has safe vision forward and to beam from his seating position. The smaller central pane is equipped with a wiper blade whilst that each side sweeps around in a stylish curve.

Large flat tops surround the leather padded helm instrument panel brow to allow charts and other paperwork to be spread out and a porthole in the roof above the helm chair pumps plenty of fresh air down on the skipper and through the saloon.

From the centre island one steps down into the portside cabin area.

A crew bed of standard double size runs aft off the entrance at which a small washroom is situated. Another slightly larger berth runs forward from this entrance and it is well appointed with shelves manufactured with high front lips to retain quite a bit of reading material and chart work if required.

In the opposite hull a large owner’s bedroom is situated featuring a queen-sized island bed with step up each side. There is a very roomy walkway past the foot of the bed at the end of which is a large locker leading into bulk stowage space in the hull.

A small office desk is situated against the cabin liner and the chair for it is held in the aforementioned locker.

While the main cabin is big on room, some of it could have been used to expand the size of the ensuite that services it. It is all very functional but cramped for space. A hatch in the bulkhead behind the head leads into more stowage space; on this model, the place where the fluxgate is mounted.

An arced staircase leads up to the flybridge from the cockpit. This area may be closed off with a hardened glass hatch operated via a gas strut.

The flybridge has a queen-size sun lounge with a guard rail surround on the aft and port side and a padded backrest on posts may be positioned on the starboard side or aft for lounging purposes.

The helm seat is double bench style and an aft facing passenger seat is to the portside. From the helm in the flybridge the skipper has excellent vision of the bow, though the stern is out of sight when standing at the wheel.

A pair of 220hp D3 turbo five-cylinder Volvo engines are fitted along with electronic throttles and complete control panels at both the saloon helm and flybridge. Shafts are direct drive with four-blade propellers aft of sacrificial protective keels.

With the cockpit engine hatches open one may enter the hold and stand on a grate above the turning shafts. A slide-in partition shields one from the rotating components at the aft of the engine and access to oil dip stick is within reach.

Should the engines have to be lifted out they are unbolted and slid back over the grate and pulled out of the hold without the need to cut and shut superstructure.

Manoeuvrability is also excellent both at speed going forward, going astern as well as during docking. In fact after throwing the lines at Runaway Bay I was convinced this boat was armed with substantial bow thrusters! That was not the case.

At 22 knots the Volvo’s are ticking over at 3800rpm and at a cruise of 18 knots they are turning at 2500rpm.  For economical long hauling, 15.5 knots will have the rpm at 1850.

The Summerland 40 is one very big package inside a relatively small hull with a matching price tag. It will represent excellent value for those wanting to wile away the hours along the coast or protected broad waters and do it in style.