Grand Soleil 46.3 Deep draft

Sailboat specifications

The Grand Soleil 46.3 is a 45’11” (13.98m) cruiser-racer sailboat designed by J&J Design (Slovenia). She was built between 1997 and 2003 by Del Pardo, Cantiere (Italy). The Deep draft version offers a deeper L-shaped keel bringing extra performance especially upwind.

The Grand Soleil 46.3 is as well listed, on Boat-Specs.com, in Medium draft and Shoal draft version (see all the versions compared).

Grand Soleil 46.3's main features

Model: Grand Soleil 46.3
Version: Deep draft
Hull type: Monohull
Category: Cruiser-racer sailboat
Sailboat builder: Cantiere Del Pardo
Sailboat designer: J&J Design
Sailboat range: Grand Soleil
Country: Italy
Construction: Hull and deck: GRP (glass reinforced polyester)
First built hull: 1997
Last built hull: 2003
Appendages: Keel : L-shaped keel (with bulb)
Helm: Single helm wheel
Rudder: Single spade rudder
Unsinkable: No
Trailerable: No
Standard public price ex. VAT (indicative only): N/A €

Grand Soleil 46.3's main dimensions

Overall length: 47’ 4”14.42 m
Hull length: 45’ 11”13.98 m
Waterline length: 39’11.9 m
Beam (width): 14’ 5”4.4 m
Draft: 7’ 11”2.4 m
Light displacement (M_LC): 24251 lb11000 kg
Ballast weight: 8598 lb3900 kg

Grand Soleil 46.3's rig and sails

Upwind sail area: 1367 ft²127 m²
Rigging type: Sloop Marconi masthead
Mast configuration: Keel stepped mast
Rotating spars: No
Number of levels of spreaders: 3
Spreaders angle: 0 °
Spars construction: Aluminum spars (carbon fiber spars as an option)

Grand Soleil 46.3's performances

Upwind sail area to displacement iThe ratio sail area to displacement is obtained by dividing the sail area by the boat's displaced volume to the power two-thirds. The ratio sail area to displacement can be used to compare the relative sail plan of different sailboats no matter what their size. Upwind: under 18 the ratio indicates a cruise oriented sailboat with limited performances especially in light wind, while over 25 it indicates a fast sailboat.: 276 ft²/T25.68 m²/T
Displacement-length ratio (DLR) iThe Displacement Length Ratio (DLR) is a figure that points out the boat's weight compared to its waterline length. The DLR is obtained by dividing the boat's displacement in tons by the cube of one one-hundredth of the waterline length (in feet). The DLR can be used to compare the relative mass of different sailboats no matter what their length: a DLR less than 180 is indicative of a really light sailboat (race boat made for planning), while a DLR greater than 300 is indicative of a heavy cruising sailboat.: 185
Ballast ratio iThe Ballast ratio is an indicator of stability; it is obtained by dividing the boat's displacement by the mass of the ballast. Since the stability depends also of the hull shapes and the position of the center of gravity, only the boats with similar ballast arrangements and hull shapes should be compared. The higher the ballast ratio is, the greater is the stability.: 35 %
Critical hull speed iAs a ship moves in the water, it creates standing waves that oppose its movement. This effect increases dramatically the resistance when the boat reaches a speed-length ratio (speed-length ratio is the ratio between the speed in knots and the square root of the waterline length in feet) of about 1.2 (corresponding to a Froude Number of 0.35) . This very sharp rise in resistance, between speed-length ratio of 1.2 to 1.5, is insurmountable for heavy sailboats and so becomes an apparent barrier. This leads to the concept of "hull speed". The hull speed is obtained by multiplying the square root of the waterline length (in feet) by 1.34.: 8.37 knots