Beneteau Oceanis 35

The Beneteau Oceanis 35 is designed for the avid sailor who enjoys days sailing, weekending and the seasonal club sponsored races. Her cockpit and rig are well laid out making line handling quick and easy...

If you fell in love with the modular design concept of the Benetau Oceanis 38 which was introduced just a year ago, but thought it was a bit too big, take heart: The French builder has just released the Oceanis 35. This new design comes in just under thirty-three feet overall but offers the same innovative options as her bigger sister.

With no fixed bulkheads and permanent furniture modules to reinforce the basic hull/deck moldings, the Oceanis 35, like the 38, necessarily relies more on its bonded interior grid system to ensure structural stiffness and integrity. This approach works, because the very long spreaders and broad staying base (established by rail-mounted chainplates) keep rig loads quite low despite the generous form stability of the extra-wide hull. It’s arguably not the ideal construction for offshore work entailing prolonged exposure to severe sea conditions, but Beneteau offers other models better suited to blue water use. The Oceanis 35 (and 38) were conceived primarily as coastal cruisers, and as such, they combine impressive speed, maximum living space, and their own, very distinctive style...

Motoring on a glassy Pittwater, the Oceanis 35 managed a respectable 8.3 knots without complaint as the Yanmar 29 horsepower saildrive reached 3,500RPM while I sat on the port gunwale. This yacht was destined for Graham Raspass’s SailTime fleet so the upgraded 29 horsepower rather than the standard 20 horsepower motor was chosen. The throttle was nearby at the binnacle but its handle was very near the wheel spokes, so a slight impediment, especially when I put it in reverse to check the handling (to check the affect of the twin rudders) when going astern; which showed the Oceanis 35 to be obedient and predictable...

Beneteau’s groundbreaking Oceanis 38, which featured a dramatic new approach to accommodation space in a cruising monohull, scored a host of awards during its 2013-14 debut season, including a Best Boats nod from SAIL. Now comes a slightly smaller sibling, the new Oceanis 35, with the same sort of flexible modular interior.

The new 35’s build regimen is identical to that of its larger sibling. Its hull is solid fiberglass laminate set in polyester resin. The injection-molded deck is cored with Saerfoam, and is screwed and bonded to the hull...