Drawing Board
Building off the success of their stalwart Nordhavn 40, the builder went back to the drawing board to create its replacement.
Azimut’s latest outboard vessel; the Turkish-built Nordhavn 41; Outer Reef ’s long-range 640 Azure.
Builders retire and replace models all the time; boats have a natural life cycle and no matter how many updates and tweaks you make, sometimes you just need to start from a clean sheet of paper. That task is especially difficult when replacing a stalwart model that contributed so much to a builder’s success. One such model is the Nordhavn 40, which is well known for not only being the smallest model of the builder’s fleet but also the one that holds the record for the fastest circumnavigation by a production boat.
Those are big sea boots to fill, but Nordhavn plans to do just that with the announcement of a 41-footer coming on the horizon. The biggest difference between the 40 and 41 might just be where it’s built: Turkey. This move for the builder, who traditionally built boats in Taiwan and China, looks to be the start of a new long-term partnership that will make transit to European and East Coast buyers simpler.
CE certified to Category A (able to withstand 40-plus-knot winds and 13-plus-foot seas), the 41 should have no issues handling what the Med can throw at it (not a bad place for a shakedown cruise if you ask me.) After your European adventure, Nordhavn will ship your yacht to their facility in North Palm Beach where the boat will be serviced and primed for its—and your—U.S. cruising debut.
Single or double cabin layouts are available depending on how you plan to cruise, with room for overnighters on settees in the salon.
Power for the 41 is another major departure for the builder, who plans to use twin 75-hp Kubota diesels powering straight shafts matched to a deep 3.942:1 reduction gear. According to Nordhavn, “These engines routinely run over 20,000 hours in generator applications and are free of the electronic controls required by larger horsepower engines...There is no CPU to fail; just a beautifully simple, mechanically injected—but very clean burning—diesel engine.”
What should remain constant is the ocean-crossing range that made the 40 famous. According to their naval architecture partner Vripack the 41 should have a range of 8,232 miles at 6 knots and 972 miles at 9.5 knots. Fuel capacity is 900 gallons. Hull No. 1 should make its worldwide debut this January at the Dusseldorf show in Germany.
Every lifelong boater knows that a good boat, especially one that filled so many lives with adventures and memories can’t really ever be replaced. That said, the Nordhavn 41 will undoubtedly enjoy many new adventures. And the Greek Isles aren’t a bad place to start. — Daniel Harding Jr.