What sets the 325 apart from its stablemates is the way Felci combined a surprisingly spacious interior and a heavily specified deck with a modest displacement of 10,362 pounds. The result is a boat that feels larger than its length suggests and carries CE Class A ocean certification.
Design and Construction
The hull is a hand-laminated, solid-fiberglass shell finished with NPG gelcoat. Its first layer of cloth is also impregnated with NPG resin, a combination the builder describes as an optimum barrier against osmosis.
Inside, a moulded hull bottom carries a structural grid laminated to the hull. The deck is a PVC foam-core sandwich moulded by resin transfer injection, saving weight while leaving a clean interior finish.
The cast-iron keel transfers its bolt loads to a stainless steel backing plate. Buyers had two keel choices: an L-shaped bulb fin drawing about 1.85 to 1.95 meters, depending on load, or a shallower L-keel drawing about 1.55 to 1.65 meters.
The semi-elliptical rudder is filled with closed-cell epoxy foam and mounted on a solid stainless steel stock. Its head remains accessible beneath the helmsman’s sole for fitting an emergency tiller.
Rig, Handling, and Performance
The 325 has a fractional 9/10 rig, with a deck-stepped anodised aluminium mast and double swept-back spreaders. Its grounded rigging system uses continuous single-strand stainless steel cable and chrome-plated bronze turnbuckles. Reviewing the specification, Yacht Database noted that the boat carries more rig than 90% of comparable sailboats, leaving it significantly overrigged for its size.
The mainsheet tackle runs on the coachroof, while the boomvang provides 4:1 purchase. Genoa sheets run through piston-track blocks and then to turning blocks on the coamings. A single stainless steel chainplate serves both the cap shrouds and aft lower shrouds.
Under power, the Volvo Penta diesel and saildrive propel the hull to a calculated maximum of about 5.4 knots, compared with a theoretical displacement-hull speed of 7.1 knots.
The boat’s capsize screening value is 2.05. Yacht Database noted that this figure would prevent the 325 from being accepted for ocean races, although its CE Class A rating points to a different view of its intended use.
Accommodation and Cockpit
Headroom is above average for the class. The joinery is prime Moabi mahogany, with solid-wood fiddles, mouldings, and framings. The cabin soles are Moabi laminated, and the upper linings are also Moabi wood.
Numerous chrome spotlights and reading lights provide illumination. Ventilation comes from two deck hatches with integrated ventilators, four opening roof portlights with curtains, two hull portlights, and two permanent “mushroom” aerators.
The saloon and cabin cushions have removable covers, and every cabin door has a blocking system to hold it open. The companionway has a sliding Plexiglas hatch, locking washboards, and curved wooden steps. Lifting the step case on a jack provides access to the engine.
In the cockpit, teak-trimmed seating surrounds a GRP sole. A large side locker has a lid fitted with padlock hasps.
Known Issues and Trade-Offs
The main caveats follow directly from the boat’s design choices. Depending on load, the L-shaped bulb-fin version draws 1.85 to 1.95 meters, restricting it to major marinas. The shoal L-keel broadens the range of places where the boat can lie.
The saildrive transmission is efficient, but it requires periodic diaphragm and seal servicing that differs from the maintenance needs of a conventional shaft.
Because the boat is significantly overrigged for its size, its standing rigging and deck hardware carry higher loads than those of a lightly sparred 33-footer. That gives inspections of the single chainplate and turnbuckles greater consequence.
None of these points is a defect; they are trade-offs that come with the design’s ambitions.
The Verdict
The Dufour 325 Grand Large is a thoughtfully packaged small cruiser that offers more accommodation and equipment than its length might suggest. Its strengths include an osmosis-resistant hull layup and CE Class A ocean certification.
The overrigged fractional sail plan and well-organized deck make the boat a confident short-handed coastal and offshore vessel, while the shoal-keel option broadens where it can lie. The deep-draft version’s marina limitations and the saildrive’s maintenance requirements are the prices paid for that package.
Pros
- Hand-laminated hull with an NPG resin barrier against osmosis
- Moabi mahogany interior with above-average headroom
- CE Class A ocean certification on a 33-foot hull
- Heavily specified deck and rig for short-handed handling
Cons
- L-shaped bulb-fin version is limited to major marinas by its draft
- Saildrive transmission requires dedicated periodic servicing
- Overrigged specification places higher loads on the chainplate and rigging
