Dufour Classic 36 Sailboat Review, Specs, and Listings

Design and Construction

The hull is hand-laid from one layer of fiberglass mat in vinylester resin and six layers of mat with tri- and bi-directional non-woven glass, cored above the waterline with high-density PVC foam and vacuum-bagged throughout. A solid fiberglass grid bonded to the hull with secondary laminations supplies multi-directional support and a furniture base, while the hull-deck joint uses an inward-oriented flange with Sikaflex adhesive and screws on six-inch centers. Chainplates sit aft of the mast and attach to stainless tie-rods bedded in the hull. The builder’s 10-year warranty covered structural defects and gel-coat blistering on underwater hull surfaces excluding keel and rudder.

Steering runs through a Whitlock stainless rack-and-pinion system transmitted by metal rods to a large semi-balanced spade rudder, elliptical in shape and hung on a self-aligning ball-and-socket bearing, with roughly a quarter of its area ahead of the post to catch prop wash anchor. The rudder pivots the boat smartly, and the test crew found reversing free of the drama cable systems can show.

Rig and Handling

The deck-stepped double-spreader Z-Spar mast carries an air draft of 51 feet 10 inches anchor, with slightly swept spreaders that let the boom run well out downwind and an inner forestay to limit mast bend without serving as a staysail stay. Standard sail plan is a mainsail with three reef points—two rigged—and a Facnor roller-furling 130 percent genoa, totaling 689 square feet; in-mast Z-Spar furling is offered. Lines lead aft to Spinlock clutches and Lewmar ST40 sheet winches with a single ST30 halyard winch, supporting single- or doublehanded sailing. The mainsheet attaches about two-thirds aft with a 4:1 purchase.

Under power, the 30-horsepower Volvo 2030 Saildrive with a fixed two-blade prop proved remarkably quiet at 1,000 rpm and nearly silent at 900 rpm while making 3.1 knots; sustained 2,900 rpm yields 6.6 knots against a 7.7-knot calculated hull speed. The boat reverses to port in under a boat length. Under sail in 11.2 knots true wind the test crew logged 6.5 to 7.2 knots, gaining nearly two more on a broad reach, with one-finger neutral steering and a tacking angle of 80 to 90 degrees upwind at better than six knots.

Accommodations

The two-cabin version tested shows an admirably sensible single head shared by both two- and three-cabin layouts. Headroom reaches 6 feet 2 inches at the companionway base, dropping to 6 feet 1 inch forward. A full-length European-style galley runs to starboard, while a forward-facing nav station to port holds a chart table sized for half an Admiralty sheet with proper fiddles. The U-shaped cockpit seats four comfortably of six possible, with a folding pedestal table.

Forward, a genuine offset double berth pairs with a large L-shaped padded seat; a Lewmar hatch and saloon hatch plus two small square openings and four opening ports handle ventilation. The aft cabin is a double with noted ventilation concerns. The shower sits in the head with a teak-grated center drain and a wet locker beside the sink.

Known Issues

The 12-volt refrigerator originally drained into the bilge, a design oversight the factory addressed by routing the refrigerator to share the sink drain on 2001 models. Buyers should confirm which drainage scheme a given hull carries.

Refits and Ownership

Deck hardware is Lewmar except Spinlock rope clutches, with an emergency tiller in the port lazarette and large 27-by-21-inch lazarette hatches. The chain locker is a triangular well with overboard drainage and a watertight bulkhead, a manual Lofrans windlass, and a stainless anchor mount with protective plate. The throttle and transmission share one binnacle lever; the engine panel sits recessed under an 18-inch bridgedeck.

The Verdict

The Dufour 36 Classic stands as a well-built performance cruiser with offshore-certified construction and a light, neutral helm that makes close-quarters power handling a non-event. Its accommodations are sensible if not expansive, and the refrigerator drainage fix separates early from later hulls.

Pros