Design and Construction
Humphreys' hand is unmistakable in the 31's profile. The line of Elan models of this era shares his trademark perky sheerline, and the 31 carries a slight convexity to the bow with minimal overhangs. Beneath the waterline the hull shows a skeg that is proportionately much shorter than the one seen on the Sabre and does not fair into the canoe body, while the rudder sits on a vertical stock. The keel itself carries a large bulb and, in standard form, is cast iron — though a lead keel was offered as a paid upgrade. The hull shape is beamy by necessity rather than styling: with a length-to-beam ratio of 2.94, the design breaks the conventional 3.0 barrier, a direct consequence of interior accommodation pressures that pushed beam aft to a point well carried back, though not with the extremity of the later twin-ruddered Elan 310 and 320. A fine entry and a D/L of 190 round out a hull that is beamy yet moderately proportioned.
Elan was keen to stress structural integrity in the original brochure, pointing out that the hull-to-deck joint is bolted, glued and laminated anchor. Below the sole, the load from the keel-bolts is spread by substantial steel plates and a grid of fore-and-aft and athwartships members, and an interior moulding runs the full length of the boat to form bunk fronts and joinery landings. The cockpit is open to a swim step aft, with coamings cut away where the helmsman sits; that seat is angled to sit level when the boat is heeled about 15 degrees, and teak pads on deck give the crew grip. A flush anchor well sits forward, and the toerail is teak rather than alloy.
Rig and Handling
The 31 is rigged as a swept-spreader fractional sloop with a deck-stepped mast in some references and a keel-stepped mast noted in others, and it does not carry a particularly large rig for its type. The sail-area-to-displacement ratio is 18.31, enough to qualify as a lively performance cruiser without demanding expert crew. On deck, genoa tracks are well inboard and the decks are clear; the mainsheet traveler bisects a large cockpit well, and a 4:1 mainsheet with 3:1 fine tune is readily controlled from the helm, backed by a 32:1 backstay split to cleats by the traveler. A tiller is drawn and no wheel is listed as an option.
Test sailors found her a reassuringly obedient, well-balanced boat with a trustworthy rudder, and noted that the helm hardly loads up as the boat heels. Writing in Practical Boat Owner, one reviewer described the 31 as the epitome of the true all-rounder — competitive on the race course and easily managed for short-handed cruising anchor — and called her pretty, well mannered and well built.
Accommodations
Below, the 31 has a much more traditional feel than newer Elans of similar size. The joinery is mahogany, less modular and more built-in, with a moulded headliner and an interior moulding forming the structure. To port lies a large enclosed double berth aft, while opposite to starboard is the head with its wet locker, and the bow holds V-berths that become a double with a filler piece. The nav area looks adequately sized while the galley does not, and headroom is limited to 6 feet in the saloon and galley — though the aft end of the saloon gains a full 6 feet. Owners like the polyethylene water tanks under each saloon berth, which have large inspection hatches for cleaning, and note that the doors to the heads and aft cabin are on the narrow side, a function of the wide side decks and moderate beam.
Known Issues
Early 31s came out of the factory well over their designed weight, a fact that did nothing to help performance and is worth weighing against any claimed race pedigree on an unrefitted example. The original guardwires were 7x19 wire covered in plastic, which one owner stripped after finding the covering unacceptable for RORC racing — a detail to check on boats presented in original rigging state.
Refits and Ownership
Production saw meaningful evolution. Early boats like the example "Kudos" carried a shaft-driving Yanmar; later boats moved to a Volvo saildrive. The rig supplier switched from Sparcraft to Seldén during the run, and the fuel tank location changed from the cockpit locker to starboard on early boats to a position further forward and to port beneath the aft-cabin berth on later ones — a better spot for trim. A race-pack option brought bigger winches that owners found useful even in cruising trim. The 31 holds an RCD Category A rating, underscoring its offshore allowance.
The Verdict
The Elan 31 is a genuinely dual-purpose 30-footer that succeeded the 295 by being faster, stiffer, and a better cruiser without growing larger, and it remains competitive and manageable in short-handed hands. Its Humphreys pedigree shows in the perky sheer and balanced helm, while the traditional mahogany interior and thoughtful structural grid give it a built-in feel rare in the size. The main caveats are the limited headroom, the overweight early hulls, and the original plastic-covered guardwires.
Pros
- Stiffer, faster, and easier to sail than the Elan 295
- Trustworthy, light helm that stays balanced when heeled
- Bolted, glued, and laminated hull-to-deck joint with structural grid
- Traditional mahogany interior with practical polyethylene tanks
- RCD Category A offshore rating
Cons
- Early boats delivered well over designed weight
- Only 6 feet of headroom in saloon and galley
- Original plastic-covered guardwires unsuitable for serious racing
- Galley described as undersized
