Design and Construction
The hull and deck are fiberglass in a sandwich layup. The bolted-on lead fin keel draws between 5.74 and 6.04 feet, depending on load.
The Granada 32 displaces 8,818 pounds and carries 3,968 pounds of lead ballast. Her 45 percent ballast ratio is higher than that of 69 percent of comparable designs, giving her a settled, weatherly footing without pushing her into heavy-displacement sluggishness.
A 10.5-foot beam gives her a length-to-beam ratio of 3.05. That proportion makes her more spacious than 62 percent of similar designs and helps create an open feel below without resorting to exaggerated beam. The interior is finished in teak, as were many of her Danish contemporaries. Tankage includes a stainless-steel fuel tank holding 21 US gallons.
Rig and Handling
The fractional rig carries 527 square feet of sail between the mainsail and jib. The running rigging uses 12 mm sheets throughout: 24.4 meters of mainsheet, 9.8 meters of jib and genoa sheet, and 21.5 meters of spinnaker sheet.
Under power, an 18-horsepower Volvo Penta 2002 diesel drives a saildrive, with a reported speed of 7.5 knots. The theoretical displacement-hull speed is 6.7 knots.
Her capsize screening value is 2.03, placing her outside ocean-race acceptance. A Motion Comfort Ratio of 21.8 makes her more comfortable than 34 percent of similar boats. That points to a moderate rather than plush motion profile.
Performance
A displacement-to-length ratio of 254 puts the Granada 32 among moderate racers. Her Relative Speed Performance of 79 means she is faster than 79 percent of similar sailboat designs.
A wetted surface of about 28 square meters and an immersion rate near 912 pounds per inch describe a hull that responds to load and sail trim without dramatic sinkage. The overall performance envelope is better suited to coastal cruising than to offshore racing certification.
Accommodation
Below, the Granada 32 has three cabins and seven berths, along with a galley and toilet facility. Fresh-water capacity is 26 US gallons.
The teak interior and cabin count suit small families or groups of friends spending extended weekends aboard. The volume implied by her length-to-beam ratio goes toward sleeping space and storage rather than a sprawling open saloon.
Verdict
The Granada 32 is a coherent late-1980s Danish cruiser: a sandwich-fiberglass boat with a lead fin keel, a fractional rig using durable 12 mm sheets, and a teak interior arranged with seven berths in three cabins. She is quick for her type and well ballasted, but her capsize screening value and comfort ratio mark her as a coastal and moderate-water boat rather than an ocean racer.
Pros
- Lead fin keel and a 45 percent ballast ratio, higher than 69 percent of similar designs
- Fractional rig with 527 square feet of sail and robust 12 mm sheets throughout
- Spacious for her length, with three cabins and seven berths
- Faster than 79 percent of similar designs by Relative Speed Performance
Cons
- Capsize screening value of 2.03 excludes her from ocean-race acceptance
- Motion Comfort Ratio places her above only 34 percent of similar boats
- Displacement-to-length ratio of 254 limits her to moderate-racer categorization rather than light-displacement agility
