Built in Orust, Sweden, to withstand the harsh conditions of the North Sea, the 40C earned Cruising World’s Best Midsize Cruiser honor for 2024. Judge Tim Murphy called it arguably the best-built monohull in the fleet.
Design and Construction
The 40C is a 42-foot-10-inch overall monohull with a displacement of 24,250 pounds. It carries 8,050 pounds of lead on a deep bilge, while its 13-foot-8½-inch beam is carried aft for volume.
The hull is hand-laid and cored with Divinycell foam. The laminate becomes solid around the lead-keel attachment and wherever hardware is mounted on the cored deck, cockpit, and coachroof.
Three deck surfaces are available: nonslip gelcoat, a polyurethane teak substitute, or real Burmese teak. The two glued teak options avoid fasteners that might let water in. A proper bulwark with a teak toe rail drains rain below the waterline, sparing the hull from streaking. An integral protective rub rail rounds out the boat’s weatherly detailing.
Twin rudders give full sailing control and safety. The helmsman sits slightly elevated behind wide coamings, improving forward visibility while creating headroom in the aft cabin. Despite the smaller hull, the cockpit is as large as the one on the Hallberg-Rassy 44.
Rig, Sailing and Handling
There are no runners to tend on the fractional sloop, even with an inner storm jib. Its slightly overlapping headsail makes tacking easy, while a self-tacking jib is optional. The jib-furler drum sits below deck, keeping the foredeck clean.
Separate top and lower shrouds ease movement on deck and improve sheet leads while broadening the mast’s base. A powerful 1:48 backstay purchase is standard, and hidden control lines lead to a winch on the starboard coaming.
The standard three-spreader Seldén spar carries a full-batten mainsail. The Annapolis show boat instead had an electric in-mast furler, electric jib furler, and electric winches to handle its 110 percent genoa and code zero.
Sittbrunnen’s test crew found that the boat’s speed, pointing ability, and grip surpassed anything the yard had previously built. The crew also noted that the hull moves well without bumps in breaking seas; Murphy called the steering absolutely divine. The Lewmar rod system allowed one picky tester to feel the boat’s motions through the wheel.
Cockpit and Deck
The cockpit combines its 44-size dimensions with substantial shelter. Buyers can choose either the traditional folding sprayhood screen or a robust hardtop dodger. Both have tempered-glass windows, an opening center section, and side handles. The hardtop adds long-life shelter from cold and sun, as well as sound insulation in rough conditions.
Aft, buyers can specify either a small platform or a large fold-out bathing ladder. At the bow, an electric windlass is hidden below deck, preserving a clean foredeck above an unusually large chain locker with a shelf for fenders.
Accommodations
Below, the 40C matches the Hallberg-Rassy 44 in the saloon, aft cabin, and galley. Six hull portlights—larger than those on the 40 Mk II and 412—fill the bright, airy interior with light.
Owners can choose African khaya mahogany or bright European oak, both laid with horizontal grain. The mahogany review boat had plush upholstery and an L-shaped settee around a drop-leaf table. Armchairs and a cocktail table are available to port.
The standard aft stateroom has one double and one single berth, with a comfortable seat between them. Alternatively, owners can choose a wide centerline berth with a settee and make-up table. Two well-sized aft deck lockers serve either layout.
Forward, the boat has a double berth and a head with a shower.
Two seagoing galley layouts are available, neither of which blocks the aft passage. The larger choice adds counter space, stowage, and a front-opening refrigerator. The second-largest galley returns increased cockpit-locker space. On the Annapolis boat, the larger option traded starboard locker capacity for its extra galley space and equipment.
Equipment and Systems
A 60 hp Volvo Penta D2-60 sits abaft the boat’s saildrive. This arrangement frees space beneath the companionway steps for a genset and provides excellent access to both motors. Insulation keeps sound quiet underway.
The battery bank uses 6-volt wet Trojan cells in series for a 12-volt bank drainable to 40 percent. Lithium batteries are optional. The bow and stern thrusters operate at 24 volts.
Verdict
The Hallberg-Rassy 40C is a rock-solid sailboat that aces the test of time. It combines Frers’ lively twin-rudder hull with a 44-class interior and a sheltered cockpit that punches above its length.
CE category A certifies unlimited ocean voyages, and a 10,000-nautical-mile delivery to the United States left her showroom fresh.
Pros
- Longer waterline and greater volume than the 10-year-old Hallberg-Rassy 40 it replaced
- Cockpit and accommodations comparable in size to those of the Hallberg-Rassy 44
- Hand-laid, foam-cored hull with solid laminate around the keel attachment and deck-hardware mounts
- Glued teak decks avoid penetrating fasteners
- No runners required
- Easy tacking with the slightly overlapping headsail, plus an optional self-tacking jib
- Twin rudders, divine steering feel, and lively grip in breaking seas, according to period tests
- Excellent access to the well-insulated engine and genset space
- Deep, sheltered cockpit
Cons
- The larger galley reduces starboard cockpit-locker capacity
- Real teak and polyurethane deck options require disciplined glued installation
- Solid-laminate hardware mounts add weight compared with a fully cored structure
