Design and Construction
The Mistral 33 pairs a fiberglass hull with a high-gloss varnished mahogany superstructure, a beautiful wooden topside that sets her apart from later all-fiberglass production; only the very first hull was built entirely of wood. The hull-to-deck relationship follows a separated keel and rudder arrangement beneath a sugar-scoop-style transom, giving her a neat cruising profile rather than a performance-oriented underbody. Enderlein’s late-sixties lines produce a length-to-beam ratio of 3.37, making her slimmer than two-thirds of comparable sailboat designs, while a displacement-length ratio of 324 confirms her categorization among heavy cruisers.
Rig and Handling
She is built with a masthead rig and a stated sail area of 560 square feet with jib. The SA/D ratio comes to 17.21, modest for a 33-footer and consistent with a motorsailer that leans on her engine as much as her canvas. A calculated maximum speed of about 5.5 knots sits below the theoretical 6.7-knot barrier for a displacement hull of this length. The capsize screening value of 1.76 would, by that formula alone, admit her to ocean races, and a Motion Comfort Ratio of 30.1 means she rides more comfortably than 76 percent of similar designs—a consequence of the heavy-cruiser displacement and slim beam rather than any stated sea-kindliness from the builder. Her wetted surface measures roughly 279 square feet.
Accommodations
Below, the Mistral 33 sleeps six across a teak interior with a galley and toilet facility. The saloon is laid out with a U-shaped sofa on one side and a straight settee opposite, a simple cruising arrangement that makes good use of the narrow beam without inventing volume the boat does not have. The wooden superstructure carries the warm interior aesthetic through to the deckhouse.
Known Issues
The wooden superstructure on all but the prototype demands the usual vigilance for varnish failure and moisture ingress, but the sources describe no specific failure mode or repair campaign.
Refits and Ownership
The standard engine is a Volvo Penta MD2B, a two-cylinder diesel rated at 25 horsepower (17 kW), a modest but appropriate unit for a motorsailer of this displacement. Owners shopping the used fleet will find a small population—216 hulls worldwide—built before modern rigging and electrical norms, so any refit history should be judged against the period.
The Verdict
The Mistral 33 is a period motorsailer that wears her wooden superstructure and heavy-cruiser displacement as marks of a different design philosophy, one unconcerned with racing handicaps and built for comfortable passage-making under sail or power. She is a niche boat: too slender and too slow to excite the performance crowd, but her comfort ratio and construction record make her a credible used-cruiser candidate for the right buyer.
Pros
- High-gloss varnished mahogany superstructure over a GRP hull, with only the first hull in wood
- Comfort ratio superior to 76% of similar designs; heavy-cruiser displacement for stable motion
- Separated keel and rudder with sugar-scoop transom; slim beam aids maneuvering in marinas
- Six berths with U-shaped and straight settee saloon in teak
Cons
- Sail-area/displacement ratio of 17.21 reflects limited sail-driven performance
- Calculated max speed about 5.5 knots, below theoretical displacement hull speed
- Wooden superstructure requires ongoing varnish and moisture maintenance
- Only 216 built; limited pool and period-standard systems throughout
