Design and Construction
The HH55’s light-ship displacement is 30,864 pounds, carried on a 27-foot beam. Her slim hulls have a waterline beam of just under five feet per side.
Every structural element is carbon fiber, built in a sandwich laminate of infused epoxy and Core-Cell foam. The builder cites this construction for safety, strength, and weight saving. SAIL’s survey adds that female molds, a thermo-formed core, and extra carbon in the chainplates, stringers, and ring frames keep weight down while increasing stiffness. The hulls are painted in a custom shed and hand-faired to a mirror finish.
For collision resilience, sacrificial false bows wrap the plumb reverse stems. Watertight bulkheads seal the bow and stern compartments, and the floors are structural composites. Cruising World notes that the carbon sandwich also provides sound and heat insulation—a practical liveaboard benefit in a boat this light.
Rig, Performance, and Handling
The HH55 carries an 88-foot Southern Spars mast and a 1,343-square-foot square-top mainsail. The V-boom is slotted to catch the sail when it drops. A furling double-headsail rig, swept-back spreaders, and aramid shrouds need no backstay.
Load-pin sensors on the Kevlar shrouds give the crew exact rig loads, while a built-in mast jack replaces turnbuckles for tuning. All sheets, halyards, and reefing lines lead to the forward cockpit, where three Lewmar 65 two-speed winches handle the loads. An indoor steering station in the saloon opens directly onto this cockpit.
Below the waterline, curved C-foil daggerboards extend deep to reduce leeward drag. At 20 knots, they lift the bow by 15 percent. T-winglet rudders, set at zero degrees, can apply up to a ton of force to prevent the bow from dropping or flying. Flat sections on the bow bottoms further reduce pitching.
In 11 knots of true wind on Chesapeake Bay, Cruising World’s testers described the HH55 as slipping through the water like a hot knife through butter. The Boat of the Year panel found that only the larger HH66 out-sailed her.
Under power, twin 57 hp Yanmar diesels with SD60 saildrives and Gori folding props drive the boat at 12 knots with both engines running, or 6.5 knots on one.
Accommodations
The 23.55-square-meter main saloon opens through sliding glass doors to a 19.94-square-meter aft cockpit. The cockpit has a second dining table, sun bed, wet bar, and barbecue.
Buyers can choose a three-cabin plan with a full-length port master suite or a four-cabin layout. On the test boat, the port hull contained a master cabin with an aft double berth and a forward head. The starboard hull had a double cabin at each end, each with a separate head, although one head had been converted into a workshop.
The central cabin is airy, with a generous U-shaped galley, dedicated navigation station, and dining area. A forward steering station inside the saloon provides a sheltered alternative to the available deck helms.
Equipment and Systems
Standard equipment emphasizes electric systems. It includes a large cabin-top solar array, digital switching, and an electric galley, along with lithium-ion batteries and a CZone system linked to B&G Hercules processing the load.
Owners who prefer simpler machinery can specify traditional standalone diesel engines with shaft drives. The main alternative, however, is a redesigned parallel diesel-electric hybrid system with hydro-regeneration while sailing.
Carbon-fiber davits provide substantial tender-carrying capacity. An optional Quick retractable bow thruster helps with close-quarters handling.
Customization and Ownership
As a semi-custom, 2018-era boat—with only five launched at the time of the manufacturer’s note—the HH55 allows owners considerable input from the outset. They can specify clear-coated carbon accents wherever desired and choose between aft twin-wheel and single forward-helm deck plans.
The design’s short-handed focus and owner-operation scale mean a couple can run the boat without outside crew. At the same time, its carbon structure and digital systems favor technically confident owners. The aramid rigging, hybrid options, and CZone network make the HH55 better suited to buyers comfortable with modern multihull systems than to those who prefer legacy diesel simplicity.
The Verdict
The HH55 is a rigorously engineered carbon cruiser that trades a little interior volume for performance and owner-handling ease rarely found in a 55-foot catamaran. She suits a competent couple who want to cross oceans without hiring crew and who value a stiff, quiet, thermally stable hull over maximum cabin count.
Pros
- Full carbon-sandwich construction, watertight bulkheads, and sacrificial collision bows
- Curved daggerboards and zero-set T-winglet rudders provide fast, controlled sailing with reduced pitching
- Standard solar, digital switching, and lithium power, plus a genuine hybrid option
- Forward cockpit and load sensors support precise short-handed sail handling
Cons
- The advanced aramid rig and CZone network demand technical fluency from the owner
- Semi-custom, low-volume production limits both brokerage choice and the size of the reference fleet
