Design and Construction
The Sun Fast 35 shares the same Marc Lombard–designed hull and deck as the Sun Odyssey 35, a close sister from Jeanneau's cruising line. The hull is a solid fiberglass laminate with the structure glassed in rather than dropped in as a separate inner liner; an inner structural moulding is laminated to the inside face of the hull for stiffness. Above the waterline she carries a high-performance bulb keel and a fin profile with 7 ft 1 in of draft. Reviewers noted she can look bulky or even bloated from some angles, with a beamy transom, high freeboard, and a wide coachroof that makes her seem larger than 35 ft from astern. That beam — 11 ft 5 in — and the 12,202 lb displacement with 3,219 lb of iron ballast give her a displacement-to-LWL ratio near 167 and a ballast ratio around 26 percent, figures that speak to a stiff, volume-forward hull.
Rig and Handling
Her sail plan is optimised for IRC rating, with a modest mainsail trimmable from the weather rail, a decent overlapping headsail, and a near-masthead kite. The mainsheet runs on a central pod-type moulding — complex in appearance but simple in use — with coarse and fine-tune controls and a windward sheeting car traveller that eases short-handed sailing. A long tiller and low boom complete the picture, though the low boom limits deck movement with a full crew. Under sail she is balanced and well mannered, handling beautifully in 15–17 knots true and resisting the snatch that plagues many modern performance hulls. Volume forward lets her balance at high angles of heel instead of pitching the bow down, and test sailors found her easily handled short-handed and a great offshore boat for four. Under the Yanmar 3GM3DF (27 hp, shaft drive) she cruises at six knots and tops 7.5, with useful prop walk.
Accommodations
Below decks the layout is identical to the Sun Odyssey cruiser, and she feels large for her length. A big galley sits to starboard, a large saloon seating area forward, and a spacious head and shower to port. Two main sleeping cabins — a forward owner's-style double and an aft double to starboard — give 4 berths, with the saloon table lowering to an extra double. A mini-desk nav station incorporates a forward-facing navigator's seat and slides on tracks for more saloon space. Unusual stowage sits under the port cockpit seat, reached through the head. Teak laminate trim and cream headliners keep the finish restrained.
Known Issues
Period testers flagged a cluster of detail faults. Some fuses sit under the companionway steps and would be exposed in a seaway with the steps retracted. The gas shut-off hides behind a locker door under the cooker. Test sailors found the cockpit sole's centreline footrest woefully inadequate, the tiller wants a few inches less length to clear the mainsheet through tacks, and the review boat exhibited a dinghy-like rudder buzz at around six knots. The backstay's two-purchase arrangement seemed overly complicated to reviewers.
Refits and Ownership
Racing-oriented deck gear and winches come standard, as does an anchor windlass, a removable transom section, and decent cockpit lockers borrowed from the cruising sister. The solid-laminate hull with glassed-in structure avoids the inner-liner moulding common to some sisters, a point owners may appreciate when surveying.
The Verdict
The Sun Fast 35 is a genuinely dual-purpose 35-footer: a Lombard hull that races well under IRC yet cruises with a roomy, Sun Odyssey–derived interior. She sails beautifully and balances at heel, though detail execution in the cockpit and a few systems placements fall short of the sailing performance.
Pros
- Balanced, well-mannered helm and IRC-optimised sail plan
- Roomy below decks with identical Sun Odyssey 35 layout
- Solid laminate hull with glassed-in structure, not inner liner
Cons
- Inadequate cockpit footrest and short-tiller mainsheet clash
- Fuses exposed if companionway steps retracted in a seaway
- Awkward gas shut-off behind locker under cooker
