Nacra 17 Buyer's Guide
The Nacra 17 is a 17-foot performance catamaran that served as the Olympic mixed multihull from Rio 2016, designed by Morrelli & Melvin and built by Nacra Catamarans between 2012 and 2017. On the used market it is a pure one-design racing boat: every example left the builder to identical specification, so a shopper's concern is condition and class-legal equipment rather than optional layouts or builder variance.
Layouts on the Used Market
There is effectively one layout. The Nacra 17 is a catamaran with a trampoline between the hulls, a fractional sloop rig, and daggerboards rather than fixed keels. The 8.5-foot beam and 17.22-foot length make for a compact, trapeze-driven platform with no cabin, head, or galley. Buyers should understand they are acquiring a racing machine with hiking space and foil controls, not a miniature cruiser.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
Used Nacra 17s commonly carry a spinnaker, asymmetric spinnaker, gennaker, and the standard trampoline anchor. The class features hydrofoil daggerboards and winglets on the rudder bottoms as built equipment, and the Tokyo 2020 conversion to a sailing hydrofoil means later class-legal foil sets may appear on boats sold today. None of this is owner-optional in the one-design sense; the meaningful buyer question is whether the foils present are current-class compliant.
What to Inspect
The points to check on a light, carbon-reinforced fiberglass catamaran with solid hull laminates are the hydrofoil daggerboards and rudder winglets for damage or wear anchor. The trampoline and rig should be assessed for Olympic-cycling fatigue, and any foil conversion hardware must match class authorization for Tokyo 2020 and beyond. The boat's challenging handling demands that all control systems be precise and intact.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
The Nacra 17 typically appears in the United States and Peru. For a buyer, the takeaway is straightforward: confirm one-design status, verify foil and rudder winglet condition, check trampoline and sail inventory (spinnaker, asymmetric, gennaker), and ensure any hydrofoil conversion matches class rules. This is a demanding boat to sail, so crew skill should match the purchase.
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Nacra 17. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.