Design and Construction
The hulls were drawn by Mortain/Mavrikios and are even rather slim, a deliberate departure from the volume-maximized form that would later dominate the class. Vertical bows and high freeboard give her a distinctive profile, and the builder's own specification demanded that the catamaran must not capsize in 30 knots under full sail anchor, a stability brief that helps explain the conservative rig. The relatively modest sail area, compared to her competitors at the time anchor, follows directly from that survivability requirement rather than from any lack of ambition. By the review's own accounting the hulls were approaching two decades of age in the review period, placing this generation firmly in the early era of the Nautitech line before later Marc Lombard collaboration.
Rig and Handling
Under way the surprise is how well the slim hulls and restrained canvas combine. The fractional sloop carries 936 square feet of sail against a displacement-length ratio of 116.66 and a sail-area-displacement ratio of 23.28, numbers that read modest but deliver a boat that Multihulls World found genuinely pleasing to sail. The capsize-screening ratio of 3.35 and comfort ratio near 10.86 sit within a design envelope shaped by the no-capsize-under-30-knots mandate, so the sailor gets a catamaran that absorbs pressure rather than demanding constant reefing. Twin saildrives spaced across the hulls and a hull speed around 8.4 knots round out a package built for manageable cruising rather than regatta pace.
Accommodations
The manufacturer's specification required four cabins for charter, of course anchor, and that brief shaped the interior as a practical, compact cruising layout rather than a voluminous owner's suite. The 159-gallon water capacity and 72-gallon diesel capacity support extended stays, and the twin-engine configuration gives redundancy absent in single-diesel cruisers. The boat's compactness, noted by the reviewer, is the governing theme of the living spaces.
The Verdict
The Nautitech 40 stands as an early, sensibly specified cruising catamaran from the Nautitech line, where slim Mortain/Mavrikios hulls and a stability-driven modest rig produced a boat that punches above her compact footprint under sail. She is not a racer, but the review record treats her sailing manners as a genuine pleasant surprise, and the four-cabin charter specification makes her a usable platform for family or fleet use. The available facts are thin on defects, so judgment rests on what is established: a well-mannered, shoal-draft, twin-engine compact cat that delivers value.
Pros
- Slim hulls from Mortain/Mavrikios give responsive, surprising sailing for a compact catamaran
- Stability specification (no capsize in 30 knots under full sail) shaped a conservative, forgiving rig
- Twin 58 hp Volvo Penta diesels and 159 gal water capacity support self-sufficient cruising
- Four-cabin charter layout offers practical accommodation
Cons
- Modest sail area versus period competitors limits outright pace
- Compact dimensions constrain interior volume relative to later volume-focused cats
