Outremer 55-2 Sailboats for Sale

What makes the 55 particularly interesting as a used purchase is its breadth of purpose. It launched into a world where bluewater buyers wanted both genuine offshore capability and standards of comfort that would not have been out of place in a villa. Outremer threaded that needle carefully: the twin daggerboards deliver meaningful upwind bite and reduce leeway rather than functioning as cosmetic appendages, and the laminate structure — infused and engineered to Grand Large group standards — is notably stiffer and lighter than comparable builds from more volume-oriented yards. The short-handed ergonomics are also a genuine design priority, not an afterthought: the twin helm pedestal swings to let the helmsperson sit on the side deck in fine weather or take cover under the hard top when it deteriorates. These are features that pay dividends on long passages with a crew of two.

Layouts on the Used Market

Both principal layout variants appear on the brokerage market with regularity. The three-cabin owner configuration — typically offering a full-beam master aft on one hull with two substantial guest cabins — suits couples or small families planning extended liveaboard passages, and it tends to attract buyers who prioritize quality of life in each cabin over raw berth count. The four-cabin arrangement, which converts one hull into two separate cabins, is well represented among ex-charter examples that cycled through crewed or bare-boat programs before entering private ownership. Four-cabin boats are common enough that buyers have real choice, though ex-charter provenance warrants closer attention to wear patterns in high-use areas like the cockpit, galley, and navigation station. Prospective buyers who prefer a more lightly used boat will find owner-operated examples as well, often with circumnavigation miles behind them and correspondingly thorough offshore outfitting.

Equipment and Common Upgrades

The 55 leaves the factory with a comprehensive electrical baseline, and most examples on the used market arrive with that baseline significantly expanded by their original owners. Solar panels are essentially universal on brokerage boats — Outremer itself claimed electrical self-sufficiency with 2.3kW of roof-mounted capacity at launch, and owners have frequently added to this. Lithium battery banks are commonly fitted, often paired with an inverter capable of running household appliances. Watermakers are standard equipment on the overwhelming majority of examples. Washing machines appear frequently. Air conditioning, while at odds with Outremer's ventilation-first philosophy, is a commonly fitted option, particularly on boats that spent time in tropical cruising grounds.

On the sailing side, spinnakers and gennakers are widely present — often both, giving owners a full light-air sail wardrobe for downwind passages. Electric winches, part of the standard specification, are present across the fleet. Chartplotters, AIS, radar, and life rafts are consistently aboard. Starlink satellite internet, a more recent adoption, appears on a growing share of examples as owners retrofitted it for offshore connectivity.

Among items that appear less universally but are a meaningful upgrade when present: bow thrusters ease marina handling on a boat with nearly twenty-eight feet of beam; dinghy davits integrated into the stern platform simplify tender management for liveaboard use; freezer installations separate from the standard refrigeration add provisioning range for longer passages. A hardtop and full cockpit enclosure are often seen and meaningfully extend the boat's all-weather usability.

What to Inspect

The 55 is a relatively young model and its structural architecture is sound, but blue-water miles accumulate quickly on boats used for their intended purpose, and pre-purchase inspection should be correspondingly thorough.

Daggerboard trunks and the boards themselves deserve careful scrutiny. The daggerboard system is central to the boat's upwind performance, and any slop in the trunk, cracking in the surrounding laminate, or delamination at the board root warrants expert evaluation. The manufacturer specification confirms dual daggerboards as a core structural element of the design, and their condition is a meaningful variable in both performance and value.

The coachroof structure — specifically lightened and stiffened in this generation — should be inspected for any signs of delamination around the opening hatches and bay windows that define the saloon's connection to the cockpit. The number of openings in the structure increases the potential for water ingress at seal perimeters, and any soft spots in the coachroof skin deserve attention before purchase.

Electrical systems on heavily equipped examples can be complex. With lithium banks, large inverter-charger installations, and potentially multiple solar charge controllers aboard, a qualified marine electrician should trace the installation for proper fusing, appropriate bus bar sizing, and evidence of amateur additions. Ex-charter boats may have had electronics swapped or added outside factory standards.

Engine hours and service history on both diesels should be documented carefully. The boat carries twin sixty-horsepower engines, adequate for the displacement but worked harder on boats that motored regularly in light air or through passages that tested the owner's commitment to sailing efficiency. Check zincs, shaft seals, and raw-water cooling circuits thoroughly.

Rigging inspection should include the mast base and any signs of compression stress in the deck structure beneath the mast step. The design specifically emphasizes short-handed sailing, which often means running backstays or checkstays have seen significant load cycles on offshore passages.

Availability and Buyer's Takeaway

Examples appear most reliably through European brokerages, particularly those operating out of France, the Mediterranean, and the Baltic, reflecting both the boat's French origins and the cruising grounds where its owners typically commission it. North American and Caribbean listings appear as well, generally representing boats that completed Atlantic crossings and remained on the western side of the ocean. The global bluewater cruising circuit means examples surface in New Zealand, Australia, and Southeast Asia periodically, though inventory in those regions tends to be thinner.

Demand is strong relative to supply at this level of the performance catamaran market. Buyers prepared to move decisively when the right boat appears will fare better than those expecting extended comparison shopping.

Before making an offer, work through the following:

• Verify daggerboard condition and trunk integrity with a qualified surveyor experienced in performance catamarans
• Obtain full engine service records and confirm hours on both motors
• Have a marine electrician audit the entire DC and AC system, especially on heavily upgraded examples
• Inspect all hatches, portlights, and the coachroof opening panels for seal integrity and any signs of water ingress
• Confirm the sail inventory — main, genoa, self-tacking jib, and light-air sails — and assess condition realistically
• Review the life safety equipment manifest and confirm dates on life raft service, EPIRB registration, and flare expiry
• For ex-charter boats, request the charter history and inspect cockpit hardware, winches, and high-traffic interior surfaces for wear commensurate with the commercial hours logged