At 48 feet overall, the Tayana 48 fits squarely into the serious blue-water cruiser class without crossing into mega-yacht territory. Its semi-custom layouts, moderate-displacement hull, and later deck-saloon option have helped sustain its long production run.
Design and Hull Form
The Tayana 48 has a 40-foot waterline, a 14.5-foot beam, and a displacement of 35,000 pounds carried on 11,675 pounds of iron ballast. Sources differ on displacement, however, with the DS variant quoted at 34,000 lb.
A sharp destroyer bow cuts through waves, while the hull’s elegant lines run aft to a reverse transom with teak steps and a modern swim platform. That stern is a departure from the canoe sterns found on many other Perry–Ta Yang designs.
Keel options included a standard 6-foot draft and a 5-foot 3-inch shoal-draft version, both paired with a skeg-hung rudder. The bow’s low freeboard is a deliberate profile choice, but it comes with a trade-off: waves occasionally enter the boat because of the low bow freeboard.
The hull is fiberglass. The DS version introduced a deck saloon with large windows, giving a panoramic view from below.
Rig and Performance
The cutter-rigged Tayana 48 was offered with either a 70-foot performance mast or a shorter, ICW-friendly mast. Owners could therefore choose between maximum sail area and clearance for inland waterways.
With 1,316 square feet of sail, a sail-area-to-displacement ratio near 19.8, and a ballast ratio of about 33.4 percent, the numbers describe a moderately loaded cruiser that favors stability over outright acceleration in light air. Its displacement-length ratio is roughly 240, and its comfort ratio is near 36.1, placing it toward the steady, seakindly end of the spectrum. A capsize screening value of about 1.8 confirms a conservative offshore profile. Documented hull speed is 8.5 knots.
Accommodations and Layout
As a genuinely semi-custom yacht, the Tayana 48 allowed numerous layout and system configurations. Three common arrangements—A, B, and C—were offered, along with more individual layouts. All models have a centerline queen berth aft and a similar galley along the walkthrough.
The aft cabin’s separate shower stall is the primary reason a client might prefer the 48 over a Hylas. The boat also provides a convenient aft lazarette, though there is no forward access to the chain locker.
The early-2000s improvement by Rob Ladd brought a raised salon and elevated salon floor. The DS version added the panoramic-window deck saloon, meaningfully modernizing the living space.
Construction and Systems
Ta Yang built the Tayana 48 in Taiwan with a fiberglass hull. The standard engine is a 75-horsepower Yanmar 4JH-3TE, though a regular 62-horsepower Yanmar is accessible through and beneath the stainless-steel sinks in the walkthrough.
Fuel is carried in a 120-gallon black steel tank. One source gives water capacity as 230 gallons, while another lists 220 gallons.
Teak benches are sometimes fitted to the stern pulpit. The reverse transom’s teak steps and swim platform provide the connection between the cockpit and the water.
The Verdict
The Tayana 48 is a long-lived, semi-custom Perry design that combines a seakindly, moderate-displacement hull with flexible accommodation plans and a genuinely modernized deck-saloon option. Its low bow freeboard and lack of forward chain-locker access are the clearest compromises. Even so, the range of available layouts and the later raised-saloon arrangement help keep the boat relevant on the used market.
Pros
- Long production run from 1992 to the present, with more than 200 DS hulls built
- Semi-custom layout freedom, with a consistent aft queen berth and walkthrough galley
- Raised saloon and panoramic DS windows modernized the interior
- Shoal-draft keel option for coastal cruising
Cons
- Low bow freeboard allows waves to enter the boat occasionally
- No forward access to the chain locker
- Black steel fuel tank fitted as standard
