Model comparison Beneteau 393, 400, 411

[sunodyssey]

Hello all,

We are seeking actively on our next sailboat. We love beneteau and would like to have comments on these models : 393, 400, 411 in the three stateroom layout.

The comments we are looking for is more in terms of comparison between each of the models stated previously. What we would like to know is how is the storage, seaworthiness, performance etc... between each models.

Of course we would like to have comments from people who own or tried them etc...

Thank you very much in advance.

[TheOffice]

I've only sailed on a 393 with in mast furling and shallow keel. Upwind performance is horrendous! I would only consider a boat with a stac-pac or lazy jacks. Aft cabins are adequate for short cruises, but like most boats of this size, there is little storage.

[Vasco]

There's not much between these boats. The main difference is the lay-out and whether you get an owners version or a charter version. The 400 and 411 are older models than the 393. I take it you prefer the charter (3 stateroom) version. I do not like them as in most cases the galley is then run on one side of the saloon rather than tucked in a corner, aft. Very poor for traffic and meal prep at sea. There also is less storage in the charter version. As far as sailing goes, they all sail pretty well. For more info on the 393. beneteau393 : Beneteau393 Group

[sunodyssey]

Thanks for the info. Things is that we are a family of 5 (2 adults and 3 children) and we need a 3 cabins for them. I understand for the kitchen that it's not ideal but it's workable during a passage.

What I'm mostly concern is how about the storage capability. Is it possible to leave with this kind of boat for 2 years let say? Or we should aim to other make/model ?

[Rocketman]

We have a 400 with in mast furling and 3 state rooms; while a fully batten main would sail a little better into the wind, I would not concider it horrendous. As to the the cabin layout, we are happy with it. But we use the 3rd cabin, if we are sailing with 4 or less, as a supply room where we keep beer, soda, water, canned goods and so forth in plastic bins. We have sailed with as many as 6 adults and it is cramped with not much storage for long trips to hold all the goods. I think you could divide one of the cabins or both of the rear cabins to hold goods and still sleep a person. I like the 2 head layout, but one could also consider using one of the heads as a storage locker which would provide a lot of room for goods. I think that no matter what 40 ft boat you are looking at, that has 3 state rooms, you will find storage problems. The boat sails great in my opinion, and I can single hand it with no problems. We regularly pass many other crusier sailboats and arrive hours in frount of them. The construction of our 400 seems pretty good for a mass marketed boat, in in my opinion, better than the new ones being marketed today.

[sunodyssey]

Thanks Rocketman for the information you provided to. If you can tell me more of your experience with your Oceanis 400 it would be great. We really like this model and will visit 2 of them this upcoming week-end.

[FraidNot]

we use our 411 (3 cabin) for week long holidays - 2 adults, 2 kids. We have had 8 on board for a week! Quite a squeeze for sleeping - but no worries for food and water. For long term living - water and elec are key limitations - the 411 has 500+ litres of water store which is good. I'd be happy to cruise long term with my 4 in our 411. I think you will find competing 40/41' boats all have similar capacities or limitations to the beneteau range. You may need to go to 45' to get more interior volume.
411 sails nicely for me. We regularly see 6 to 7 kts to windward - 8kts if we work it hard. 5 to 6 kts downwind - that rises to 7 to 8 with the MPS out. In-mast furler is very easy to use.

[jacob30]

I have a 400 two state room version and love it. It would seem a bit too small for 5 IMO. We are usually two with occasional guests of two others. It sails great with in mast furling and I can single hand this boat easily all from the cockpit with my auto-pilot driving. I would NEVER consider a stack pack or lazy jacks . What a PITA after having dealt with one on a 2 week passage from Puerto Rico. Definitely go with in-mast furling. I reef in seconds all from the cockpit again.

The 5'6" keel is great and no complaints there (ICW friendly). Upwind performance is outstanding as well.

Storage is ok. You always want more. For my version the aft locker can store all my toys and outboard along with house battery bank and other stuff. Clothing storage in the aft stateroom is minimal.

Room for an extensive electronics suite at the NAV station will be challenging.

The heads are adequete but not enormous. The forward head is my favorite for size and comfort (but maybe not underway).

The perkins Prima 50 so far is a good engine. Very accessable from three sides. Changed a raw water pump out so far.

The transom/swim platform is a minor complaint in that the rub rail is just at the waters edge and gets mucked up if too heavily loaded. I plan on raising the waterline to alleviate this concern.

Seaworthiness is great. Was in a gale off of Georgia and she handled it just fine. I don't recommend it for comfort but she did quite well.

[maytrix]

Might want to consider the 43. We own one in charter and it has more room then than the 393 (haven't been on a 40 or 41).

With 3 heads, you could completely remove one head and convert it to storage which should give a fair amount of storage. Our 43 also has A/C, which clearly takes up some space, so if that was eliminated, it would add more storage (although we love having it and will add a generator when out of charter).

393 would work too, but clearly just not as much storage space.

[sunodyssey]

Two years ago we did a sea trial on a 400 and we were more then happy with the sailing capability. With wind between 18 to 22 knots she flew literaly over the water it was a very nice ride and we just fell in love. But the boat had humidity problem that make the deal go away. We decided to wait until we sold our boat to continue shopping and now it's sold and we are ready to move on so we are actively looking. But so far any 400 we visited did not impressed so far(not in good condition). So we widened our search to the 393 and 411 and also we have an eye on the Gib Sea 43, does anyone has any comments on this boat ?

[Rocketman]

After reading all the opinions, I would agree with most, one sore spot is the availablity of parts for the Prima engine, mine has 6000 hours and still runs great, and I believe it is a very good engine but like any engine it needs maintance. For example a water pump runs about $350.00, injector pump is $1500.00, injectors are $250 each, heat exchanger is $1200.00, starter is $550.00 and the parts are hard to find if you don't know where to get them. This engine is solid and reliable but having spares on the boat is a must because you could need to wait weeks for parts if you don't have them.
You had asked about my experience with the boat, I have owned it now for a year, we have put over 600 hrs on the engine, and about 2000 miles under the keel. We realy love it, I would buy another in a heart beat, but with that said I have seen other 400's that are in much worse condition after being in a rental fleet. Ours was also in a charter fleet before our ownership but the previous owner did a lot of upgrades prior to us owning it. Solar, and wind electric chargers are a must if anchoring out. The battery bank needs to be doubled from the standard arrangement. We also came from a 30 ft boat, that I loved but the wife lived with, this is a huge upgrade from the 30.

[sunodyssey]

On the Oceanis 400 and 411 there is are wet locker in the scoop transom can anyone explain to me what are their purpose ? Is it possible to make them dry locker?

In terms of handling what about seas of 5m-6m or more? And about wind up to force 8-9 and up ?

[silversailor]

You'll be disappointed if you don't check out the Hanse 400. I've sailed a Hanse 370 for 6 years and it's a great cruising boat with a touch of speed. We generally win the Club jib and main races and, for distance, we have received 4 flags (4th, two 2nds and a 1st) in the last 4 Queens Cup races (68-76nm) in the spinnnaker fleet.

[sunodyssey]

Originally Posted by silversailor

You'll be disappointed if you don't check out the Hanse 400. I've sailed a Hanse 370 for 6 years and it's a great cruising boat with a touch of speed. We generally win the Club jib and main races and, for distance, we have received 4 flags (4th, two 2nds and a 1st) in the last 4 Queens Cup races (68-76nm) in the spinnnaker fleet.

The problem with hanse is that they have an open transom and with kids of your age is not a good idea (I mean for us anyway). The main purpose for us is not racing but cruising so performance such as speed is not what we are looking at first but mostly how seaworthy the boat is. I did visit a hanse in the past the boat is very nice and I'm sure it's a nice sailing vessel. But the price are way higher then a used 393, 400, or 411 as they were introduced recently.

[silversailor]

The Hanse 400 originated as a 2006 model. The early years 2006-2008 had a closed transom, I believe and are available used at competitive prices.