2000 Jeanneau SO 40 Autopilot questions

[Quietta]

I am looking at a used production boat and one of the options that meets my needs is a 2000 SO 40, but it doesn't have much equipment on board. This doesn't particularly bother me as this is something I do. One issue is that there is no Autopilot.
Can someone tell me:
What is the factory fitted Autopilot controller and drive for these boats?
I imagine it is no longer available but is the drive unit Hydraulic of motor driven?
What brand drive unit will bolt straight in without having to get too many brackets/mountings fabricated?
What size AP drive units are being used?

[Jeanneau 45.2]

My French built 2000 45.2 came with a Raytheon (now Raymarine) 6001 controlhead with type 2 linear drive attached to the quadrant.

[Quietta]

Thanks for the information

[carstenb]

The raymarine was the original equipment autopilot. Raymaines Evolution 2 should be a bolt up on the SO

[tce001]

My 2002 SO 40 had the Raymarine 6001 linear drive and the Course Computer 150. I just recently put in the ACU-200 and the EVO Compass and Gyro, and the results have been outstanding. Really good tracking even in high winds going upwind.

[Quietta]

tce001, Thanks for the reply, I have been hearing good reports about the gyro based autopilots. Have you had a chance to try the gyro autopilot going downwind in a following sea with a stiff breeze?

[chuckr]

Originally Posted by Jeanneau 45.2

My French built 2000 45.2 came with a Raytheon (now Raymarine) 6001 controlhead with type 2 linear drive attached to the quadrant.

Mine too - Jeanneau DS40 built 2000 launched 2003 - it is a crew member and does most of the steering -

[chuckr]

Originally Posted by Quietta

tce001, Thanks for the reply, I have been hearing good reports about the gyro based autopilots. Have you had a chance to try the gyro autopilot going downwind in a following sea with a stiff breeze?

To us it depends on the size of the seas. In the Cheaspeake with a bit of sea on a short interval it just did not work. We sailed in 20-25k winds headed to the Corinth Canal a/p worked great as the seas were not to big and not very close and we were going fairly fast at 7-k sog - In the Med we have not had great success with downwind when the seas get up to 2-3 sec interval and sharp steep breaking on the stern -

When we crossed the Atlantic Otto Pello did all the work all the way across with winds from 40 deg to 150 deg on the boat.

[SailorPat]

Yr 2000 SO 40 DS: Raymarine (Raytheon) electric powered auto helm connected to SeaTalk communications backbone. Backup memory battery in system’s GPS just died to Autohelm faults if GPS unit turned on, so I use a backup GPS and Navionics in iPad or hand held Garmin. When one sensor stops communicating (GPS in this case) the various displays and interlinked elements do not work. The Autohelm, for example, can display Distance and Bearing to a selected Waypoint, or follow a preplanned Route — so when that info is dead, so goes the Autohelm. My current solution is simply do not turn in the LORAN/GPS instrument and Autohelm works.