Unless you are planning on cruising in areas of very high currents, 49 HP should be fine. Most depends on what you want to do with the
boat, and your sailing experience. If you are the type of person that wants to get from point A to point B regardless of
weather or sea conditions, then you could do with more HP, but for cruising, 49 HP will do fine. Larger engines mean larger props, which means less performance under sail (unless you have a feathering prop), so you want to think about which is more important to you, sailing or motoring? I cruised a 44 foot, 30,000 lb
boat for 8 years with an
engine that would overheat if pushed, so I never ran it over 1800
RPM, which is less than 25 HP. It was enough for normal cruising, but going through the
Panama Canal, I would have liked to have had more
power. A true 49 HP would have been more than enough. I think the big question should be, does the rest of the boat fit your requirements, and does it appeal to your senses? A good
survey will let you know the condition (good surveyors are hard to find), and have an engine
survey done also. Too many modern sailors will recommend bigger and bigger engines, when a better sailing design and lots of practice sailing is far more important. I just went back and re-read your post, and maybe you could tell us a little about your experience level, and the area you plan on sailing or cruising? As with all things on CF, these are only my opinions. Good luck with whatever boat you decide on. _____Grant.