Beneteau 400 Oceanis, a 1990s Forty Explained for Used Buyers

Where the Beneteau 400 Oceanis sits in the family tree

Beneteau launched the Oceanis cruising line in 1986, and the first wave of boats (the 320, 350, 370, 390, 430 and 500) set the template of a comfortable, easily handled cruiser built in large numbers. The Beneteau 400 Oceanis belongs to the next wave. Beneteau USA's own brochure called it a second generation Oceanis, drawn by Jean-Marie Finot to give owners cruising performance without demanding a racing crew, and sold it under the line Performance Cruising for the 90's.

Searchers type the name both ways, Beneteau 400 Oceanis and Beneteau Oceanis 400, but it is one boat. Sailboatdata lists it from 1991 to 1997 with roughly 430 hulls built, and Beneteau's heritage site files it under the 1991 to 1994 Oceanis generation, which suggests the design was conceived early in the decade and then kept in production. A center cockpit derivative, the Oceanis 400 CC (also called the Oceanis 40 CC), followed in 1995, and the charter trade knew close relatives as the Moorings 405 and Stardust 413. Do not confuse any of these with the later Oceanis 40 from Beneteau's 2005 to 2014 generation or the Oceanis 40.1 that SAIL tested in 2021, which are entirely different boats.

Factory numbers versus database numbers

Beneteau USA's archived specification sheet gives an LOA of 39 ft 9 in, a 34 ft 11 in waterline, a 12 ft 10 in beam, about 16,000 lb of displacement and about 5,600 lb of ballast. The sail area with the standard furling main is quoted as 670 sq ft at 100 percent foretriangle. Sailboatdata's record is noticeably heavier, at 19,183 lb, with a 35 ft 5 in waterline and a 652 sq ft sail plan, and it quotes a draft of 5 ft 5 in. We use the factory figures in our table, but treat the displacement with caution, because a cruising-ready boat with full tanks, an anchor and batteries will weigh more than either brochure suggests.

Two keels were offered in the US. The deep option is a cast iron fin with a bulb drawing 5 ft 6 in, and the shoal option is a wing keel drawing 4 ft 8 in. Both are modest by modern standards, which is one reason the 400 still appeals in the Chesapeake, the Gulf Coast and the Bahamas. The brochure stressed the low center of gravity of the bulb, a large leather-wrapped wheel and a counter-balanced rudder for light steering.

• LOA 39 ft 9 in, LWL 34 ft 11 in, beam 12 ft 10 in (Beneteau USA)
• Draft 5 ft 6 in bulb or 4 ft 8 in wing
• Fuel 41 gal and water 140 gal on the US equipment list
• About 430 built according to sailboatdata

An owner's cabin forward and a choice aft

The layout is the reason many buyers shortlist this boat. The forward cabin was billed as the owner's cabin, with a double pullman berth to starboard, a settee to port, a hanging locker, two large drawers and its own one-piece molded head with a hand-held shower. That is an unusual arrangement on a 40 footer of the period and gives the forward occupants a little sitting room of their own instead of a V-berth wedged into the bow.

Aft of the saloon, buyers chose between a double aft cabin version and a single aft cabin version. With two aft cabins the boat sleeps three couples and suits charter or family use. The single aft cabin version, which Beneteau USA introduced as new, gives the space back to the galley and stowage. In both, the aft head is to port and also carries a hand shower with an electric sump pump.

The saloon has a U-shaped settee with a fold-down table that converts to a double, lockers and bottle stowage along the hull, and an aft-facing chart table with a hinged panel for electronics. The galley is close to the companionway, with a three-burner propane stove and oven, double stainless sinks, and separate 12 volt fridge and freezer compartments in a six cubic foot insulated box.

Coachroof tracks and a clear side deck

Finot and Beneteau put the genoa tracks, turning blocks and mainsheet traveler on the coachroof rather than on the side decks. The brochure argued this tightened the genoa sheeting angle for better pointing and left the side decks clear for crew moving forward, and that is still how the boat feels to walk around. All halyards and control lines run aft under a cowling to seven Spinlock stoppers, with two 30 size winches for halyards and two 48 size winches for the genoa sheets.

The rig is a masthead sloop with double aft-swept spreaders, forward lower shrouds and discontinuous rigging. US boats came standard with an in-mast furling mainsail and a 153 percent furling genoa. That combination is easy for a couple, but it costs performance upwind and the big overlapping genoa needs to be rolled early as the breeze builds. Expect a 400 to be a pleasant reacher and an average performer close-hauled.

The cockpit is built around a pedestal and table with two folding leaves, an insulated icebox and the engine panel. Aft there is a transom access door to a swim platform with a stainless ladder and two lockers, plus a lazarette that reaches the steering quadrant.

Perkins, Yanmar and the repower question

The Beneteau USA equipment list specifies a Perkins Prima 50 diesel with 41 gallons of fuel, while sailboatdata records a 44 hp Yanmar 4JH2E. Both engines appear in the used fleet, and by now many boats have been repowered with modern Yanmar or Beta units. The engine sits under the molded companionway steps with additional access panels from the aft cabin.

Ask for receipts. An original engine of this age is not automatically bad if it has been maintained, but parts support, exhaust elbows, heat exchangers and the shaft seal should all be documented. A repower in the last decade adds real value and is worth paying for, since installing a new 40 to 50 hp diesel with labor will typically cost a large share of what a tired 400 sells for.

Charter pasts, and how to read them

Like most Oceanis models of the era, the 400 worked in charter fleets, and sailboatdata notes the Moorings 405 and Stardust 413 as similar charter boats. Former charter boats are not a reason to walk away, since fleets usually maintain engines and rigging on a schedule, but they bring heavy wear to winches, sail track, cushions, head plumbing and gelcoat around the cockpit.

Three-cabin boats are the usual charter configuration. A privately owned single aft cabin version with documented upgrades is generally the better buy for a couple, and it is also the version that sells fastest on the US brokerage market.

What a thirty-year-old Oceanis 400 usually needs

Beneteau built the hull with a structural grid bonded into it to spread rig and keel loads, and the brochure advertised a Watershield barrier in the laminate against osmotic blistering, backed when new by a five year transferable limited warranty. Those features help, but every 400 is now three decades old. A survey should include moisture readings, a look at the grid for cracks or delamination around the keel bolts, and a check of the keel to hull joint for weeping rust.

The other big items are standing rigging (replace it if there is no record from the last 10 to 15 years), the in-mast furler, chainplates, portlight and hatch seals, and the plumbing and wiring that have been modified by several owners. Budget for these before you make an offer.

Valuing a 1993, 1994, 1995 or 1996 boat

Most Beneteau Oceanis 400 for sale listings in the US fall between about $55,000 and $100,000 in 2026. Model year matters less than equipment. A 1995 Beneteau Oceanis 400 with a recent repower, new sails and an updated electrical system can be worth more than a 1997 boat that has been neglected.

Plan on $8,000 to $16,000 a year to keep one, covering a slip or mooring, insurance, haul-out and bottom paint, and routine engine and rigging maintenance, with larger refit items on top.