Outremer 51 Buyer's Guide, Specs and Used Prices

Why more than 100 buyers chose the Outremer 51

Outremer has built fast cruising catamarans at La Grande-Motte on the French Mediterranean coast since the 1980s, but no model sold like the 51. The boat grew out of the Outremer 49 of 2009, a Christophe Barreau design that sold 23 hulls in four years. For 2013 Barreau and Frédéric Neuman stretched it to 51 feet, following a large owner survey, enlarging the sugar scoops into usable living space and redesigning the interior. Multihulls World reported the 100th Outremer 51 leaving the yard in 2022, and the successor Outremer 52 premiered at the La Grande-Motte multihull show in April 2023.

The appeal is simple to state. An Outremer 51 lets a couple sail across oceans at 9 to 10 knot averages without a professional crew, on a boat that is comfortable enough to live on. That combination is rare, and the used market prices it accordingly.

Three generations of the same hull

The 51 changed more than most buyers realize during its nine-year run, and the year matters when you shop. Early boats from 2013 to about 2017 carry the original deckhouse and interior. The 2018 restyle brought sculpted topsides by Patrick Le Quément, inverted bows, updated chart table and galley, and new linings and finishes. Late boats also gained more options for carbon bulkheads, lighter daggerboards and a rotating mast.

In broker terms, the post-2018 boats look and feel newer, sell faster and command about 10 to 15 percent more than a comparable pre-restyle hull. The underlying hull, rig geometry and sailing character are much the same.

Eleven tonnes, daggerboards and a rotating mast option

Light ship displacement is about 11,000 kg (24,251 lb), against a fully loaded displacement of 13,700 kg. On SAIL's numbers that gives a displacement to length ratio around 78 and a sail area to displacement ratio around 27, figures closer to a racing boat than a cruising cat. A typical Lagoon 50 weighs nearly double.

Daggerboards, raised and lowered with winches in the cockpit, take draft from 3 feet 1 inch to 7 feet 8 inches. They give the 51 upwind ability comparable to a good cruising monohull, and pulling them up downwind frees the boat to surf. The spade rudders are not retractable, so the boards are designed to take a grounding first.

The rig is a fractional solent arrangement with the mast stepped well aft. An aluminum mast was standard, and a carbon spar or a rotating carbon wing mast like the one on the larger Outremer 5X was a popular, expensive option. Full-roach mainsails were standard on early boats and square-top mains became the norm later.

• Upwind sail area 129 m2 (1,389 sq ft)
• Downwind sail area 254 m2 (2,734 sq ft)
• Mast height about 75 ft 8 in above the waterline
• Construction PVC foam, E-glass and resin sandwich, solid below the waterline

Real passage speeds, not brochure speeds

In SAIL's test in 10 to 15 knots of breeze, the boat made close to 10 knots under main and genoa and went over 10 knots once the screecher was unrolled. Katamarans.com puts the passage target at 9 to 10 knot averages, and SAIL's test boat owners had seen 20 knots.

The more realistic picture for a couple sailing conservatively is an average around 7.5 knots on long passages, which is what one SAIL owner reported while reefing early and sailing without stress. That still means four or five days saved on an Atlantic crossing compared with a heavy charter-style cat.

The light displacement is also why the 51 sails well in under 10 knots, a condition in which heavier cats start their engines. Light air downwind and trade wind reaching are where the boat is happiest.

Helm choices from wheel to bucket-seat tillers

Most 51s steer from wheel stations at the aft end of the cockpit, with good visibility past the deckhouse to both bows. Outremer also offered dual tillers with bucket seats on the aft beams, the brand's signature for owners who want feel and a redundant steering system. If you are buying a boat for long passages, the tillers are worth seeking out.

The trade-off of a low helm is exposure. Many owners add a dodger and bimini to protect the watch keeper. Electric winches on the main halyard and genoa sheets were common, and the overall deck layout is built around two people sailing without help.

Accommodation in narrow, fast hulls

The saloon puts the galley to starboard, a forward-facing navigation station with sightlines over the bows and a rectangular dinette with a telescoping table. In the three cabin layout the owner's hull runs to port, with a queen berth aft under large windows, a head, and a separate shower forward. The starboard hull holds two guest cabins, with a choice of athwartships or fore and aft queen berths aft. Four cabin boats exist but are rare.

The hulls are narrower than on a charter cat and the daggerboard trunks take space, so cabins feel compact and storage is tighter. Nobody buys an Outremer for the size of the guest heads. They buy it because the boat will deliver them to the Marquesas in comfort, and the interior is designed around sea berths and handholds rather than parties.

Engines, energy and keeping the boat light

Twin 40 hp Volvo Penta diesels on saildrives were standard, with 50 hp engines available. Tankage is modest by design, with SAIL listing 88 gallons of fuel and 100 gallons of water, because every kilo counts. A watermaker is the first option on almost every 51.

The SAIL test boat shows the Outremer ownership philosophy: about 560 watts of solar, an 800 Ah battery bank and an optional hydrogenerator, with the owners deliberately skipping a generator, dishwasher, washing machine and multi-zone air conditioning to keep the boat light and simple. Boats loaded with every appliance will sail measurably slower, so look at the equipment list with a performance eye.

Outremer 51 or 55, and where the 52 fits

The Outremer 55 sat above the 51 in the range and offers more interior volume and a bigger rig, at a substantial premium. The successor Outremer 52 took owner feedback from the 51 and ideas from the 55 into a new boat launched in 2023. For a used buyer, the 51 is the sweet spot: enough length for ocean comfort, a large supply of boats, and an owners' community with years of passage data.

Outremer's after-sales culture is part of the value. The yard keeps close contact with owners, supports second-hand buyers and organizes rallies, and that support network is one reason the boats keep their prices.