TOBY HODGES ON THE L ATEST PRODUCTION MONOHULLS FOR 2024
Wauquiez 55
LOA 17.58m 57ft 8in
• Hull length 16.4m 53ft 10in Beam 5.25m 17ft 3in
• Draught 2.4m 7ft 10in or 1.6m-4.2m 5ft3in-13ft9in
• Displacement (light) 20 tonnes • Price from €1.8m ex VAT
While the graphical representations of many new designs may look impressive, rarely do we see a production yacht unveiled with so many new or reimagined clever ideas all packed into one hull as there are on this new Wauquiez 55.
And the French shipyard did so under the radar, only unveiling these images of its first new model since the 42 in 2018 at the Düsseldorf Boat Show in January this year. The 55 also marks its first new launch under new owners Exel Industries, and is aimed squarely at the premium end of the cruising market.
The novel design certainly sparks interest. A centre cockpit cruiser with twin engines and a lift keel option, it offers the type of full cockpit protection only seen on a couple of cruising yachts such as Amels and Allures today, including the ability to control all manoeuvres and handling from here. Perhaps my favourite feature, though, is the direct access from the owner’s aft cabin straight onto the beamy sunken aft deck terrace.
Even before Wauquiez revealed the designer responsible, the prominent reverse sheer, lines long favoured by Lombard design, gave it away. Lombard’s longstanding co-director Eric Levet told me how this method worked particularly well for this higher deck concept – “it’s something you couldn’t do on an aft cockpit yacht”. He also confirmed that the aft terrace leans on inspiration from early Wally yachts such as Tiketitan.
While the 55 is designed for ease of shorthanded use from within the cockpit cocoon, it’s also conceived for performance and double digit speeds. A tall rig provides almost 170m2 of upwind sail area and the boat is built in foam sandwich to keep weight down to 20 tonnes lightship.
Options are generous including three rigs, two keels, and two different interior layouts. The ballasted swing keel version provides pointing ability in its deep 4.2m mode or raises to 1.6m, and has a fuse in the hydraulic system in case of grounding. The carbon performance rig version comes with a furling boom, while the main is sheeted to an aft deck traveller on a flatwinder winch. Levet says the push/pull JP3 steering system ensures good helming sensitivity.
The deck layout gives plenty of relaxation space, while tankage and stowage looks generous, although there’s no dinghy garage, so davits will likely
