Bavaria 40
Bavaria · J&J Design · 2000
Updated
The Bavaria 40 is a 12.21 m heavy displacement racing yacht designed by J&J Design and built by Bavaria, first launched in 2000. It races in Class C. Across the measured fleet it goes better than its own numbers promise, ahead of 11% of the designs it races against. It comes alive as the breeze builds, and gives time away in the light.
Goes better than its own measurements promise, and does it better than 11% of the boats it races against.
141st of 159 in its class.
Updated — Figure recalculated as other designs in its class moved.
This design has been found in real race results — 29 starts across 18 events — not only in measurement files.
Length
12.21 m
40′ 1″
Beam
4.01 m
Draft
1.94 m
Displacement
7.9 t
Sail area
79 m²
On the podium
Where a Bavaria 40 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
3%
of 29 starts by 5 boats
Wins
0%
Read from 29 starts by 5 boats between 2015 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Bavaria 40 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
"Αιγινα2026- AHEPA Cup Perama2026
Regata Brindisi-Corfù2026- "Αγκιστρι 2025"2025
- Regata Brindisi-Corfù2025
Raced one we are missing?
Report a regattaRound the buoys, or offshore
A short windward-leeward and a night at sea ask different things of a boat. Here is how this one does in each.
Round the buoys
—
Not enough data yet: 2 races of 10 NM or less carry a published distance.
Offshore & coastal
4%
of these races end on the podium
Who she races against
The designs a Bavaria 40 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Also met, too few times for a figure:
Nereis 30 (7 meetings), Grand Soleil 34 (Finot) (7 meetings), Sun Fast 37 (7 meetings), Maxi 84 (7 meetings), Dufour 33 (7 meetings), Elan 40 (7 meetings), Oceanis 34.1 (6 meetings), Comet 850 (6 meetings), Oceanis 37 (6 meetings), Salona 37 (5 meetings)
Some of the boats it races against
How the Bavaria 40 has fared against each of them, boat against boat on corrected time. Ordered by how often the two meet, not by who wins.
Speed at every angle
The shape of this design's speed, drawn from the measured fleet. Pick a wind and watch it stretch.
Upwind VMG
5.31
39°
Beam reach
8.33
90°
Broad reach
8.89
135°
Downwind VMG
7.78
170°
Speed in knots at 20 knots of true wind. Green marks the angles that pay: the closest useful beat and the deepest run worth sailing.
Where it wins and where it pays
Every boat is judged against its own measurements — length, weight, sail area. The quicker those say it should be, the more it has to deliver just to break even. Going fast is not enough: it has to go faster than its own numbers promised.
There is no obvious weak spot here. It rewards preparation and crew work more than it rewards picking the right day.
Where it gains
Its best ground is across the wind in a working breeze, where it does more than its size and sail area promise, and by a margin worth having.
Where it pays
It falls short cracked off once it pipes up, giving away time it never gets back. That is weight that has to be driven rather than released.
Above the line it delivers more than promised and gains on the fleet. Below, it falls short. Move the wind: plenty of boats sit on one side in the light and the other when it blows.
Full width is 0.4 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the beam reach.
How fast is a Bavaria 40
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.18 | 4.43 | 5.12 | 5.31 |
| 52° | 4.96 | 6.60 | 7.29 | 7.54 |
| 60° | 5.28 | 6.86 | 7.47 | 7.77 |
| 75° | 5.50 | 7.05 | 7.66 | 8.11 |
| 90° | 5.41 | 7.22 | 7.90 | 8.33 |
| 110° | 5.46 | 7.34 | 8.12 | 9.13 |
| 120° | 5.28 | 7.24 | 8.05 | 9.13 |
| 135° | 4.68 | 6.79 | 7.78 | 8.89 |
| 150° | 3.93 | 6.04 | 7.35 | 8.40 |
| Run VMG | 3.41 | 5.24 | 6.57 | 7.78 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Roughly half carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 540 kg.
Rigging
Bavaria 40 rig and sail dimensions
A Bavaria 40 carries 13.50 m of mainsail hoist on a 4.70 m boom, a forestay 14.50 m above the deck and a 5.08 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 10 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 75 to 108 m² depending on bowsprit and set-up. Before ordering a sail, read the figure on your own measurement record rather than the typical one for the design.