Elan E4
Elan · Rob Humphreys · 2001
Updated
The Elan E4 is a 10.59 m semi-displacement racing yacht designed by Rob Humphreys and built by Elan, first launched in 2001. It races in Class C. Across the measured fleet it goes better than its own numbers promise, ahead of 91% of the designs it races against.
Goes better than its own measurements promise, and does it better than 91% of the boats it races against.
15th of 159 in its class.
Updated — First Race Edge for this design. Enough boats of this design have now been measured to rank it.
This design has been found in real race results — 43 starts across 8 events — not only in measurement files.
Length
10.59 m
34′ 9″
Beam
3.54 m
Draft
2.12 m
Displacement
5.3 t
Sail area
67 m²
On the podium
Where a Elan E4 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
16%
of 43 starts by 2 boats
Wins
2%
Read from 43 starts by 2 boats between 2022 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Elan E4 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
Campionato Invernale di Porto Santo Stefano2026- ORC DH World Championship2025
- Pasquavela - Inshore2025
- Campionato Invernale di Porto Santo Stefano2025
- 151 Miglia - Trofeo Cetilar2024
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
33%
of these races end on the podium
Offshore & coastal
7%
of these races end on the podium
Sharper round the buoys. Short courses reward acceleration and manoeuvring, and that is where this design makes its money.
Who she races against
The designs a Elan E4 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Also met, too few times for a figure:
Grand Soleil 39 (Maletto) (7 meetings), Comet 41 (7 meetings), Swan 39 (7 meetings), Bolt 37 (6 meetings), Grand Soleil 40 (Polli) (6 meetings), First 36 (6 meetings), Elan 310 (5 meetings), Bonin 31 (4 meetings), JPK 10.10 (4 meetings), J/40 (3 meetings), Sun Fast 3200 (3 meetings), X-302 (3 meetings), Solaris 55 (3 meetings), Grand Soleil 44 (Polli) (3 meetings), Comet 45 (3 meetings), Grand Soleil 43 (Design) (3 meetings), Grand Soleil 40 (Paperini) (2 meetings), Sun Fast 3600 (3 meetings), JOD 35 (2 meetings), J/109 (2 meetings), Elan 350 (2 meetings), First 36.7 (4 meetings), Italia 9.98 (2 meetings), Italia 11.98 (2 meetings), Grand Soleil 43 (Maletto) (2 meetings), Dufour 410 (2 meetings), JPK 10.80 (1 meeting), Salona 41 (1 meeting), JPK 10.30 (1 meeting)
Some of the boats it races against
How the Elan E4 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
8.63
90°
Broad reach
10.16
135°
Downwind VMG
7.89
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.
The stronger it blows, the better this design looks. Give it a fresh day and long legs and it delivers more than it promised; in a drifter it is working uphill.
Where it gains
Its best ground is off the wind when it blows, where it goes better than its measurements say it should, and by a margin worth having.
Where it pays
It falls short on the beat in light air, giving away time it never gets back.
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 0.8 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the broad reach.
How fast is a Elan E4
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.27 | 4.58 | 5.17 | 5.31 |
| 52° | 5.06 | 6.73 | 7.34 | 7.53 |
| 60° | 5.45 | 6.97 | 7.55 | 7.80 |
| 75° | 5.66 | 7.20 | 7.79 | 8.25 |
| 90° | 5.82 | 7.47 | 7.99 | 8.63 |
| 110° | 5.96 | 7.71 | 8.55 | 9.38 |
| 120° | 5.82 | 7.64 | 8.65 | 9.93 |
| 135° | 5.22 | 7.27 | 8.33 | 10.16 |
| 150° | 4.40 | 6.52 | 7.71 | 9.06 |
| Run VMG | 3.81 | 5.65 | 6.77 | 7.89 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. A bowsprit is standard across the fleet. Crew weight is declared around 690 kg.
Rigging
Elan E4 rig and sail dimensions
A Elan E4 carries 13.48 m of mainsail hoist on a 4.63 m boom, a forestay 13.77 m above the deck and a 5.10 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 8 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 91 to 139 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.