Sun Odyssey 40
Jeanneau · Daniel Andrieu · 1998
Updated
The Sun Odyssey 40 is a 11.71 m displacement racing yacht designed by Daniel Andrieu and built by Jeanneau, first launched in 1998. It races in Class C. Across the measured fleet it goes better than its own numbers promise, ahead of 33% 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 33% of the boats it races against.
107th of 159 in its class.
This design has been found in real race results — 104 starts across 37 events — not only in measurement files.
Length
11.71 m
38′ 5″
Beam
3.94 m
Draft
1.96 m
Displacement
7.3 t
Sail area
78 m²
On the podium
Where a Sun Odyssey 40 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
8%
of 104 starts by 5 boats
Wins
6%
Read from 104 starts by 5 boats between 2018 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Sun Odyssey 40 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
Regatta Sozopol Sailing Cup2026
43ος Ιστιοπλοικος Αγωνας Κορφος ΄262026- "Επιδαυρος 2024"2026
- ¨16ο Athens Trophy 2026¨2026
54° Campionato Invernale Vela d'Altura del Golfo di Napoli2026
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
17%
of these races end on the podium
Offshore & coastal
4%
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 Sun Odyssey 40 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Some of the boats it races against
How the Sun Odyssey 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
5.19
40°
Beam reach
8.44
90°
Broad reach
9.18
135°
Downwind VMG
7.65
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.
It needs pressure to show what it can do. On a windy coastal course it is in its element; on a light-air windward-leeward it has to be sailed well to hold on.
Where it gains
Its best ground is on a reach once the breeze fills, 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 0.6 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the beam reach.
How fast is a Sun Odyssey 40
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.10 | 4.41 | 5.05 | 5.19 |
| 52° | 4.84 | 6.57 | 7.30 | 7.50 |
| 60° | 5.19 | 6.83 | 7.51 | 7.75 |
| 75° | 5.43 | 7.04 | 7.71 | 8.15 |
| 90° | 5.42 | 7.29 | 7.92 | 8.44 |
| 110° | 5.47 | 7.41 | 8.21 | 9.05 |
| 120° | 5.30 | 7.30 | 8.20 | 9.32 |
| 135° | 4.72 | 6.87 | 7.92 | 9.18 |
| 150° | 3.98 | 6.10 | 7.45 | 8.48 |
| Run VMG | 3.45 | 5.29 | 6.50 | 7.65 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Roughly half carry a folding propeller. A bowsprit is standard across the fleet. Crew weight is declared around 400 kg.
Rigging
Sun Odyssey 40 rig and sail dimensions
A Sun Odyssey 40 carries 13.20 m of mainsail hoist on a 4.81 m boom, a forestay 15.25 m above the deck and a 4.39 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 16 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 77 to 119 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.