Jeanneau Prestige 36

[Hoblands]

I've been looking at the Prestige 34 and 36 and would also be interested if anyone had any feedback about how the different engines handle?

Paul

 

[Nautibusiness]

I've been looking at the Prestige 34 and 36 and would also be interested if anyone had any feedback about how the different engines handle?

Paul

Paul

The 34 is a totally different beast to the 36.
The 34 a sport cruiser on outdrives with a choice of (in addition to other less common options):
KAD43DP
KAD300DP
D4.260DP

The Kad 43 was adequate, but didn't really provide the zing.
The KAD 300 was a thrill ride pushing the boat to 38+ knots and providing a lot of fun.
The D4.260 provided a tiny fraction more performance again allowing the boat to fall a tincey smidge (nautical expression) short of 40 knots in fair conditions.
The 34 engine bay is pretty cavernous and no engineer could gripe about it... Children could sleep down either side and the middle if you needed them aboard for unpaid labour etc.
With the engines set wide apart she would carry the best of both shaft and outdrive handling responding well to split throttles and responding excellently to split throttles and wheel around the marina.
In sensible seas she is also superb fun to drive. I can speak from personal experience having out doughnutted (another nautical expression) the bosses commercial thrill ride jet boat that runs from Bournemouth pier a number of times.
As with most Jeanneaus she is great in a following sea, but due to her wide beam is getting a bit firmer into a head sea so simply trim down and if necessary slow down a little when it is bang on the nose.
Most of my experience is in the D4.260 and they are remarkably efficient. I can recall one day of tuition which involved a passage to Guernsey.
88nm from Poole Harbour entrance to St. Peter Port. Very slight tide behind, but predominantly on the beam.
2600 rpm was giving about 24 knots and a fabulous ride. 166 litres of fuel went in at SPP to top up the tanks. That's less than 2lpnm (total) at a nice fast cruise! That is phenomenal for about 6.5 tonnes of sport boat. My own Merry Fisher 695 would use 1.5lpnm at 16 knots with a single engine.

The Prestige 36 comes with a totally different set of qualities:
Handling around the marina is lovely and very predictable. Engines wide apart on shafts mean just small corrections on the thruster are needed on blustery days.
Offshore she is not the thrill ride that the 34 is. On shafts with magazine sized rudders she is very much ore sedate to turn and so much more response, as with pretty much all similar style boats, can be gained by using the throttles.
She is more cruiser and much less sport, but with a top speed nudging close to 30 knots she is not slouch either and will happily cruise at up to 24 knots depending on engines.
Expect fuel consumption to be more than on the 34 as shafts are less efficient per Hp than outdrives and something iro 31 to 35lph (maybe fractionally more) per engine at cruise will be realistic depending on engine choice.

For the money and for what they offer (sure my mates Garlington 78 is better built, but it comes with a number of extra zeroes on the end of the price tag) they are great value and are excellent boats. Certainly as good as anything that is actually within the same class maybe not as good as an alternative of twice or three times the money!

 

[Hoblands]

Nautibusiness,

Excellent informative read. Many thanks.

Paul