The Dufour 405 GL is well organized above and below deck

Michel Dufour of La Rochelle, France is one of the few shipbuilders who has been dedicated to building sailboats, and sailboats only, since 1964. With the Dufour 405 GL (Grand Large), he has added to his line of fast, sleek performance cruisers. The design won European Boat of the Year 2010 in the Family Cruiser category, and received numerous nominations in American contests as well. The Dufour 405 GL is a light-displacement production boat with long angular windows in a low coachroof and a plumb bow that gives her a long waterline. She looks like a speed demon, and her performance is on par with her looks. The hull is solid, hand-laid fiberglass with a Twaron-reinforced structural grid running the length and width of the hull. The deck is a balsa-cored injection molding, which is light but rigid, contributing to the boat’s speed and stiffness. Two cast iron bolt-on keels are available – standard at 6’ 6” or a shoal keel with a 5’ 9” draft.  The Dufour 405 GL displaces just over 17,800 pounds and is easily managed by the deep rudder.

PERFORMANCE & RIG: The 9/10ths fractional rig has swept-back double spreaders and is deck-stepped. There is a double backstay, and an inner forestay is optional. Genoa tracks (100% jib is standard) are on the deck near the coachroof, so the sheeting angles are tight. The standard mainsail has conventional battens, and two single-line reefing points. In-mast furling or a full-battened mainsail with lazyjacks are options, and all control lines are led aft. The Dufour 405 GL is fast, nimble, and easily driven. She will tack through 80 degrees and do 8 knots in 15 knots of apparent wind at 40 degrees. Like most light production boats, the Dufour 405 GL needs to be reefed in 16-18 knots but her beamy aft section provides a stable and fast ride off the wind. A short alloy sprit is optional to fly an asymmetrical spinnaker. The 40 hp Volvo Penta diesel with a Saildrive and a fixed two-blade prop will push her at 7.5 knots at 2,400 rpm cruising speed or 8.0 knots at 3,000 rpm max speed.  A 55 hp engine and a folding 2-blade propeller are optional.

ON DECK: The profile of the Dufour 405 GL is low and sleek and there are twin wheels in the cockpit.  With the drop-down transom that forms the swim platform, it’s easy to board.  Engine controls are at the starboard wheel and genoa sheet winches are within the helmsman’s reach on both sides for easy short-handed sailing. Two more self-tailing winches on the coachroof control the mainsheet and halyards, which are led aft through rope clutches. A drop-leaf center table with a grab-rail can house a centerline multi-function display. Storage is plentiful in three cockpit lockers, two shallow and one deep. There’s a liferaft locker under the aft end of the cockpit sole, near the emergency tiller access to the rudder post. The foredeck is clear, with a recessed electric vertical windlass and a large, opening chain locker.

ACCOMMODATIONS: The Dufour 405 GL has a traditional “woody” interior, which is offered with either one or two aft cabins. The former has an L-shaped galley aft and a chart/coffee table between two saloon seats, with access on both sides. The latter has a linear galley and a separate nav station with a forward-facing chart table and seat. Both layouts have two heads and an ensuite forecabin.

A large fridge, accessible from the top or front, creates a sturdy surface for the cook to lean against in both layouts. Both plans are also well-equipped with good lighting and have plenty of useful stowage space. The aft head is slightly narrower than the forward one, but there still is room to shower. Both are well ventilated with ample stowage and foul weather gear. The U-shaped settee in the saloon has washable leatherette cushions and a two-man bench seat inboard. The deep lockers and bookshelf above them are ideal for long-term cruising, and there is further stowage space under the cushions and in cave lockers behind the settees. Although the saloon has plenty of natural light, ventilation is limited to one small port and two hatches. Headroom is a generous 6ft 5in throughout the saloon, aft cabins and heads, dropping to 6ft 2in forward. The aft cabins are roomy, with 6ft 7in x 4ft 6in berths and generous floor space. Three opening hatches/portlights offer good ventilation, and there is plenty of stowage space in several lockers. A panel above one berth gives access to the batteries and charger, and an optional 2.5kW generator. Water and fuel tanks are underneath the berths. Cabin sizes are identical. If you opt for only one aft cabin, you end up with a vast cockpit locker, part of which might make a small workshop.

The Dufour 405 GL’s 40hp Volvo engine is easily accessed for servicing. We carried out several tight marina berthing and turning maneuvers to get the feel of the boat under power. She spun round in her own length and was easy to control going astern. Our boat had the optional 55hp engine and a folding 2-blade prop, which gave us power to spare and a quiet, economic cruising speed of 7.5 knots at 2,400 rpm, with a flat-out speed of 8.5 knots at 3,000 rpm.

SAIL MAGAZINE SEA TRIAL: We sailed the Dufour 405 GL on a blustery February day. We were soon running downwind at a healthy 8-plus knots in 15 knots of cold wind. Fortunately, the light snow stopped as we turned to windward and the boat fell into a comfortable groove at an apparent wind angle of 38 to 40 degrees, and our knotmeter settled in around 8.6. As with other designs in Dufour’s GL range, the helm felt positive, though slightly heavy in the gusts. Most modern production cruisers need a reef at around 15-17 knots true wind speed, so I wasn’t surprised when the 405 finally lost its grip and rounded up as a prolonged 30-knot gust hit us under full sail. Bearing away on a beam reach leveled her up and wound the log up to just over 9 knots. With a single reef in each sail her good manners instantly returned and whatever we put her through after that she accepted without complaint, giving us a swift and exciting ride. We tacked through less than 80 degrees, losing little momentum, and pointed to within 33 degrees of the apparent wind before the mainsail started to stall. Even then the 405 made a steady 7 knots. Surprisingly, when we hove-to to let the photographer back onboard, the boat stopped dead in the water with the wind around 70 degrees off the bow—a rare phenomenon on a modern sailboat.

CONCLUSION: The Dufour 405 GL is well organized, both above and below decks and is easy to handle under sail. A lot of thought has been put into the basic and essential elements of cruising under sail, so she rightly deserves to be popular with coastal and offshore cruisers alike. With the Grand Large 405, Dufour appeals to cruising couples and small families looking for space and comfort but desire to do well in club races.

LOA 39’ 9” (12.1 m.)
LWL 39’ 0” (11.9 m.)
Beam 13’ 0” (3.9 m.)
Draft (shoal) 5’ 7” (1.7 m.)
(deep) 6’ 6” (2.0 m.)
Sail Area 881 sq. ft. (81.9 sq. m.)
Ballast 5,150 lb. (2,336 kg.)
Displacement 19,819 lb. (8,990 kg.)
Ballast/D .26
D/L 208
SA/D 19.2
Water 100 gal. (380 l.)
Fuel 53 gal. (200 l.)
Holding 24 gal. (90.8 l.)
Mast Height 55’ 7” (16.9 m.)
Engine 40-hp. diesel
Designers Umberto Felci and Patrick Roséo