The French built Beneteau simply trounced most of the American boats we
looked at. This was all about DESIGN. From a quality standpoint the
Tartan, Sabre, Caliber, Catalina, Pearson, C&C, Beneteau and other
makes we examined were really quite close. All had handled the 10-15
years of use well. J-Boats, C&Cs and Beneteau's that were raced hard
showed it below and on gear.
Then came design. The American boats displayed ZERO innovation. Aft
cabins, all the rage in Europe, were hard to find. Swim platforms were
also rare. Cabin layouts were of the cookie cutter variety, dull and
with no effort to improve living spaces. BUT, when we looked at
European models there was a lot of imagination at work. Not all designs
were a good idea. Some poor materials were chosen, but not any more so
than on US built boats.

So in the end we chose a Beneteau 35s5 because...........

It had better performance than most other boats from good builders such
as Catalina, Sabre, C&C, pearson and so on!
It had a better cabin by far. Fit and finish and usage of space led the
pack. Only was more livable though not as nice!
It looked different. With her sleek hull, sugar scoop and large ports,
the 35s5 had some personality compared to the US built boats!
It was a builder who was capable of staying in business so there is
actual support for the boat!

And this is exactly why US cars can't compete with Japanese cars. They
lack performance, appointments and most importantly....they are
generally devoid of any personality. In the end that might suit some US
owners, but some folks quite clearly want more.


RB
35s5
NY