Review of Hanse 540e

Basic specs.

The Hanse 540e is a large sailboat designed by the German maritime architect bureau judel / vrolijk & co - engineering GmbH.

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Hull

The hull is made of fibreglass. Generally, a hull made of fibreglass requires only a minimum of maintenance during the sailing season.

Interior

The boat is equipped with 6-9 berths.

Rig

The boat equipped with a fractional rig. A fractional rig has smaller headsails which make tacking easier, which is an advantage for cruisers and racers, of course. The downside is that having the wind from behind often requires a genaker or a spinnaker for optimal speed.

Keel

The Hanse 540e is equipped with a fin keel. A boat with a fin keel is more manoeuvrable but has less directional stability than a similar boat with a long keel.

The boat can only enter major marinas as the draft is about 2.43 - 2.53 meter (7.97 - 8.27 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.

Engine

Hanse 540e is typically equipped with an inboard Volvo Penta D3-110 diesel engine at 110.0 hp (81 kW), which gives a max speed about 8.4 knots.

The transmission is a shaft drive. A shaft drive will in the long run require less maintenence than other types of drive e.g. a sail drive.

The fuel tank has a capacity of 375.0 liters (99 US gallons, 82 imperial gallons).

Sailing characteristics

This section covers widely used rules of thumb to describe the sailing characteristics. Please note that even though the calculations are correct, the interpretation of the results might not be valid for extreme boats.

Stability and Safety

What is Capsize Screening Formula (CSF)?

The capsize screening value for Hanse 540e is 1.87, indicating that this boat could - if evaluated by this formula alone - be accepted to participate in ocean races.

EU classification

Hanse 540e holds one CE certification:

The boat is by European Union certified as Class A. OCEAN:

Designed for extended voyages where conditions may exceed wind force 8 (Beaufort scale) and significant wave heights of 4 m and above but excluding abnormal conditions, and vessels largely self-sufficient.

Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed

What is Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed?

The theoretical maximal speed of a displacement boat of this length is 9.3 knots. The term "Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed" is widely used even though a boat can sail faster. The term shall be interpreted as above the theoretical speed a great additional power is necessary for a small gain in speed.

Immersion rate

The immersion rate is defined as the weight required to sink the boat a certain level. The immersion rate for Hanse 540e is about 480 kg/cm, alternatively 2689 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 480 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 2689 lbs cargo on the boat it will sink 1 inch.

Sailing statistics

This section is statistical comparison with similar boats of the same category. The basis of the following statistical computations is our unique database with more than 26,000 different boat types and 350,000 data points.

Motion Comfort Ratio

What is Motion Comfort Ratio (MCR)?

The Motion Comfort Ratio for Hanse 540e is 31.6.

Comparing this ratio with similar sailboats show that it is more comfortable than 38% of all similar sailboat designs. This comfort value is just below average.

L/B (Length Beam Ratio)

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for Hanse 540e is 3.29.

Compared with other similar sailboats it is more spacy than 82% of all other designs. It seems that the designer has chosen a significantly more spacy hull design.

D/L (Displacement Length Ratio)

What is Displacement Length Ratio?

The DL-ratio for Hanse 540e is 167 which categorizes this boat among 'light racers'.

73% of all similar sailboat designs are categorized as heavier. A light displacement requires less sailarea and has higher accellerations.

SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)

What is SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)?

The SA/D for Hanse 540e with ISO 8666 reference sail is 19.2, with a 135% genua the SA/D is 22.5.

The SA/D ratio indicates that it is faster than 88% of all similar sailboat designs in light wind.

Maintenance

Bottom Paint

When buying anti-fouling bottom paint, it's nice to know how much to buy. The surface of the wet bottom is about 80m² (861 ft²).
Based on this, your favourite maritime shop can tell you the quantity you need.

Note: If you use a paint roller you will need more paint than if you use a paintbrush.

Rig

Dimensions of sail for fractional rig.

Are your sails worn out? You might find your next sail here: Sails for Sale

If you need to renew parts of your running rig and is not quite sure of the dimensions, you may find the estimates computed below useful.

**Guiding dimensions of running rig**
Usage	Length		Diameter
Mainsail halyard	54.9 m	(180.2 feet)	14 mm	(0.55 inch)
Jib/genoa halyard	54.9 m	(180.2 feet)	14 mm	(0.55 inch)
Spinnaker halyard	54.9 m	(180.2 feet)	14 mm	(0.55 inch)
Jib sheet	16.1 m	(53.0 feet)	16 mm	(5/8 inch)
Genoa sheet	16.1 m	(53.0 feet)	16 mm	(5/8 inch)
Mainsheet	40.4 m	(132.5 feet)	16 mm	(5/8 inch)
Spinnaker sheet	35.5 m	(116.6 feet)	16 mm	(5/8 inch)
Cunningham	6.5 m	(21.3 feet)	14 mm	(0.55 inch)
Kickingstrap	13.0 m	(42.7 feet)	14 mm	(0.55 inch)
Clew-outhaul	13.0 m	(42.7 feet)	14 mm	(0.55 inch)

Boat owner's ideas

This section shown boat owner's changes, improvements, etc. Here you might find inspiration for your boat.

Do you have changes/improvements you would like to share? Upload a photo and describe what to look for.

Finally

We are always looking for new photos. If you can contribute with photos for Hanse 540e it would be a great help.

If you have any comments to the review, improvement suggestions, or the like, feel free to contact us. Criticism helps us to improve.

References

[Ref 1]: ISO 8666 Small craft — Principal data.
[Ref 3]: ISO 12215-5 Small craft — Hull construction and scantlings.