Review of Motiva 39 S

The deck is made of steel.

The boat is equipped with 4 cabins, 6 berths, a galley, toilet facility and 80.0 liter waste water capacity.
Note: the boat has also been sold to be self-made/-interiored, which means that the quality of each boat may vary.

Motiva 39 S has more than one rig.

One option is a ketch rig.

Another option is a masthead rig. The advantage of a masthead rig is its simplicity and the fact that a given sail area - compared with a fractional rig - can be carried lower and thus with less heeling moment.

The Motiva 39 S is equipped with a long keel. A long keel provide a better directional stability than a similar boat with a fin keel; on the other hand, better directional stability means also that the boat is more difficult to handle in a harbour with less space.

The keel is made of lead. Compared with iron, lead has the advantage of being 44% heavier, which allows a smaller keel and hence less water resistance and higher speed.

The boat can only enter major marinas as the draft is about 1.90 - 2.00 meter (6.23 - 6.53 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.

The boat is typically equipped with an inboard Volvo Penta engine at 62.0 hp (46 kW), which gives a max speed about 6.1 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 which is made of steel has a capacity of 400.0 liters (105 US gallons, 87 imperial gallons).

What is Capsize Screening Formula (CSF)?

The capsize screening value for Motiva 39 S is 1.59, indicating that this boat could - if evaluated by this formula alone - be accepted to participate in ocean races.

What is Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed?

The theoretical maximal speed of a displacement boat of this length is 7.5 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.

The immersion rate is defined as the weight required to sink the boat a certain level. The immersion rate for Motiva 39 S is about 237 kg/cm, alternatively 1332 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 237 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 1332 lbs cargo on the boat it will sink 1 inch.

What is Motion Comfort Ratio (MCR)?

The Motion Comfort Ratio for Motiva 39 S is 46.7.

Comparing this ratio with similar sailboats show that it is more comfortable than 99% of all similar sailboat designs. This is a comfort value significantly above average.

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for Motiva 39 S is 3.24.

Compared with other similar sailboats it is more spacy than 54% of all other designs. It seems that the designer has chosen a slightly more spacy hull design.

What is a Ballast Ratio?

The ballast ratio for Motiva 39 S is 32%.

This ballast ratio shows a righting moment that is higher than 15% of all similar sailboat designs. A righting moment (ability to resist heeling) significantly below average.

What is Displacement Length Ratio?

The DL-ratio for Motiva 39 S is 409 which categorizes this boat among 'heavy cruisers'.

4% of all similar sailboat designs are categorized as heavier. A heavy displacement combined with smaller water plane area has lower acceleration and is more comfortable.

When buying anti-fouling bottom paint, it's nice to know how much to buy. The surface of the wet bottom is about 40m² (430 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.

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.

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.

We are always looking for new photos. If you can contribute with photos for Motiva 39 S 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.

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