Need advice on Elan boats

[zilli]

funjohnson, you are spot on and it is in my requirements list priority #3. Safety, built quality and construction being priority #1. (that is within a budget window and among production boats). As far as the market is concerned it may makes the most sense to sail to AUS and sell it there as market seems to be most favorable for the seller. Last I checked there are only few available in US with (compare to EU) higher asking prices.I guess that is the norm for all Euro built vessels.

[Matt Johnson]

A broker will be able to pull up comps to see how the Elans that made it to our shores did.... they include how long they were on the market and list price vs transaction price.

Another option may be to look for US built boats like Catalina, Tartan, Sabre for sale in the Med that are selling for less than they do in Florida. US brands aren't too popular in the Med, and someone from the US trying to sell their boat in Turkey may have to unload it cheap.

Matt

[zilli]

Well, I went to a boat show yesterday near San Francisco and not only there were no elans but also only a handful of the brokers were familiar with them. I also heard that only one was recently sold in west coast and two currently available both being brand new, an impression 45 and a GT5. I would expect if a number of them can make their way to AUS why not here?? I connected with couple of brokers and will follow up with them to see if they can pull comps. Good news is elan customer service finally replied to my email with a copy of Impression 444 owners manual. Happy to share if anyone is interested.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by zilli

Well, I went to a boat show yesterday near San Francisco and not only there were no elans but also only a handful of the brokers were familiar with them. I also heard that only one was recently sold in west coast and two currently available both being brand new, an impression 45 and a GT5. I would expect if a number of them can make their way to AUS why not here?? I connected with couple of brokers and will follow up with them to see if they can pull comps. Good news is elan customer service finally replied to my email with a copy of Impression 444 owners manual. Happy to share if anyone is interested.

I guess Kiwi's and Aussies are less reluctant than Americans to buying in the Med.. explore for a couple of years and then sail home.

[Cadejos]

Originally Posted by zilli

Well, I went to a boat show yesterday near San Francisco and not only there were no elans but also only a handful of the brokers were familiar with them. I also heard that only one was recently sold in west coast and two currently available both being brand new, an impression 45 and a GT5. I would expect if a number of them can make their way to AUS why not here?? I connected with couple of brokers and will follow up with them to see if they can pull comps. Good news is elan customer service finally replied to my email with a copy of Impression 444 owners manual. Happy to share if anyone is interested.

Hey Zilli. Would you mind sharing the Impression 444 manual with me? unfortunately there is not much information on the web and definitely the Elan line is within my shortlist especially that model.
My email mqalde@gmail.com
Thanks in advance!

[WesRoge]

Just caught this thread and wondered if you were still in the search for an ELAN - I have recently listed both a 444 and a 40 in the US - St Simons Island, GA, just off the ICW and a great jump off to the Caribbean. We are a Jeanneau & Catalina dealer and I see many different boats, and they (Elans) seem to be built very well, and the owners have put them through their paces. The biggest hindrance to resale in the states is the lack of knowledge. There's only one dealer in N. America. So, they are probably the best unknown boat in the US! Now comparing to the 423, Bene's are obviously more well known, but we've had a 423 listed for over a year, which then went south and listed with another broker and it still sits for sale, after two years. I think the issue is more a case of pricing, when you have 150k to spend, a 423 is not your most likely choice. The advantage you'll have of buying an Elan in the Med is that they sell for much lower over there, and you could have a very favorable resale pricing when it came time to sell it in the US, where current market prices are still quite high compared to EU. When you look at what you get in an Elan, as far as build quality and upgrades, it's still much better value than most other production boats, so it's warranted, it's just consumers don't know.

Here are the two examples we have currently:

Elan Impression 40
Elan Impression | Dunbar Yachts

Elan Impression 444
Elan Impression 444i | Dunbar Yachts

[Leyna]

Hi everyone. I am the owner of a 2005 Elan 434 Impression. We have owned the boat for 4 years now having bought her from the original owner in Cape Town. The previous owner sailed the Cape Town to Rio race and sailed her back via the roaring 40 route. My partner and me sailed her double handed from Cape Town to the Caribbean and she really treated us well. We averaged 6.7 knots on the passage with a few 200 plus mile days. The boats are well built and totally underestimated. During the passage doors and panels stayed in place unlike my experience on some French boats where you could not close doors due to excessive hull flex. Our boat is a fully loaded with cruising stuff that you really need to get your wife onboard with the cruising idea plus living onboard a boat. We normally cruise between 6 and 8 knots in the trade winds which I think is great for a overloaded boat.

[zilli]

Thank you all for your input.
Cadejos, I will dig the 444 brochure and shot it over to the email you provided. Please let me know what other boats/models are in your shortlist. I am open to other ideas.
Leyna, I believe I came across your boat currently listed in Caribbean. It looks like a beautiful example and properly outfitted for blue water.
Here is the latest from my research. I am pretty much sold (more like obsessed now ) on Elan impression 434/444, but push myself to be open to alternatives due to limited availability. The challenge is to find the one that fits our profile and I have lowered the bar multiple times.
According to my boat tracker, about 70% of all 434 & 444 inventory in the euro market is located in Croatia (mostly ex charter boats) followed by Netherlands, England and Greece. Almost all, if not all ex-charter boats are 4 cabin config, which is in no-go zone for us. I have nothing against ex-charter boats given they are properly looked after. However 4 cabins is not functional for only 2 onboard. This right there eliminates majority of available inventory. And we are left with a few privately owned yatchs priced well above market price. With that we have decided to expand our repertoire to Jeanneau 42ds and 45ds. Not my first choice but I figured its better to have a plan B. If you can think of an alternative comparable to what has been mentioned above please let me know. Our clock is ticking.

[Leyna]

Hi Zilli, what price range are you looking at? We are flexible on the price. We are full time cruisers and the only reason we sre selling is that we have an opportunity to charter but need a catamaran. Leyna is not your average boat, she has a lot of good stuff and extras if you intend to cruise with her.

[boneymss]

Hi Zilli,
Sailed couple of charter 434's and some other boats (Including Bavaria, Jeanneau, Dufour & Beneteau) during the last 8 years. Finally bought a second hand Elan 444, and I'm really pleased with my decision. Deserves all the good comments you've heard. There are 2-3 Elan 434 / 444 boats for sale in Turkey and they look like they're not in a bad condition. As you're planning to sail around Med, why not fly to here and start your journey form here? Please pm me if you need any specific info regarding our boat or the options here.

[zilli]

Hi boneymss, where are you located?
The plan is depending on where we find the boat, we would like to start either in Agean or Adriatic. Can you send me the links of the boats you are referring to in Turkey, are they in yatchworld? Most likely I am monitoring them but wanted to make sure I am not missing anything. What configuration is your 444? What made you go with 444 over 434. Other than obvious visible differences (portholes, cabinetry, wheels, swimming platform ie) what did elan upgraded/updated in 444 under the hood? Any insight you can provide is greatly appreciated
Currently I have a 434 and a 444 in my shortlist- both boats are located in Turkey
My email is kaslaner@hotmail.com if you choose to DM me?
Looking forward to hear from you

[boneymss]

I live in Istanbul. The boats I mentioned are listed in a turkish web site, please find the links below. These are the ones not listed on yachtworld as far as I can see. Both are 3 cabin layouts, something I think you're after as well. Our 444 is also a 3 cabin layout with seperate head and a shower in the main cabin. It has the bowthruster, folding prop, extra watertank, webasto, electric halyard winch, folding saloon table as extra installations. For me, the reason for going with 444 over 434 was the modern look, electrical upgrades (All led, main panel) and swimming platform. I think Elan kept most of the other stuff the same for not only 444 but also for the 45. After fixing some of the broken stuff on our boat (Unfortunately previous owner mostly raced with this boat so didn't care about maintaining the comfort elements) we did upgrade to fully electric heads and renewed the bimini/sprayhood/lazybag/dinghy/cushions etc. Now spending the summer on it sailing in the aegean, we're really happy with our preference. Have a look at the boats below and shoot me an email if you need anything else. I'm sending my email and phone number to your pm in case you need.



https://www.sahibinden.com/ilan/vasi...30218350/detay

https://www.sahibinden.com/ilan/vasi...06129918/detay

[algordonnz]

Hi there.

I find I am in a similar boat (no pun intended), looking at similar boats (initially Beneteau 40-44ft) then finding Elan 434/444s my preferred option (coincidentally with Jeanneau 42DS as my back up). I however am shopping in and around NZL and Australia. I have tried with very little success to identify the differences between the 444 and the 434. The Sail Data website actually suggests better performance from the 434. If anyone with knowledge of both like boneymss, can shed more light on advantages of one over the over I would be grateful.

[bellasailor]

Originally Posted by algordonnz

Hi there.

I find I am in a similar boat (no pun intended), looking at similar boats (initially Beneteau 40-44ft) then finding Elan 434/444s my preferred option (coincidentally with Jeanneau 42DS as my back up). I however am shopping in and around NZL and Australia. I have tried with very little success to identify the differences between the 444 and the 434. The Sail Data website actually suggests better performance from the 434. If anyone with knowledge of both like boneymss, can shed more light on advantages of one over the over I would be grateful.

Have you tried posting in the YBW forums? Lots of Brits/Europeans on there and it's a very active forum; as there are more of the Elans in Europe you might get more responses. coincidentally we are currently searching for the right 384 to buy.

[double u]

wanna start your Elan-adventure in French Polynesia, Zilli? We are going to put the 2011 E410 we sailed here from Europe onto the market soon (after cruising around the Societies some more). Rocksolid boat, very fast & responsive, heaps of room for a couple...& one of the best looking 40 footers (if I say so myself...)