Factory Status of Lagoon

[danielamartindm]

Any boats that are widely purchased by charterers on a continuing basis can't be half bad. It attests to their build quality and "holding up" under conditions of inexperienced renters, and possibly less than stellar maintenance. Lagoons aren't performance multihulls, but they are great cruisers and priced toward the lower end of the catamaran spectrum. They're blue water capable, and like most cats, they tend to sail better than we do.

[sck5]

I sailed a brand new Lagoon 50 from the factory in Bordeaux to Tenerife a few years ago. It definitely seemed to be designed to party on more than to sail. Looked like it would be pretty good for that. We were a delivery crew meeting the new owner in the Canaries (He didnt want to sail across the Bay of Biscay in January though we waited for a weather window and it turned out to be an easy sail) so we had to take care to keep the boat in pristine condition. I thought the basic structure felt solid but there were various clever fittings and gimmicks that felt like they werent going to last. For example, the shower in my cabin had a plastic surround that wouldnt have taken a direct hit by an unbalanced person in a seaway (or a drunk one at anchor). There were a few other things like that but to be honest, nothing broke during the couple of weeks we were on it. I would buy that boat if my primary goal was to anchor out and party with friends. I wouldnt buy that boat if I wanted to sail upwind or across oceans for any length of time. Other boas are better for those things.

[yeloya]

We serviced a lot of cats of every brand and model; mostly FP but also Lagoons, Catana's, Outremer even one Gunboat.


Lagoons are made as good as the others, not better not worse. After sales efficiency is another issue, some dealers in some countries are more responsive than others. I would strongly suggest that he buys the boat from a dealer who has some leverage on the factory.


Cheers


Yeloya

[WWV]

Yeloya

I'd love to hear your general take on FP, Leopard and Lagoon. Sailing capabilities, construction, ease of maintenance, etc.

We are looking at late(newer) models of each of these and would love to real word experience.

Only if you have the time ....and Thanks if you can!

WWV

[yeloya]

They are all pretty much the same targeting mainly the charter market, hence simple, easy to maintain and service. I don't see much difference in termes performance either. New Lagoons are a bit slower with the exception of L 380. (actually this an old model but still in sale)
The new L42 is much lighter and would expect her to sail better than the previous models.
For the rest, the state of yr sails and how much the boat is loaded will be the determining factors.


Cheers


Yeloya

[ozsailer]

G'day Pelagic,
I think that asking an opinion on a catamaran is almost as dangerous as asking an opinion on a anchor . We own a Lagoon 410 S2 which we love to death. Is it the perfect boat, simple answer - no - but, it serves our current needs.
I have no doubt that Leopards, Fountain Pajots, Leopards and similar built catamarans are very capable boats and suite their owners down to the ground. To me it really comes down the a couple of things. One being able to afford the boat in the first place and the bang you get for your dollar plus the obvious safety and seaworthiness of the vessel. I would not hestitate to take my boat on trans ocean journey's.
We are currently in Airlie Beach in Far North Queensland at a Lagoon get together organised by the Lagoon distributer here in Australia. I believe there are 19 or 20 boats in attendance along with a group of owners who travelled by car to the event. In all there are approximately 70 odd peopel attending including the owners and management from TMG Lagoon Australia. This is not a sales pitch event but a meeting of line minded Lagoon owners. The comraderie here amongst Lagoon owners is second to none with a information sharing session occuring yesterday.
The backup from the distributer is excellent and they are only to happy to take personal calls.
Would I look at othe catamaran brands if we were considering another boat, most certainly but we are more than happy with our present choice.


Greg H
SV Sunshine
Lagoon 410 S2
Lake Macquarie NSW

[Pelagic]

Thanks Greg!

My Summary from your comments and other Lagoon Owners who have been advising me on this Forum and privately.

Good Value for money
Great product loyalty from Owners
After Market service is very much dependant on the quality of the Dealer and his relationship with Factory... so choose wisely !
Apparently Quality of execution by factory is better if you order more customization and have a knowledgeable French Speaking representative to visit regularly to document.

To clarify, I am helping a Superyacht client/friend to find his first sailboat that he wants to enjoy in Asia, while his big boat is elsewhere.

Comfort and stability would be his priority which is why I recomended something like a Lagoon and he would be looking at the larger ones.

Luckily there is a Lagoon 70 at our yacht club so I will try and find out who the dealer is now in the Philippines and hopefully have a look.

Tragically, a friend of mine was the Beneteau /Lagoon dealer here before and was lost in a Typhoon 2 years ago, bringing his own Beneteau to Subic from HK.

Lost him and two other friends.

[Gordon]

Multihull Solutions the FP agent here in Australia also have offices and agents in the Asian region. They offer great support. Our experience having owned two FP boats, Orana and He'lia 44, and cruising in the Mediterranean to the East Coast of Australia they have always responded quickly and have always received full support from the factory re any question or fixes. They are also brokers selling all brands of second hand catamarans, also offering the same great support.

[sebastiankummer]

Lagoons are widely used in the charter market and this is the toughest test of quality. Our Lagoon 450 was used in charter for 4 years. It has a lot of scratches but the structure and all main elements seem very reliable. The dealer is for sure very important. Our Dealer Masteryachting helps us if I have questions still four years after we bought the boat. I can recommend them really very much. For me the Lagoon 450 is perfect value for money.

[captainfitzwine]

I agree with my Lagoon 450 which I had built 5+ years ago. However if you start in France in Les Sables and plan to sail it home as I did for the first year, Don't expect your warranty to work well on the move. Despite what Lagoon says about their worldwide dealers ready to help, Lagoon's protocol will waste so much time before any action takes place that, for instance, I went for 2 years before my radar ever worked. And it could have and turned out should have been replaced two weeks after I started my maiden voyage. Demand a working warranty or ask for a discount to hold as petty cash to get matters dealt with in a timely fashion.
Otherwise once out of warranty my dealer, Naos Yacht Sales, is very good with advice and getting factory parts and sharing improvement ideas. My Lagoon 450 is better now than in the beginning with improvements I have made like my 900 watt solar system.

[Pelagic]

Wow...2 years is a long time to be without a working radar
what was the problem?

[tuskie]

[QUOTE=captainfitzwine;2465564] I went for 2 years before my radar ever worked. And it could have and turned out should have been replaced two weeks after I started my maiden voyage. [j/QUOTE]

Wouldn't that have been a warranty claim against the manufacturer of the radar?

My Lagoon came with all the warranty documentation for fitted electronics from Raymarine. If something went wrong with the Rayjunk then I'd be calling their service agent direct rather than trying to get Lagoon or their agents to do that for me.

[captainfitzwine]

Not so simple when you're on the move from France to California. Raymarine has their own warranty protocol which includes sending the dome into their factory. We did have local RM service dealer troubleshoot then but couldn't just replace without authorization. Take to long to explain but point is warranties suck on the move. Cash gets action. I share this as an FYI for long maiden voyages during warranty. Overall I love my Lagoon 450 with 30,000 miles under my hulls already.

[Dockhead]

A lot of issues with new boats are from buyers who expect a new boat to be like a new car, and simply don't understand what it means to shake down and sort out a new vessel.

You will have to drill through those cases before you can get at any relevant data.

My impression from reading various reports is that some new owners have actually experienced some fairly serious problems which go beyond a normal shake down. Whether there are enough of these cases to mean that GB have a quality control problem -- I don't think anyone can say. I would pay attention to people like Yeloya who will have a uniquely large amount of experience and will have an objective, professional view.

[SecondBase]

Only after reading this thread can one truly appreciate the Amel factory and mindset.