The Leopard 40 is the build-quality benchmark among 40-foot charter-return catamarans. Robertson and Caine has been building Leopards out of Cape Town since 1995, and the 40 ran from 2014 through 2017 as the four-cabin charter workhorse before the Leopard 42 took over the slot. It sits in our charter-return catamaran guide because the hardware grade, the bridgedeck clearance, and the depreciation curve all line up as the strongest in the segment for owners who plan to keep the boat ten-plus years.

What is the Leopard 40?

The 40 is a 39-foot 4-inch fiberglass cruising catamaran, 22 feet 4 inches across the beam, drawing 4 feet 7 inches, with twin Yanmar 3JH5 45-horsepower diesels. The construction is hand-laid fiberglass with closed-cell foam coring through the structural laminates, vinylester resin in the outer skin to slow blistering, and a bonded structural grid that takes the rig loads through the bridgedeck. The mast is a deck-stepped aluminum section, the boom is set up for single-line reefing, and the standing rigging is the same 15-year service-life spec as the rest of the production cruising-cat segment.

Two layouts dominate the supply. The four-cabin charter version is what came out of the Moorings and Sunsail fleets and accounts for roughly four in five used listings. Two double cabins in each hull, each with its own head and shower compartment, with the saloon and galley up on the bridgedeck. The owner version replaces one of the cabins per hull with a larger head and a workshop or office space, and it commands a premium of 8 to 12 percent at the same age.

The bridgedeck clearance is the part owners point at first. Leopard sets the nacelle higher above the waterline than a Lagoon 400 of the same year, and on a passage with wind on the beam and short chop you notice it within an hour. I crossed from St Maarten to St Barths on a 2016 ex-Moorings Leopard 40 one February afternoon, three-foot beam chop the whole way, and the saloon was quiet enough to hold a conversation without raising voices. The same passage on a Lagoon 400 the previous week had us moving forward to escape the slap. That is the spec the brand sells.

Who is it good for?

Bluewater cruising couples who plan to keep the boat ten-plus years and care about how it is put together are the core buyer. The hardware grade on the Leopard, the chain plates, the deck fittings, the winches, the rigging hardware, is a tier above Lagoon at charter spec, and over a decade of saltwater service the difference shows up in fewer corrosion issues at the bonded fittings. Owners stepping out of one Leopard into another are a quiet but real segment of the used market, which is itself the strongest signal about the build.

Charter-return buyers running the boat as a liveaboard for the first three to five years are the second profile. The charter-return discount on a Leopard is 28 to 32 percent under owner-spec at the same age, slightly less of a discount than on a Fountaine Pajot because the underlying build holds value better. The math still works for first-time catamaran owners getting into the segment, and the boat carries that value through a private-ownership cycle in a way that lighter-built cats do not.

Four-cabin families who value bridgedeck clearance and saloon visibility round out the buyer profile. Two couples plus four kids fits the boat without anyone sleeping on a saloon convertible, and the wraparound forward windows give the saloon the open, on-the-water feel that owners describe as the reason they stopped shopping after the first Leopard walkthrough.

Who is it not good for?

Buyers looking for the cheapest entry into a 40-foot cat should walk to the Lagoon 400. The Leopard premium at the dealer is 5 to 10 percent at the same age and trim, and for a first-time catamaran owner whose budget is the binding constraint, the Lagoon math is the simpler buy.

Owners far from a Robertson and Caine service center should think carefully too. The brand has dense coverage in the Caribbean, Annapolis, Fort Lauderdale, and Cape Town, and reasonable presence in the Mediterranean, but in the Pacific Northwest, the Sea of Cortez, the Pacific Islands, and the Great Lakes you are paying freight and waiting a few extra days on most dealer-supplied parts. Lagoon's global network is wider in those regions and the parts logistics are simpler.

Anyone whose priority is the absolute most volume in a 40-foot cat also belongs elsewhere. The Leopard trades some saloon volume for the better sail shape and the higher bridgedeck, and a buyer who prioritizes interior space over upwind ability will find the Lagoon 400 S2 the more comfortable boat at the dock.

Pricing

The Leopard 40 is discontinued new. Production ran 2014 through 2017, after which Robertson and Caine replaced it with the Leopard 42 on a longer hull. The 2026 used market for charter-return Leopard 40s spans roughly $310,000 to $425,000 depending on year, engine hours, rigging age, refit history, and whether the boat is sitting in a charter base or a private slip.

A 2014 or early 2015 hull with charter-spec systems, original sails, twin Yanmars near 5,500 hours, and standing rigging at or near end of life lands in the lower band, $310,000 to $345,000. A 2016 or 2017 boat with one refit cycle behind it, rigging with five-plus years of service life left, sails replaced inside the last three years, and engines at 3,500 to 4,500 hours sits closer to $385,000 to $425,000. Owner-version hulls run 8 to 12 percent above charter-spec at the same age. The depreciation curve flattens after year ten on these boats, with five-year depreciation in the 22 to 27 percent range on clean private-ownership hulls. That is the best curve in the charter-return cat segment.

What works

  • Robertson and Caine build culture is a step above Lagoon at charter spec, the hardware grade reflects it
  • Closed-cell foam coring through the structural laminates reduces moisture-intrusion risk compared with older PVC foam
  • Bridgedeck clearance is meaningfully higher than the Lagoon 400, real difference at anchor and on passage
  • Sails measurably better upwind than the Lagoon 400, the narrower hulls do real work with the wind forward of the beam
  • Wraparound forward saloon windows give segment-best visibility from the inside helm or the galley
  • Resale curve is the best in the segment, 22 to 27 percent depreciation over five years on clean hulls
  • Twin Yanmar 3JH5 45 hp diesels are a known platform with global parts support
  • Saloon visibility, helm sightlines, and bridgedeck volume all add up to a boat that feels more finished than its price tier suggests

What doesn't

  • 5 to 10 percent purchase premium over an equivalent Lagoon 400 charter-return at the same age and trim
  • Smaller used-market inventory than the Lagoon 400, finding a specific year and layout takes patience
  • Robertson and Caine parts inventory is regional outside the Caribbean and Annapolis, slower in the Pacific
  • Charter-spec interiors show wear in the cabins faster than the saloon, plan a refit budget for cushions and headliner
  • Saloon volume is slightly tighter than a Lagoon 400, the upwind ability comes from narrower hulls
  • Original sail wardrobe on most charter-return boats is at end of life, expect to replace main and jib in the first two years
  • Standing rigging service life is 15 years and the 2014 and 2015 boats are inside that window now

Year-by-year notes

Production ran from 2014 through 2017 with the same hull, the same rig, and the same Yanmar 3JH5 engine package across the run. The interior trim was refined slightly in 2016 with revised headliner material and a slightly updated galley layout that moved the freezer and improved the freezer-fridge insulation. The forward windows and bridgedeck clearance are unchanged across the run.

There is no single defect cutover year on the Leopard 40. The recurring items in what owners report are saloon-window seal failures on boats that lived under tropical sun without a Bimini, original Raymarine chartplotters that are long out of date and most boats have had retrofitted, standing rigging at or near end of service life on the 2014 and 2015 hulls, and the occasional saildrive seal leak that wants attention on engines near 4,500 hours. None of these are surprises for a 2014-to-2017 boat, but they should be priced into any offer.

Cost of ownership

A Leopard 40 lived-aboard in the Caribbean or the Mediterranean costs roughly $30,000 to $44,000 a year all-in, including insurance, marina or mooring fees, fuel, engine and genset service, sail and rigging amortization, and an annual haul-out. The Yanmar 3JH5 diesels want service every 250 hours, parts and dealer labor land around $500 to $800 per engine for a routine service, and the 1,000-hour service with valve clearance and injector check steps the bill up. Bottom paint is a 12-to-18-month line in the tropics, $1,800 to $2,800 in materials per haul-out, plus labor.

Standing rigging replacement at year 15 from launch is the line item buyers most often underestimate. A full re-rig on the Leopard 40 runs $16,000 to $24,000 depending on yard and country. Sails are a five-to-eight-year cycle for the main and jib, and a Code 0 replacement on a furler is its own $4,000 to $7,000 ticket. The saildrive seal service at every haul-out is an additional $400 to $700 per engine.

A five-year hold on a 2026 used Leopard 40 bought at $385,000, kept in the BVI or Antigua, sailed two to three months a year with some charter income offsetting costs, ends at roughly $145,000 to $215,000 of net ownership cost over the hold. The resale at year five lands inside 90 percent of the buy on a clean boat with current rigging and sails.

Best year and trim to buy

A 2015 or 2016 ex-Moorings or ex-Sunsail Leopard 40 with twin Yanmar 3JH5 diesels under 5,000 hours, standing rigging inside its 15-year service window, sails replaced inside the last three years, and a clean charter-decommissioning survey is the right buy in 2026. The four-cabin charter layout is the more common find, the owner version commands a premium and waits longer between listings.

Five things to verify pre-purchase. First, the structural grid bonding to the bridgedeck shows no separation or moisture at the inspection ports. Second, the saloon windows show no seal failure or fogging between panes. Third, the Yanmars have current 1,000-hour valve clearance and injector service documentation. Fourth, the standing rigging has at least three years of service life left, or you have a re-rig priced into the offer. Fifth, the saildrive seals were serviced at the last haul-out and the saildrive oil is clean.

Alternatives

The closest French cross-shop is the Fountaine Pajot Lipari 41, which reads as more finished in the saloon at slightly less money and a thinner dealer network outside the Caribbean and Mediterranean. The volume alternative is the Lagoon 400 S2, with more saloon volume and a wider global service network, at the cost of a step down on hardware grade and upwind ability. For owners thinking about going slightly larger to gain bridgedeck volume, the Leopard 42 is the step up in the same range at materially higher money.