The Contessa 32 is one of the most admired yacht designs ever mass produced. Designed by David Sadler and built by Jeremy Rogers the design has been in production from its inception in 1970 until the current day. Having proved itself in the most arduous conditions during the infamous 1979 Fastnet with a Contessa 32 being the smallest boat to complete the race. Examples of the design can be found cruising in the four corners of the world, drawing admiring glances where ever they go.
With her current owner for the last two decades the Contessa 32 BLUEBELL has predominantly been used for single handed cruising around the coast and islands of Scotland’s west coast. Now offered for sale as her owner looks to ‘swallow the anchor’ she is offered for sale with a comprehensive inventory including:
Beta Marine B20, 20hp diesel engine
Darglow, bronze folding propellor
Monitor Windvane Self-Steering gear
Simrad tiller pilot
Raymarine i60 navigation instruments
Raymarine Axiom7 chart plotter
Furuno 1623 radar
Navman 7100VHF VHF radio
Icom MA-500TR Class B AIS Transponder
Eberspacher diesel fired, blown air heating system.
Harken 40, two-speed, self-tailing primary winches
Electric anchor windlass
3D lightweight inflatable dinghy with oars, pump and seat
Now wintering ashore at Creran Marine, near Oban the Contessa 32 BLUEBELL is available for immediate viewing by prior appointment.
CONSTRUCTION
Hull Construction:
Single piece GRP moulded hull.
Hand consolidated, traditional heavy weight monolithic moulding
GRP formed structural members internally
Plywood bulkheads and furniture bases, glassed to hull
Topsides finished in white gelcoat
Hull finished below the waterline with blue Antifouling
Deck & Superstructure Construction:
Single-piece GRP moulding incorporating coachroof and self-draining cockpit.
Hand-consolidated GRP moulding.
Coachroof finished in white gelcoat
Moulded non-slip texture to finish side decks, and coachroof top
Laid teak panels to finish cockpit seating
Keel & Rudder:
Long fin keel
Encapsulated lead ballast.
Skeg hung rudder.
MACHINERY
Engine:
Beta Marine B20 diesel engine
20hp
3 cylinder, naturally aspirated, indirectly cooled.
Mechanical reversing gearbox
Single lever Morse control
Maintenance & Performance:
Engine serviced and winterised autumn 2025
Cruising speed under engine 5kts
Propulsion & Steering:
Stainless steel prop shaft
Volvo Penta type dripless shaft seal
Darglow, bronze folding propellor
Laminated hardwood tiller
Autopilot:
Simrad tiller pilot
Windvane Self-Steering:
Monitor Windvane Self-Steering gear
Stainless steel construction
Transom-mounted
ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS
Voltage systems:
12VDC onboard power system
Battery Banks:
Domestic Battery Bank – 2x 12VDC, 110Ah AGM
Engine Battery Bank – 1x 12VDC, 60Ah, lead acid
Alternator:
Single engine driven, 14VDC alternator
55amp
Battery Monitoring:
Matrix DC Meter at switch panel
Voltmeter and Ammeter on switch panel
General:
Blue Sea Battery Link automatic charging relay
12vDC charging socket at switch panel
PLUMBING
Fresh Water:
Pressurised hot and cold water system
Mixer tap in galley
Mixer tap in head with head extending out for use as shower head
Hot water provided from calorifier, heated by engine cooling water or 230VAC immersion heater
Bilge Pumps:
Manual Bilge Pump
Gas System:
Self-draining cockpit locker
TANKAGE
Fuel:
Single diesel tank
Approximate capacity 40ltrs
Fresh Water:
Twin water tanks
GRP construction
Approximate capacity 60ltrs
NAVIGATION & COMMUNICATION EQUIPMENT
On Deck:
Depth – Raymarine i60
Speed/Log – Raymarine i60
Wind - Raymarine i60
GPS – NASA Clipper
Compass – 2x Ritchie bulkhead mounted compasses
Below Deck:
Plotter – Raymarine Axiom7 MFD
Radar – Furuno 1623 with mast mounted radar scanner
Communications Equipment:
VHF – Navman 7100VHF
AIS – Icom MA-500TR Class B AIS Transponder
Navtex – McMurdo ICS NAV6
DOMESTIC EQUIPMENT
Galley:
Galley Stove – stainless steel gas cooker, two burner, grill and oven, gimbal mounted with pan clamps
Stainless steel sink with hand pump to drain waste water overboard
Coolbox locker
Heads:
Toilet – Jabsco manual marine toilet
Wash hand basin
Mixer tap with head extending for use as shower
Heating:
Eberspacher diesel fired, blown air heating system.
Thermostatic cabin controller
Outlet in saloon
Lighting:
Overhead lighting throughout interior
Chart table working light
Entertainment:
Sony CD/Radio head unit
Speakers in saloon and cockpit
ACCOMMODATION
Summary of Accommodation:
6 berths over 2 cabins
Double cabin forward
Heads
Saloon
Galley
Nav station
Quarter berth
Accommodation Finish:
Traditional style joinery of oak veneered plywood with solid oak trims.
Synthetic teak sole covering, to look like teak planking.
Moulded GRP headlining with vinyl covered finishing panels in forward cabin
GRP moulded heads compartment
Oatmeal woven upholstery
Description of Accommodation from Forward:
Forward Cabin:
V-berth in the traditional layout with central in-fill section creating a double V bunk when required.
Carpet lined hull sides outboard of berth
Shelves running the length of the bunks outboard
Overhead storage locker above bunk forward
Bin lockers beneath the bunks.
Heads:
Spanning the full width of the boat forward of saloon.
Walk through heads compartment providing access to forepeak.
Manual Jabsco marine toilet outboard to port with moulded wash hand basin aft outboard
Vanity unit outboard.
Full-depth hanging locker outboard to starboard.
Sliding door between heads and saloon
Saloon:
Drop leaf table mounted slightly offset to port
U-shaped settee to port
Bench type settee to starboard
Table drops down to allow use of the port side saloon settee berth as a double berth
Starboard saloon berth converting to a full-length single berth
Lockers outboard of settee back rests forward and after with bookshelf centrally
Additional storage lockers behind settee back rests outboard
Galley:
To port of the companionway
Gas cooker, two burner, grill and oven, gimbal mounted outboard
GRP moulded sink unit with manually pumped cold water faucet inboard forward.
GRP moulded coolbox type locker below worktop outboard of sink forward.
Under worktop, top loading fridge locker beneath aft section of worktop.
Selection of storage lockers outboard of and below worktop
Nav Station / ¼ Berth:
Forward facing navigators seat on forward end of quarter berth.
Forward-looking chart table with storage for charts within table.
Stroage drawers and locker beneath table, forward
AIS and Navtex displays mounted outboard of chart table, radar and plotter mounted forward of chart table
Ships switch panel outboard.
Sizable quarter berth extends under the starboard cockpit seating.
DECK EQUIPMENT
Rig:
Keel stepped, single spreader, masthead sloop rig
Standing rigging of 1x19 stainless steel wire
Selden 200s roller reefing system
Slab reefing mainsail
Removable inner forestay, #2 jib sets on stay
Mechanical backstay adjuster.
Alloy Spinnaker pole.
Clutches port and starboard side of companionway for lines lead aft
Harken mainsheet system
Winches:
Primary Winches – 2x Harken 40, two-speed, self-tailing
Secondary – 2x Maxwell, self-tailing, two-speed
Cockpit Halyard Winches – 2x Maxwell 28, self-tailing, two-speed winches
Mast Mounted Reefing Winch – 1x Lewmar 6, single-speed
Sails:
Mainsail – White dacron, slab reefing, 3 full reefs
Genoa – White dacron with blue UV strip, roller reefing
#2 Jib – White dacron, hank-on
Storm Jib
Cruising Chute
Canvas Work:
Mainsail Cover
Sprayhood – on stainless steel frame with stainless steel grabrail aft of hood
Cockpit Tent
Anchoring & Mooring:
Bower Anchor – CQR anchor on chain rode
Kedge Anchor – Fortress lightweight alloy anchor
Anchor Windlass – Simpson Lawrence low profile electric windlass
Mooring Warps – Selection
Fenders – Selection
Tender:
Inflatable Dinghy – 3D lightweight inflatable dinghy with oars, pump and seat
General:
Stainless steel pulpit and pushpit rails.
Deck mounted stainless steel stanchions supporting stainless steel guardwires.
Double stemhead roller.
Alloy mooring cleats forward and aft.
Panama style fairleads forward.
Moulded toerail running the length of the deck outboard.
Solid teak capping rail.
Below deck anchor locker forward
Manual windlass mounted on foredeck immediately aft of anchor locker
Solid teak grabrails running the length of the coachroof outboard.
Stainless steel cradle for liferaft secured to coachroof immediately aft of mast
High moulded coamings protecting cockpit.
Primary and spinnaker winches mounted on coamings.
Cave lockers within cockpit coamings.
Deep, self-draining cockpit with bench seating around all edges.
Teak grating on cockpit sole.
Cockpit lockers under seating to port and aft.
Outboard storage bracket mounted to port on aft rail
SAFTEY EQUIPMENT:
General note on safety equipment: Any safety equipment such as liferafts, Epirbs, fire extinguishers and flares etc. are usually personal to the current owner(s) and if being left on-board as part of the sale of a used vessel may require routine servicing, replacement, or changing to meet a new owners specific needs.
Navigation Lights:
Masthead Tri-colour and Anchor light
Steaming light
Low-level navigation lights
Life saving:
Liferaft – 6 person cannister raft, stows on stainless steel deck cradle
EPIRB
Horseshoe Lifebuoy with light x2
Danbuoy
MOB rescue ladder
DISCLAIMER
In this case we are acting as brokers only.
The Owner is not selling in the course of a business. whilst every care has been taken in their preparation , the correctness of these particulars is not guaranteed. The Purchaser is strongly advised to check the particulars and where appropriate at their expense to employ a qualified Marine Surveyor to carry out a survey and/or to have an engine trial conducted which if conducted by us shall not imply any liability for such engine on our part.
This vessel is offered subject to prior sale, price change, or withdrawal without notice.
Unless otherwise stated on the published sales specification the following presumptions are made:
Shaft seal or sail drive diaphragms are more than 5 years old.
Fuel, gas hoses and gas regulators are more than 5 years old.
The vessel doesn’t currently have a GasSafe certificate issued within the last 5 years.
Standing rigging and sails are more than 10 years old.