In addition to sailboats, the French shipyard Jeanneau builds a considerable range of motorboats for outboard and inboard engines, which are offered as Cap Camarat, Merry Fisher, Leader, NC and Velasco. The company is also active in the premium segment. Here, the product of desire bears the brand name Prestige. The task now was to build a bridge between "normal" and "luxury" boats.
With the Leader 46, Jeanneau wants to reach customers who are looking for boats in the upper category and are also interested in a Prestige. Without bearing the name, it is intended to be a small Prestige, a Prestige Express Cruiser, so to speak, and facilitate entry into the upper class. For this reason, the bow and owner's cabins are built to almost the same level of comfort and the boat is equipped with two proper bathrooms including a toilet.
Instead of the dinette in the living area, the 46 can also be ordered with a third cabin with two bunk beds. In this case, it makes sense to order the otherwise open cockpit under the hardtop with a lockable rear glass front in order to use the space as a saloon. This glass front consists of a large hinged window and door and can be opened so that the space under the hardtop and the cockpit area outside form a single unit. If you also open the large sliding roof, the 46 almost becomes an open-air saloon.
A divan is positioned under the roof on the port side at the front, which also serves as a seat for the co-driver. Further aft is the U-shaped bench seat with table and cockpit bar. In the uncovered part of the cockpit, there is a double bench seat with table that can be converted into an attractive sun lounger. The highlight is the open-air grill under the rear folding bench seat, which can be operated from the platform.
In both versions, the actual galley remains below in the living area. Whether on or below deck: In terms of space, the choice of materials and the way they are used, the Leader 46 is certainly impressive, especially with the option of a third cabin and the glazed cockpit. It is clear that Jeanneau has once again taken a good step forward and more than lives up to the standards it has set itself. The topic of storage space is not neglected anywhere either - a successful bridge.
Jeanneau operates globally, which is why the Leader 46 is offered with an identical hull and diesel engines and with different drive systems from Volvo Penta. Depending on the continent or region, the 46 is available either with two IPS pod drives with 435 hp each or with a twin pack of 370 hp Duoprop Z drives - an absolute novelty.
Both models have the same layout, including the engine compartment. Access and entry aids are identical. The only difference is that the IPS version has an almost completely full engine compartment, while the Z-drive version has a half-full engine compartment. As this has a greater or lesser impact on all inspection and service options, the shipyard has taken precautions: if necessary, the floors of the tender garages above the engine compartments can be unscrewed. Our safety requirements are largely met; however, the fuel pre-filters on the test boats are not optimally positioned and the water alarm sensors are missing.
We have driven both motorisations on the Mediterranean off Cannes in France - even in rough water with waves up to around 1.5 metres high in wind force 6 and more. Both models, whether with IPS or Z-drive, performed well. It is normal for splash water to occur under such conditions when driving against wind and waves; the windscreen wipers have no problems with this. While we adjust the speed of both boats when travelling against the waves, we can iron over almost everything with the waves. Overall, you have a very good feeling in rough water and the ride comfort doesn't suffer too much.
Both boats do not trim too much during the transition from displacement to planing speed and both start to plane from around 2000 rpm, the IPS from 11.8 knots and the Duoprop from 10.8 knots. With the IPS drives, we measured a maximum speed of 34 knots. For the Leader 46 with sterndrives, we were forced to use the shipyard's figure of 30.6 knots because we had to carry out the test run on much rougher water than the first boat. While the IPS measurement data in fast planing speed at 2800 rpm gives a theoretical range of 175 nm plus 15 % reserve, the manufacturer specifies a maximum range of around 170 nm plus reserve for the duoprop version at 3000 rpm.
The bottom line is that the boats do not differ significantly in terms of fuel consumption and range, nor do they fulfil our range requirements when gliding with identical tank capacities. During the extreme manoeuvres at top speed, the test boats also showed almost identical behaviour, always safe and with roughly the same radii.
While the IPS version has a joystick as standard, this should be purchased as an option for the duoprop drives. Both of our test boats are equipped with joysticks and a bow thruster. This makes mooring and casting off manoeuvres easy despite the wind. You can get out on the water with the standard version of both models; if you want even more comfort, you can customise the boat to suit your needs from the extensive list of accessories.
Conclusion
Regardless of whether the Leader 46 is equipped with IPS or Z drives
the difference is marginal apart from the top speed. Of course, the choice of drive is also a question of price, but in terms of workmanship
and handling characteristics, both versions are a good choice. However, if you opt for the Z-drive, you should also order the joysticks, as they make manoeuvring more than just easier.
Data sheet: Jeanneau Leader 46
Shipyard: Jeanneau
Type designation: Jeanneau Leader 46
CE category: B - Outside coastal waters
Material of hull and deck: Plastic
Length: 14,30 m
Width: 4,10 m
Displacement: 10,60 t
Price: 446.607,00 €
