I've long had a fascination with electric power for boats. I can see that for many day sailors and those that do not venture far from the dock and a ready supply of shore power electric power is the way to go.
I have actually been using an Minn Kota electric outboard on the dinghy for the past few years and have been very impressed. Light to store on the mother ship I don't have to mess with gas and the quiet is a blessing. To supply the power to the motor I use a portable battery meant for jump starting cars. I can plug in into the main ships charging battery when back on board and it charges up from flat in a couple of hours ready for next use. The whole outfit, engine and battery weigh less than the 2 hp Yamaha that I used to use. In fact I use the electric outboard so much now that I gave up with the gas engine and recently sold it. I do love the quiet and so do the neighbors on adjacent boats when I have to run the dogs ashore early in the morning.
Although I have yet to try one out the Torqeedo motors look good at first glance. They have been out for while now and what sets them apart from the Minn Kota and others is that a detachable Lithium Ion battery is incorporated into the top of the motor itself. This means no cables in the boat with the engine as compact as a small gas outboard.
The 1003 model shown above has the equivalent thrust of a 3 hp gas engine the makers claim thus making it a realistic replacement for auxillary power on the back of a small day sailer, larger dinghy or RIB. Priced at $1900 it is not cheap but it does have some neat features such as a display built into the tiller handle showing the rate of discharge and remaining range based on the amount of battery juice left.
If they can get the price down a bit making the engine more attractive to buyers then I can see that I will not be the only person in the harbor zipping around in near silent motion.
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