SILENT RUNNERS
Alternative-fuel outboards are gaining ground, thanks to the problems with ethanol-spiked gasoline. An innovative new range of lithium ion battery-powered electric motors from Hong Kong-based Epropulsion has just arrived in the United States. The Lagoon is a clever little motor that can be affixed to a kayak or SUP; its remote-mounted paperback-sized 300wh Li-ion battery provides up to nine hours of low-speed running. The Spirit 1.0 is equivalent to a 3hp gas motor and weighs 40lb, with a detachable 1,018wh battery accounting for half that heft. It’s claimed to produce an hour of running at full throttle, up to five hours at low speed, and to have enough torque to propel an 18ft sailboat. The biggest in the line is the Navy, available in two versions, the biggest of which is equivalent to a 9.9hp gas motor. Each can be controlled remotely or by tiller. Standalone Li-ion batteries weighing 68lb each provide the power. All the motors are IP67 waterproof.
Lagoon $799, Spirit 1.0 $1,799, Navy 3.0 from $2,599, Navy 6.0 from $3,199.
Epropulsion, epropulsion.com
Four Seas, fourseas.com
August 2018
