electric outboard for TySenior

[Megunticook]

My TySenior came with a nice Yamaha F4 long shaft motor but it's served 14 seasons now in salt water. Ready for a tear-down/rebuild and there's some serious corrosion starting to happen in the aluminum cast parts on the lower unit.

Thinking about buying a new electric instead of sinking hundreds into the Yamaha.

Anybody have any experience with the electric outboards? Any recommendations?

[gonesail]

if it were me I would prefer to have an onboard (on the boat not the motor) battery bank but not all electric outboards are 12v. with your small boat you could consider a transom mounted fishing or trolling motor.

[Paul D.]

My brother loves the Torqeedo for the dinghy for his CD 36. I've used it and it is quiet, has decent range if you don't always go flat out and little maintenance. I would imagine you would want at least 6HP though, so something like the new Torqeedo Cruise 3.0 R or T model. Pricey but pretty solid and a great solution if you have the charging ability, especially if you were going to buy a new gas outboard anyway.

[Dick Kobayashi]

I am no expert on electrics, for sure. But I think the Sr. is a heavy boat for its length. I suggest that a replacement or rebuilding of the OB is the way to go IF you need/want auxiliary power for relatively long time periods and need sufficient power to move the boat under less than ideal conditions. My sense is that electrics are adequate for small periods of time during fair conditions.

I think, there is an ever stronger view that moving away from our gas and diesel powered auxiliary engines is environmentally correct in the current context. I argue that what we need is auxiliary power that does the job we need it to do, without compromise, and that this should be the prime criteria. I don't think we need to virtue signal by installing very sub optimal auxlilary engines. We are, after all, sailors.

[Brimag]

I'm all for electric but don't think I would be comfortable with a small electric outboard. . 6 horse gas for me and that's the smallest I would want. I wouldn't spend any money on that old one. Might have to bite the bullet. I have a Yamaha 6 and at times I needed all of its power to get out of it jams. Electric is still almost double the price of similar HP and I wonder what range they have. Have been on trips when we were glad to have spare gas stored . What do you do if you run out of battery at anchor.. Just a few thoughts, I don't have any experience with them. Brian

[wikakaru]

I normally sail my CD22 without any engine on the transom, but I did set my boat up to be able to use a 62-pound-thrust trolling motor. It is a far cry from the purpose-built electric outboards like Torqeedo or EPropulsion, but it was also a fraction of the cost. Perhaps my experience will be instructive for you.

My primary criteria was for something that was light enough to be easily installed on and removed from the transom, that could be stored belowdecks without worrying about explosive (or at the very least noxious) fumes, and that could get my wife back to the mooring on a daysail or to civilization on a cruise if the wind died and I was for some reason (such as injury) unable to scull. My wife can sail just fine, but she has never mastered the knack of sculling, so the trolling motor was really to make her happy rather than for my own use. Anyway, for that limited purpose, I think any of the electrics, including a trolling motor with a large enough battery bank are suitable.

Last summer I made the mistake of agreeing to meet a friend on Mount Desert Island, some 35 miles away from our mooring on Vinalhaven, on a specific date. I learned long ago never to sail to a schedule, but I ignored my own rule and did just that anyway. I allowed 3 days to get from Vinalhaven to MDI, and with the extremely light winds we had for that whole week, I needed every bit of those 3 days just to get there. I sculled or rowed for much of that 35 miles, but at one point I actually did break out the trolling motor and bolt it onto the transom. I had not contemplated this kind of use for the trolling motor when I fitted it, and I quickly found out that the battery bank I have onboard didn't have sufficient range for a trip of this duration motoring against the currents that sweep up and down the bays of coastal Maine, and the 65 watts of solar panels I have was insufficient to recharge the batteries after running the trolling motor for more than a few miles. Clearly an electric motor is the wrong choice for that type of sailing.

I think that if your need is for pushing the boat a short distance when there is no appreciable wind, wave, or current, and if that is the only way you will ever use the outboard, then electric is an acceptable choice. My trolling motor is wonderfully quiet, light weight, and can be stowed below. However, if you need an engine to push you against anything other than calm conditions, and you need to go any more than a few miles, gasoline is really your best option.

Be honest about what your needs are and the answer should be easy to find.

Smooth sailing,

Jim

[Megunticook]

Thanks for the replies everyone.

Further research turned up some pretty robust electric outboards that in theory should work great for an auxiliary propulsion, including several hours of cruising with the motor on a fully charged battery. Unfortunately I was looking at about $4-5K investment and didn't have the spare discretionary funds to spend right now on the boat. So interim measure was a barely used 2022 Tohatsu 4hp 4-stroke I picked up for $800. Only had 1 cruise so far with that but seems to work well, although just barely fits in the motor well unlike the Yamaha which has a little wiggle room.

FYI I think higher-end electric outboards have gotten considerably more practical than the casual impressions expressed here. I'm convinced this is just a better way to go than burning gasoline. That's not virtue-signalling, as someone suggested--it's just a superior technology. Much quieter, no stink, less maintenance, no hard starting or fuel system hassles, no explosive liquids on board the boat, etc. If money were no object I would never buy another petroleum-powered motor again.

[Paul D.]

I agree with your sentiments. My brother says he can charge his Torqueedo Cruise fully at a speed that works for his cruising style with his solar array which I believe works out to about 240w.

Once they get the range increased on these motor/battery sets I would also think them superior to combustion motors for most recreational sailors. Let's not forget all the maintenance and winterizing needs of gas outboards. I actually had an outboard for free and chose to stay with oars for the sheer simplicity. Plus I do like rowing and have a custom hard shell nesting dinghy based on the Dave Gerr Nester, so it rows rather well. But I digress.

https://www.gerrmarine.com/Articles/nesterYachting.pdf