48V-01×0 Electric outboard

The motorzoo 48V-01×0 electric outboard is a budget model electric outboard trolling motor in the 1.0 kilowatt (1.3hp) power range.

The 48V-01×0 is the intermediate version of the motorzoo budget range of outboards, with the following specifications:

• Shaft. Long shaft configuration to suit use on dinghy tender or as auxilliary motor on small sailcraft.
• Power. Rating of 1kW (approx. equivalent to 1.3hp), drawing a maximum 50 Amps at 48 Volts.
• Propeller. Diameter of 18cm (7 inch), and speed of 3000 RPM.
• Thrust. Suitable for craft 2.3m to 2.7m in length. See guide to size the motor for your boat
• Weight. Net 15kg (no battery).
• Motor. Brushless motor, with power display. 3 speed levels (L-M-H).
• Controls. Tiller throttle, with cruise function.

The motorzoo 48V-01×0 electric outboard is a budget trolling motor with the additional power afforded by a 48V motor.

It features an easy, simple design with the electric motor directly connected to the vertical drive shaft, which is geared to the propellor at the bottom :

• Light weight construction. No heavy chassis like conventional petrol motors.  Small size electric motor.
• Electronics protected from elements. The motor itself sits at the top of the drive shaft elevated as high as possible from the water.
• long shaft design. The long shaft design suits small dinghies, and/or fixture to external brackets on small sail craft
• Air cooled. Electric motors exhibit only about 25% power loss as heat.
  Because the motor unit is low power, it is adequately cooled by the air around it.

It can be used on a dinghy in shallow waters, or on a bracket attached high to the transom of a yacht up to 5 meters, as an auxilliary motor

Overall, the design approach to the 48V-01×0 electric outboard has been to produce a lightweight motor that can be driven by 48 Volt batteries

This allows for the same power delivery to the motor, at a quarter of the current load required from a 12 Volt battery.

Example Bundle

Item	SKU	Description	Price	Qty	Net
	OME-010-48	48V-01x0 1.0kW Electric outboard	$896.50	1	$896.50
	CMA-100-A1	Power Cable 1m Ext. SB50 to SB50	$44.00	1	$44.00
	Subtotal Motor And Cables				$940.50
	CMA-050-B3	Parallel Power Cable SB050 to 3xSB120	$165.00	1	$165.00
	CMB-050-M8	Battery Cable M8 to SB120 Amp	$68.75	1	$68.75
	BOA-030-B1	48V-030 30 Ah LiFePO4 Battery	$1,446.50	1	$1,446.50
	Subtotal Battery And Cables				$1,680.25
	Total Bundle				$2,387.00

There are two types of electric outboard motors. That is, trolling motors, and performance motors.

• Trolling motors. These will produce limited thrust because of their limited power and propeller configurations.
• Performance motors. Will draw more current and therefore produce more power, and can support larger propellors with a greater pitch, to produce more thrust.

The 48V-01×0 is expected toto drive a dinghy of up to 3 meters in length, with a total weight of up to say 200kg, to a speed of up to 4 knots.

But not much faster. Larger craft, up to 15 meters, with greater weights, up to 4,000kg, will require our performance outboard range.

The maximum speed achievable will depend on factors such as:
watercraft displacement; waterline length; motor speed; propeller diameter and pitch, and; other factors.

Electric outboard motors are very different to petrol outboard motors, on a number of levels:

Electric outboards maintain a higher torque throughout the RPM range, and will have a higher peak torque for a given power output.

Electric outboards operate at about 80% efficiency, with about 20% being lost as heat.

With petrol outboards, only about 25% of the energy converts to propulsion, with about 75% lost as heat.

Electric outboards have no noxious emissions, whereas small petrol motors generate lots of noxious emissions.

These emissions include unburnt hydrocarbons, SO₂, and NO_x. Not Just CO₂.

This is why the sale of two-stroke motors have been banned in Australia.

Electric outboard motors operate at much lower noise levels than petrol motors, especially when the motor unit is immersed underwater.

Electric outboard motors have very few moving parts, whereas small petrol engines, especially four-stroke ones, have an excessive number of parts, for their small size.

Larger petrol engines (of 50hp or more) have the advantage of delivering the power required to get watercraft planing at high speeds for long periods.

The power characteristics of electric outboard motors are very different to those of shaft driven petrol outboard.

As mentioned above, the torque/RPM profile is different to start with.

And it has been found that the typical chassis seen with petrol outboards is not very suitable for conversion to electric motor use.

The traditional chassis was found to vibrate excessively when electric motors are fitted, and so a new design approach was required.

The holistic design approach of the 48V-01×0 electric outboard has allowed the introduction of performance enhancing features as mentioned above.

And it has also allowed the removal of certain features that contribute little or nothing to the motor performance.

The motorzoo 48V-01×0 electric outboard is the smallest of our budget range of electric outboard motors:

• The 48V-01×0 has a power rating of 1.0 kilowatts.
• The motor draws a peak current of 30 Amps, and therefore requires a battery of sufficient size to meet these requirements.
• This is why uses a 48V (48 Volt) Lithium-Iron-Phosphate (LiFePO₄) power supply.
• A minimum of 1 x 30 Amp Hour LiFePO₄ battery is required to deliver the rated power for this motor.

It is important that the battery power supply is able to deliver the peak current of the electric motor that it powers. Otherwise there could be damage to the battery management system.

• A 30 Amp hour (48v30Ah) LifePO₄ Battery will typically be able to deliver a peak current of 40 Amps.
• Therefore, a minimum of one 48v30Ah battery would be required for the 48V-01×0 motor.
• The single 30Ah battery will deliver peak current of 40A for about 45 minutes
• (Note that this represents the minimum operating time, as it assumes full throttle for the whole time.)

At motorzoo we are obsessed with operating safety. This is why we prefer LiFePo batteries over ternary Lithium-Ion (Li-Ion) mBatteries:

• LiFePo batteries are much safer to use than Li-Ion batteries, especially in an aquatic environment.
• We also prefer connections and cables with the highest water resistance rating (IP67).