By 2023, American Mercury Marine will launch five new electric outboard models on the market. The goal is clear, Brunswick, a group that owns the Mercury brand, wants to be the market leader in both conventional and electric marine propulsion by the end of that year. This (and much more) emerged during the group’s Investor Day 2021.
After the launch of the first 600-horsepower V12 outboard, Mercury Marine continues 2021 with other very exciting news.
Mercury Marine,5 new electric outboards
About one out of every two boats in the U.S. recreational boat fleet of about 10 to 12 million is equipped with a Mercury outboard. This gives the size of the Brunswick Group engine brand. Now, however, it is time for the Next Wave. Attracting a new generation of boaters, making their boating life as easy as possible and at the same time understanding their needs.
The Brunswick Group is experiencing a moment of tremendous success. One sign over all is that despite long pandemic-related lead times, sales at the Palm Beach Boat Show, the first boat show of the season, were up 223 percent over 2019.
Brunswick wants to lower the average age of its users, and if we also add to this the fact that tomorrow’s boaters will surely be very electrically-minded, there you have it. Electrification of marine applications presents more challenges than on-road applications, but Brunswick is confident that it has what it takes to make a transformative impact on marine electrification.
Remember the Sea Ray SLX-R 400e, among the most innovative boats of 2020? This boat was the first to be equipped with the Fathom e-Power system that replaces the traditional on-board generator. Basically, the U.S. shipyard has entrusted the energy supply for the operation of on-board systems (air conditioning, lights, hot water, etc…) to a lithium-ion battery bank with a capacity of 22 kWh, whose range without recharging is 8 hours.
“We will launch five new electric outboard models,” announced Chris Drees, president of Mercury Marine, “within 2023. And we want Mercury to be the market leader in both conventional and electric marine propulsion by the end of that year.”
Boating that is not only electric, but also simplified with Advanced Systems Group. The onboard experience must become the best it can be, and Brunswick is preparing several innovations to do so. For example, boat builders are moving from providing analog control on board to providing more immersive digitally powered experiences on and off board. In addition, there is increasing adoption of lithium-ion battery technology to power both propulsion and on-board home automation systems.
By 2023, Mercury and ASG will jointly launch 5 electric propulsion products, with the first products launching in 2022. In the same time period, ASG expects to have installed 15,000 advanced battery systems to replace internal combustion engine generators.
The future is electric: four electric boats
Fathom eliminates the need for a generator and is powered by Mastervolt lithium-ion batteries, another Brunswick brand. This allows you to navigate without noise or vibration on board. Brunswick was the first boat manufacturer at last year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES), showing the Sea Ray SLX-R 400e-with the Fathom ePower generator system.
From Brunswick, in partnership with Mercury and ASG, will come four electric boats for four different segments by 2023. Four applications will focus on segments where typical use cases easily lend themselves to electric propulsion, such as low-speed cruising or short duration at higher speeds.
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