The unsinkable boat: is it a dream, an unattainable concept, or can it be reality? The people at Vision Marine, a Canadian shipyard that at the Miami Boat Show unveiled Phantom, a 5-meter electric day boat that not only holds the promise of being unsinkable, but also recyclable (up to 9 times) and powered by an electric motor, thus sustainable, wondered.
Where Phantom was born
The Canadian-based company has long been involved in research for electric boating with projects that have also had major partnerships such as the Beneteau Group, which decided to install Vision Marine’s 180-hp electric outboard on some of its boats. After receiving some investment-even private investment-the brand has presented several boats over the years, all of which are day boats united by the use of sustainable raw materials and electric motorization. With Phantom, Vision Marine has decided to take a decisive step forward.
What the unsinkable boat looks like
The production process behind the making of Phantom is rotomolding. This technique is used to produce plastic objects, which tend to be hollow, by rotating a heated mold. It is a process used to produce a variety of items, from street furniture to furniture to toys and buoys.
In boating, rotational molding is also a well-known process, used mainly for canoes, belly boays, paddleboats, and small fishing or rescue boats. This is a popular technique because it greatly lowers costs and production time, produces little waste, lightweight objects, and allows the use of simple manufacturing molds. Just think that Vision Marine claims to be able to produce up to 300 hulls per year with this technique to date, saving more than 70 percent compared to using fiberglass, and in time it could produce up to 1,500 hulls per year. In addition, this hull solves the problem-muchor known to those who have a fiberglass boat-of end-of-life disposal. Phantom is in fact made of 100% recyclable polyethylene and up to 9 times recyclable.
Specifically, Phantom is a 16’6” (about 5 meters) long and 6’9 (about 2 meters) wide boat with a weight of just 800 pounds (just over 360 kg). Because of the characteristics with which it is manufactured-using rotomolded polyethylene-it is a very durable boat, recyclable at the end of its life and (according to Vision Marine) unsinkable.
Vision Marine Phantom – Specifications
The boat is a day boat with an extremely basic design, with seating to accommodate up to ten people all round, a locker under the aft seat, and the wheelhouse with a seat placed on the starboard side. It is all made of the same material-so it is all the same color, blue, red, orange, gray, or white-except for accessory parts such as bollards, rudder, and locker hinges. The hull is specially designed to be powered by electric propulsion and is also designed to never receive maintenance for either the hull or the motor, in addition to benefiting from a lifetime warranty from the manufacturer. To get it, simply
preorder it on the Vision Marine shipyard’s website
. Several options are available in the portal:
- hull only: $14,995
- hull and standard 50-hp electric outboard motor (5-hour range) : $24,995
- Hull and electric motor with 50-hp range extender (10-hour range): $29,995
Vision Marine Phantom – Data Sheet
| Length Over All (LOA) | 5,05 m |
| Baglio Massimo (B.max) | 2,10 m |
| Dive | 0,203 m |
| Displacement | 362 kg |
| Motorization | electric up to 50 hp |
| Autonomy standard version | 5 hours |
| Autonomy with range extender | 10 hours |
| Passengers | 1o |
| Sleeping places | 4 (+2 Optional) |
| Services | 2 |
| Yard / Contacts | www.visionelectricboats.com |
