Dating back to 1939 Mercury Marine has manufactured and sold outboard motors for various boating applications ranging from light duty 2.5 horsepower (1.9 kW) all the way up to massive 600 horsepower (450 kW) outboards. The company also manufacturers, MerCruiser, sterndrive and inboard motors with a legacy racing heritage to boot. Their history of innovation has consistently delivered quality products and made them one of only a couple of outboards you will find mounted on the best boats on the market.
Today Mercury joined the electrification movement by delivering its very first fully electric outboard motor, the Avator. This is part of a sustainable initiative that will bring more electric motors to the market by 2023. The Mercury Marine President, Chris Drees, states the goal of the company is to reduce 80% of outboard emissions by 2025.
The initial launch will begin with smaller outboards that are portable by design and allow for more remote applications…think aluminum Jon boats, tenders, RIBs that are often used to access remote waters that are otherwise difficult if not nearly impossible to reach by land.
The Avator features a swappable battery design that would allow an operator to pack additional power adding to overall run time. A simple lift of hood like panel provides easy access to the battery pack. The tiller style motor also features an integrated display conveniently directed toward the operator allowing a quick reference of remaining battery power in both a digital bar and numerical format along with a power and menu buttons accessing additional data.
It’s clear Mercury is making a commitment to the zero direct emission movement by offering a quiet and easy to operate electric outboard motor that requires minimal maintenance. The motor will be officially released at the Miami boat show where Mercury will release more specifications to include: power , battery and charging specs as well as the weight of the Avator. Stay tuned as this article will update as more details are released.