The diesel outboard you may not have heard about
A British company is currently running prototypes of its 50hp diesel outboard that brings a new competitor to this section of the outboard market writes Dag Pike.
At 50hp this new diesel outboard from Amaroq Ltd. competes directly with the DTorque 50hp diesel outboard that is offered by Yanmar which is based on the twin cylinder, twin crankshaft Neander unit. The Amaroq unit is based around a 3 cylinder diesel engine of 700cc that has been developed using the company’s patented technology. This is a two stroke diesel using a common rail fuel injection system and the engine produces full power at the very high speed of 5500rpm, making is one of the highest speed diesel engines on the market.
This high speed is comparable to many petrol engined outboard motors and this has enabled Amaroq to use an existing drive leg for the outboard rather than having to develop a special unit to handle the higher 4 stroke diesel torque. The drive leg used is from the well-proven Tohatsu 50hp two-stroke outboard.
The unit meets the emission standards of the American EPA Tier 3 requirements and the IMO Tier 2 standards as well as conforming to the RCD requirements with approvals in the pipeline. The outboard is available with three leg lengths and with either remote or tiller steering. With a weight of 79kgs the outboard is claimed to be man portable.
The market for diesel outboards is becoming more competitive with larger sizes of diesel outboard up to 300hp being produced by Cox Powertrain and by the Swedish company OXE while Yanmar is the key competitor is smaller sizes. This new outboard will be available for delivery next year with the unit currently undergoing final testing and evaluation. The simplicity of the two-stroke engine should enable this outboard to be marketed with attractive pricing that could bring the price closer to that of petrol fuelled outboards.
For the future Amaroq is planning a 225hp outboard that will weigh just 225kgs and they are also looking at a smaller 30hp unit. The company says that there is a lot of interest in this new diesel and support and servicing will be provided by distributors as they are signed up, with a North American distributor to be announced soon.
