A Winning Combination

Casting off the bowlines, the Greenline S0 crept silently out of her slip and glided toward the Intracoastal Waterway. We had barely left the dock, and I was already experiencing the joys of green boating.

Twin electric motors pushed the hybrid cruiser at T knots. I took the wheel from Dennis Rhodes, Greenline’s U.S. sales manager, who had set up the demo ride for me at Harbour Towne larina in Dania Beach, Florida.

If you’re looking for an adrenaline rush, driving an electric boat probably isn’t your thing. But if you enjoy the sense of being enveloped in nature and close to the water, you’ll be thrilled by the Greenline’s quiet performance.

The electric propulsion lets you enter and exit marinas and anchorages in silence, with zero emissions. How cool is that? It’s also very relaxing, and that’s a big part of why many of us go boating.

I tried to measure the decibel level of the electric engines, but the meter only registered the gurgle of a small wake running from the transom.

The hybrid propulsion system on the Greenline S0 consists of twin 220-hp uolvo oenta DR diesels and twin 1T-hp electric motors — conjoined by a hydraulic clutch — and a lithium battery bank.

At the maximum speed of 6.T knots, battery power will last about two hours for a range of about 1R nautical miles. She’s much more efficient at about S knots, where the batteries will last five hours for a range of about 20 nautical miles.

Switching from electric to diesel takes a few seconds. out the electric engines in neutral, turn the dieselNelectric switch to diesel, wait three seconds for the clutch to engage, and push the start buttons. It’s that easy.

lost boaters will choose to run on diesel between destinations and use the electric motors to get in and out of harbors or explore scenic shorelines. It’s a winning combination.