Canadian Electric Bruce 22 E

Boat Test #1418

About 15 years ago, Ian Bruce was asked by a close friend of his, Ward McKimm, to design a modern, easier-to-live-with version of McKimm’s beloved 1945 Myles Jeffrey 22 foot wooden launch. As per his friend’s request, Bruce remained very faithful to the overall design of the original wooden launch, but his modern version is greatly enhanced. It offers much better performance and requires much less upkeep since it is essentially made of fiberglass. The redesigned hull, the deck and the stringer system are all made of ’glass. The only wood is there to visually knock your socks off, in places like the dash, the seat bases, the engine box, the flooring and the spectacular mahogany decking.
Originally mated to a good’ol Mercury 4.3 V6 gas engine, the Bruce 22 is still available with a modern 200 hp 4.5 L Merc inboard turning the prop. But it is also offered with a full-electric power train. From a practical point of view, using the Bruce 22 as the basis for an electric boat actually makes a lot of sense. Since the boat features an inboard design, it is much simpler to hook an electric motor to the shaft drive than it would be with, say an I/O setup. The Bruce 22 E is powered by a UQM Powerphase Pro 100 electric motor. Peak power is given at 100 kW/h, with 60 kW/h continuous, at 400 V.