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Thruster specs
Max Power ECO 130: specs, price and the boats it fits
The ECO 130 is the 48 V model of Max Power’s proportional ECO line: 287 lb of push from twin propellers in a 185 mm tube, with joystick control from a gentle nudge to full power. It suits a boat already wired for 48 V.
There is no published price; ask a dealer. Four batteries in series make the 48 V bank, and at 48 V the current, and so the cable, stays modest. A proportional joystick and control cable are included; the tube, a main switch and a fuse are not. See the parts.
The manual gives lithium users a voltage window to stay inside, so plan the battery management with an electrician. Like the rest of the ECO range it can run continuously, with thrust easing as it warms. Warranty: two years, three when registered.
The full spec sheet for a yard sits lower down, and the Max Power thruster review covers Max Power’s whole range.
Where this summary comes from (4 sources, read 12 October 2026)
- Max Power product page
- Max Power ECO-PRO 90 / 110 / 130 installation manual, Version 4 (runs continuously, thrust reduced when hot; lithium voltage window)
- Max Power FAQ (standard units on lead-acid, AGM or gel; ECO PROportional built for lithium)
- Max Power Warranty Conditions (three years; transferable; two hours of field labor in year one)
Key facts
- DIY level 2 of 5 Wiring prep only
- Thrust 287 lb 130 kgf, Max Power's rating
- Boat length 35 to 60 ft Max Power's own range
- Price No US price None is published, so there is no fitted cost to work out
- Fitted by a yard No total No price to build on
- Voltage 48 V As sold
- Mounts Tunnel Fixed mount, end not stated
- To fit it Haul-out The boat comes out of the water
- Run limit Not published Ask the maker before long use
Every figure here is the maker’s or a dealer’s. No US price is published, so there is no fitted cost to estimate. The full spec sheet is further down.
How much of the install is yours
DIY levels
- Level 5: Owner install. No yard, no electrician.
- Level 4: You fit it, electrician connects. You mount and wire it; a marine electrician makes the final connections.
- Level 3: Split with the yard. The yard does the below-waterline part; you do the wiring.
- Level 2: Wiring prep only. The yard fits the unit and does the hull work; you do the wiring prep.
- Level 1: Yard job. A qualified professional does all of it.
You Yard Electrician. The bar is labor hours; a haul-out is a note.
How we rate DIYYou: 4 to 16 h Yard: 32 to 70 h Electrician: 2 to 4 h Plus a haul-out.
- Cut, bond and fair the tunnel; fit the gear leg, motor and propeller Yard 32 to 70 h The low end is two crew over two days, the job as owners describe it on the forums. The high end rises with boat length between two real billed figures: 32 hours at 35 ft, and the largest invoice we hold, 70 hours at 47 ft.
- Mount the battery box, switch and fuse holder; run and secure the cables You 4 to 16 h Our estimate. No maker times this step, and a first-time owner is slower than a yard, so the range is wide.
- Final connections at the battery and the motor, load test Electrician 2 to 4 h Our estimate. Nobody publishes a time for the final connections and test on their own.
Your part needs:Heavy battery cableCrimping big lugs
A qualified marine electrician should make the final connections and test them before first use. Hours are labor only.
Is it right for your boat?
Our figure is the longest boat one unit can steer in a 15 knot wind. It is a range because each kind of boat catches the wind differently. Here a houseboat gets full thrust to 42 ft, and a catamaran to 65 ft. The maker gives one range for every boat.
The table below tries the Max Power ECO 130 on each kind of boat, at every length that kind of boat is built in. The wind is 15 knots and the rules are the finder’s own. A length counts as a fit when the unit gives the thrust that boat needs at the bow and the maker lists it for that length.
A boat up to 10 percent past the maker’s range still counts here, as it does in the finder. So the table runs up to 66 ft, just past Max Power’s own range (35 to 60 ft).
| Boat | Full thrust at 15 knots | Still a fit, in lighter wind |
|---|---|---|
| Pontoon & tritoon | Not listed. A pontoon has no hull body between the logs to bore a tunnel through, and nobody sells one for these boats. | |
| Sailboat | 48 to 57 ft | 58 to 66 ftfull thrust to about 13 knots at 66 ft |
| Houseboat | 35 to 42 ft | 43 to 63 ftfull thrust to about 10 knots at 63 ft |
| Catamaran | 54 to 65 ft | 66 ft onlyfull thrust to just under 15 knots at 66 ft |
| Trawler | 47 to 56 ft | 57 to 66 ftfull thrust to about 13 knots at 66 ft |
| Motor yacht | 47 to 56 ft | 57 to 66 ftfull thrust to about 13 knots at 66 ft |
| Bass & flats | Not listed. Nobody sells a tunnel kit for these hulls, and a bass boat’s shallow planing bow has almost no depth to hold one. | |
| Wake & ski boats | Not listed. Nobody sells a tunnel kit for these hulls. | |
| Express cruiser | 60 to 65 ft | None |
| Center console | No length. More thrust than the boat needs. | |
Reading the two length columns. The first column is where one unit gives all the thrust the boat needs in 15 knots. The second is where the finder still lists it: the unit falls short of what the boat needs by no more than 10 percent, and gives the whole figure only in the lighter wind named. On a boat shorter than the first column’s shortest length, the unit is more than the boat needs.
It is sized for six kinds of boat here. For your own boat, the finder gives an answer that also counts your drive and who does the fitting. The compare page sets this unit beside others.
What it costs fitted
No US dollar price is published for the Max Power ECO 130, so we build no total for it. The yard’s share of the job is on the cost page.
The sizing and the costs on this page are estimates, for guidance only and without warranty. They are no quote, and nobody has inspected your boat. Check them against the maker’s manual and your yard before you rely on them. Terms of use.
What else you buy
What follows comes from Max Power’s CT100 and CT125 installation manual, July 2024, read 30 September 2026.
- In the box
- The motor with its relay, the electronic controller, the composite leg with screws and gasket, two propellers. "The thruster is delivered without accessories (fuse, fuse holder, control panel)."
- Bought separately
- The fuse and holder, a manual battery isolator and an electric one, the control panel, an 8 A control fuse, a breaker on the DC panel, the cable, the tunnel. No anode on the composite leg.
- Charging
- Max Power is the one maker that asks for both: the engine's alternator and a charger. A dedicated bank is optional and goes "as close as possible to the thruster". It wants starting-type batteries with high cold cranking amps.
The manual’s words, page 3: “The batteries used by the thruster must be charged by both the main engine's alternator and an appropriate battery charger.”
A yard job adds these parts on top of the unit: $541 to $1,369 for the priced ones below, at Fisheries Supply’s prices on 30 September 2026, plus the batteries, cable and charger.
| Part | What it is | What to ask for | Dealer price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tunnel tube | The fiberglass, aluminum or steel pipe the thruster sits in, bonded through the bow. | Max Power names none | $205–$554185 mm fiberglass tunnel tubes up to 60 in (1.5 m) long (VETUS, Sleipner Side-Power, Lewmar), at Fisheries Supply, read 16 October 2026. |
| Control panel | The buttons or joystick at the helm. One helm, one panel: a second steering station needs a panel of its own. | A Max Power control panel, sold with its own guide | $219–$374Side-Power touch panel and single joystick, VETUS push-button panel, Lewmar single joystick, at Fisheries Supply. |
| Control cable, panel to motor | The thin cable from the helm to the motor. Sold by length. | Max Power names none | $29–$173Side-Power control cables, VETUS panel cables, Lewmar Gen 2 connecting cables, at Fisheries Supply. |
| Main fuse | A slow-blow fuse of the ANL type at the battery, in the size the maker prints for the model. | Ceramic or ANL, the rating in the manual's table | $18–$57Side-Power ANL fuses, Blue Sea ANL fuses, at Fisheries Supply, read 16 October 2026. |
| Fuse holder | The block the ANL fuse bolts into, with a cover. | Holder T1 OPTI3119 or T2 | $27–$93Egis and Blue Sea ANL fuse blocks, Side-Power ANL fuse holders, at Fisheries Supply, read 16 October 2026. |
| Main battery switch | The switch that cuts the thruster off from its battery when you leave the boat. | A manual isolator, plus the electric isolator OPTI3160/3 (12 V) or OPTI3170/3 (24 V) | $35–$107Egis m-Series 300 A, Blue Sea e-Series 350 A and HD-Series 600 A on/off switches, at Fisheries Supply, read 16 October 2026. |
| Control-circuit fuse and switch | A small fuse, and often a switch, on the thin wire that powers the panel or control box. | An 8 A fuse on the control box feed | $8–$12Blue Sea in-line ATO fuse holders, at Fisheries Supply, read 16 October 2026. |
| Battery cable and lugs | The two heavy cables from the battery to the motor, sized to the length of the run. The wiring calculator sizes them. | Max Power names none | In the electrical line |
| Battery bank | A cranking-type bank near the motor, sized by the maker's cold cranking amps. The battery calculator checks it. | Max Power names none | In the electrical line |
| Charger or charge feed | How the thruster bank gets charged: a shore charger of its own, a DC-to-DC charger or charging relay from the boat's system, or a charger built into the unit. | Max Power names none | $146–$305NOCO GEN5X2 shore charger, Victron Orion-Tr Smart DC-DC charger, Blue Sea ML-ACR charging relay, at Fisheries Supply. |
| Glass, resin, filler and sealant | What bonds the tube or housing into the hull and seals the gear leg. | Max Power names none | Not priced |
The cost page has the whole list with what every maker says about each part.
For the yard and the installer
The full spec sheet, grouped the way a yard reads it. Every figure is the maker’s or a dealer’s, with its source.
| Thrust and motor | |
|---|---|
| Thrust | 287 lb (130 kgf) As printed: 130kg |
| Motor | 8 kW |
| Voltage | 48 V |
| Fitting | |
| Type | Tunnel, fixed mount |
| End of the boat | Not stated |
| Tunnel diameter | 185 mm |
| What it does to the hull | Tunnel bore below the waterline |
| Haul-out to fit it | Yes |
| Maker’s boat length | 35 to 60 ft |
| The tunnel | |
| Depth below the waterline | The minimum acceptable position is 139 mm below the waterline. Ideally the top of the installed tunnel sits 185 mm below it. Shallower than the ideal, the manual says, performance falls off progressively. CT100 and CT125 installation manual (July 2024) |
| Price and ordering | |
| Price | No US price published |
| Part number | 636676Duo propeller, composite drive leg, proportional, 48 V |
| Documents | |
| Manual | Installation manual (PDF)on the maker's site |
| Warranty | Max Power's website gives 3 years. Its manual gives 2, and 1 more if the warranty is registered within 3 months of installation. Outside pleasure craft it is 6 months. It transfers to the next owner, and the first year covers up to 2 hours of labor in the field. Max Power's warranty conditions |
| The site’s review | Max Power thruster review |
Draw, cable, fuse and battery, at each voltage
These are the maker’s own figures, at each voltage it is sold at. The cable is the size for the shortest run in the maker’s table. A longer run may need heavier cable, and the wiring calculator works that out for your own boat.
| Voltage | Draw | Maker’s cable | Fuse | Battery | Run limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 48 V | 190 Anominal draw | 1/0 AWG for up to 22 ft of cable counted out and back. Longer runs take heavier cableECO-PRO 90/110 / 130 installation manual | 125 A ceramic or 125 A ANLECO-PRO 90 / 110 / 130 manual | 700 CCA minimum, as the manual recommends DIN 395, SAE 700Max Power installation manual ECO-PRO 90 / 110 / 130, Version 4 | Not published |
- At 48 V: size the cable for your run, or check the battery you have.
What to weigh
Each point names the fact it rests on.
What to weigh
- The boat comes out of the water to fit it: it needs a tunnel bore below the waterline.The mounting: a bore through the hull, or a housing recessed into it
- No US dollar price is published for it, so we can work out no fitted cost.The maker and the dealers the database reads
What the manual and listings say
This is the note we keep on the Max Power ECO 130, written from the maker’s manual, its product pages and the dealer’s listing.
In the box: Proportional. Delivered without accessories: the fuse, holder and panel are bought.
Our note
Proportional control in a 185 mm tunnel, 130 kg at 48 V. The ECO proportional series is built to run on lithium (Li-ion or LiFePO4) as well as lead-acid, AGM or gel. The ECO 90 page promises unlimited run time until the battery runs out. The standard CT100 manual rates its motor at two to three minutes. Max Power publishes no price and sells through dealers. Its Global Network page lists ten in the US.
Videos
Two of Max Power’s own videos, from its YouTube channel: the ECO proportional tunnel units explained, and a short reel of the range. They are the maker’s pitch. Watch them for what the unit looks like and how it goes in, and take any claim back to the figures above.
Other sizes and close alternatives
These are Max Power’s next sizes in the same line, by thrust.
- One size down: Max Power ECO 110, 243 lb.
- One size up: Max Power ECO 150, 320 lb.
These are other makers’ units of the same style, for the same end, within a quarter of its published thrust. Each is that maker’s nearest match.
- VETUS BOW PRO Boosted 130, 287 lb, $6,369.
- Sleipner E130/250T, 287 lb, $7,650.
- Lewmar 250TT GEN 2 Tunnel Thruster, 308 lb, $4,949.
Every model with a page here is listed, maker by maker, on the thruster index.