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Thruster specs
Sleipner EX180D: specs, price and the boats it fits
The EX180D puts two EX motors in one pod: 287 lb at 23 V, for displacement and semi-planing boats of about 46 to 59 ft, at the bow or the stern. Sleipner sells it as the "180" on the same 1.4 times "thrust equivalent" as the EX95S.
Imtra, Sleipner’s US distributor, lists it at $17,750, before a separate tariff line. It takes two NH00 fuses rather than ANL ones, and the panel and main switch add about $263 to $492. The parts list.
It runs on 24 V. Each motor draws about 175 A, and the manual names two 125 A fuses. Like the single pods it runs about 3 minutes at a stretch. Warranty: two years, transferable to the next owner.
Installers will find the wiring figures and dimensions further down. For the rest of Sleipner’s line, read the Sleipner (Side-Power) review.
Where this summary comes from (6 sources, read 14 October 2026)
- Sleipner product page
- Sleipner EX series installation and operation manual, document 2893 rev 7 (2019): about 3 minutes continuous, "thrust equivalent (kgf x 1.4)"
- Imtra, Sleipner’s US distributor: EX180 Dual listing (list price; tariff shown separately)
- Sleipner DC Product Specifications Sheet v1.0.3 (2016): EX thrust at 11.5/23 V and the "performance thrust"
- Sleipner external thrusters (displacement and semi-planing boats, under 20 knots)
- Sleipner warranty statement, effective 1 April 2022
Key facts
- DIY level 3 of 5 Split with the yard
- Thrust 287 lb 130 kgf, Sleipner's rating
- Boat length 46 to 59 ft Sleipner's own range
- Price $17,750 equipment only, imtra.com, 14 October 2026
- Fitted by a yard $20,623 to $25,492 Our estimate at 55 ft, unit and job
- Voltage 24 V As sold
- Mounts External Fixed mount, bow or stern
- 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, except the fitted cost, which is our 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: 4 to 8 h Electrician: 2 to 4 h Plus a haul-out.
- Drill, seal and bolt the unit below the waterline Yard 4 to 8 h Our estimate. No maker times it; one owner paid his yard about a day of labor to mount two units. Source.
- 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 trawler gets full thrust to 56 ft, and a sailboat to 57 ft. The maker gives one range for every boat.
The table below tries the Sleipner EX180D 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 where it mounts 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 64 ft, just past Sleipner’s own range (46 to 59 ft).
| Boat | Full thrust at 15 knots | Still a fit, in lighter wind |
|---|---|---|
| Pontoon & tritoon | Not listed. Its maker does not name this kind of hull. | |
| Sailboat | 48 to 57 ft | 58 to 64 ftfull thrust to about 13 knots at 64 ft |
| Houseboat | Not listed. Its maker does not name this kind of hull. | |
| Catamaran | Not listed. An external unit bolts to the side of a single hull at the bow or to its transom, and a cat has two narrow hulls with a bridgedeck between them, so there is nowhere forward to hang one. | |
| Trawler | 47 to 56 ft | 57 to 64 ftfull thrust to about 13 knots at 64 ft |
| Motor yacht | 47 to 56 ft | 57 to 64 ftfull thrust to about 13 knots at 64 ft |
| Bass & flats | Not listed. This site lists no external bow unit for a boat that planes. | |
| Wake & ski boats | Not listed. This site lists no external bow unit for a boat that planes. | |
| Express cruiser | Not listed. This site lists no external bow unit for a boat that planes. | |
| Center console | Not listed. This site lists no external bow unit for a boat that planes. | |
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 three 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
These totals are our estimate of a yard job: the unit’s price, plus a yard’s hours at $160 to $180 an hour, plus the batteries, cable and charger, plus the other parts the box does not hold. A Lifting the boat out of the water on a travel lift or a trailer so work can be done below the waterline. It is billed separately from the job itself. adds $940 to $3,090 at these lengths, with 5 to 7 days out of the water, worked from eight yards’ own rate cards. The hours come from what owners and yards report. Your own yard will have its own opinion. The cost page builds the same figures line by line.
| Boat length | The unit | Yard labor | Haul-out | Batteries, cable, charger | Other parts | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 47 ft | $17,750 | $1,280 to $3,6008 to 20 hours | $940 to $2,270 | $250 to $1,000 | $263 to $492 | $20,483 to $25,112 |
| 55 ft | $17,750 | $1,280 to $3,6008 to 20 hours | $1,080 to $2,650 | $250 to $1,000 | $263 to $492 | $20,623 to $25,492 |
| 64 ft | $17,750 | $1,280 to $3,6008 to 20 hours | $1,230 to $3,090 | $250 to $1,000 | $263 to $492 | $20,773 to $25,932 |
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 Sleipner’s EX series installation and operation manual, document 2893 rev 7, 2019, read 14 October 2026.
- In the box
- The pod with its mounting kit and gaskets, and the i-BOX, the control box that holds the relay.
- Bought separately
- A main switch and an NH00 protection fuse in the positive cable (the manual: both "must be integrated"), a control panel (joystick, touch panel or radio remote), its 4-wire cable and the battery cable.
- Charging
- The word "charging" is not in any of the Sleipner guides we read. The battery is sized by cold cranking amps, and a battery near the thruster is suggested. How it gets charged is left to you and your installer.
The manual’s words, page 19: “For installations on large vessels with bow and stern thrusters or catamarans a dedicated battery for each thruster should be considered.”
The “other parts” line in the estimate above is the priced parts below, $263 to $492 at Fisheries Supply’s prices on 30 September 2026. The batteries, cable and charger have a line of their own.
| Part | What it is | What to ask for | Dealer price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Control panel | The buttons or joystick at the helm. One helm, one panel: a second steering station needs a panel of its own. | SM8960G single joystick, SM8950G touch panel | $219–$374Side-Power touch panel and single joystick, VETUS push-button panel, Lewmar single joystick, at Fisheries Supply. |
| Main fuse | An NH00 blade fuse at the battery, the type the EX manual names, in the size it prints for the model. | Two NH00 fuses, 125 A each ("2x125") | Not priced. NH00 fuses and bases come from electrical suppliers; no marine dealer we read lists one. |
| Fuse holder | The base the NH00 fuse clips into. | An NH00 fuse base; the manual names none | Not priced. NH00 fuses and bases come from electrical suppliers; no marine dealer we read lists one. |
| Main battery switch | The switch that cuts the thruster off from its battery when you leave the boat. | Side-Power manual main switch, 350 or 600 A, or the automatic AMS | $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. | Sleipner names none | $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. | Sleipner 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. | Sleipner 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. | Sleipner names none | $146–$305NOCO GEN5X2 shore charger, Victron Orion-Tr Smart DC-DC charger, Blue Sea ML-ACR charging relay, at Fisheries Supply. |
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: "EX 180 D Thrust at 11.5V/ 23V* 130 • 264 Performance thrust* 180 • 397" - Sleipner DC Product Specifications Sheet v1.0.3 (2016); the asterisk: "Thrust equivalent (kgf x 1.4 due to positional advantages)" (EX installation manual 2893 rev 7, 2019) |
| Motor | 6 kW |
| Voltage | 24 V |
| Fitting | |
| Type | External, fixed mount |
| End of the boat | Bow or stern |
| Tunnel diameter | 150 mm |
| What it does to the hull | Holes through the hull for the pod's mounting and cables |
| Haul-out to fit it | Yes |
| Maker’s boat length | 46 to 59 ft |
| Price and ordering | |
| Price | $17,750 equipment only, a dealer's price, imtra.com, 14 October 2026 |
| Part number | EX180D24 V, 24 V DC |
| Documents | |
| Manual | Installation manualon the maker's product page |
| Warranty | Sleipner gives 2 years for leisure use and 1 for commercial use. It transfers to the next owner, and it starts no later than 18 months after the boat's first launch. Sleipner's warranty statement, effective 1 April 2022 |
| The site’s review | Sleipner (Side-Power) review |
What holds up and what to weigh
Each point names the fact it rests on.
What holds up
- Sleipner sells it for either end, so it can go at the bow or the stern.The maker's listing
What to weigh
- The boat comes out of the water to fit it: it needs holes through the hull for the pod's mounting and cables.The mounting style
- It bolts under the hull about 15% of her length back from the bow, not at the very end, so the boat tables on this page count its 287 lb of push as worth about 210 lb from a unit right at the bow.Measured off the drawings in Sleipner's EX installation manual (2893 rev 7, 2019), section 3.3, figures 6 and 7
What the manual and listings say
This is the note we keep on the Sleipner EX180D, written from the maker’s manual, its product pages and the dealer’s listing.
In the box: Gasket, bolts and anode with the unit. The panel, its cable, the fuse and main switch are bought.
Our note
Two EX motors in one dual pod, 130 kg at 23 V, marketed as EX180 for the same 1.4 "thrust equivalent". For displacement and semi-planing boats of about 46 to 59 ft, bow or stern. The manual fuses each motor at 125 A.
Videos
One of Sleipner’s own videos, from its YouTube channel: an owner’s Sealine 35 with the compact external units, on the water. It is the maker’s pitch. Watch it 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 Sleipner’s nearest sizes by thrust, in any of its lines.
- One size down: Sleipner SX100, 256 lb, $9,750.
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.
- Max Power CT125 stern pod, 254 lb, $4,913.
Every model with a page here is listed, maker by maker, on the thruster index.