(Porsche has an 800-volt pack in the Taycan, and GM is working on 800-volt battery packs for its Ultium-powered EVs.) Again, Lee cautions, that doesn’t mean there’s reason to be worried. Arc is sourcing the modules and cells that make up the pack, and the electric motor (Lee declined to name the suppliers).Īrc is bucking a lot of conventions and promising a simpler ownership experienceĪrc is also pulling in some outside consultants to help with the 800-volt technology since that’s something that is still rare even in the world of high-performance electric vehicles. It’s developing the software, too, which it plans to tweak and improve via over-the-air updates. In addition to the hull, the startup is designing its own enclosures for the battery packs, as well as the cooling system. Also like Tesla, Lee says Arc is going for a high degree of vertical integration. While the pack will be big, it will be spread across the bottom of the boat and integrated into the structure of the hull - something that will inevitably draw more comparisons to Tesla, which is working on structural battery packs for its future vehicles. Lee says aluminum will be less labor intensive, less expensive, while still being light enough that Arc can commit most of the weight to the battery pack. Most boat hulls in this class are made out of carbon fiber or some other type of composite material. Much like when Ford adopted aluminum for its pickup trucks half a decade ago, Arc is bucking convention here. this exponential power draw, because you’re moving through something much more viscous than air.”Īnother key part of Arc’s design is that it’s building aluminum hulls. “The hard part is if you want to plane, or you want to move quickly.
“Boats are actually really good at floating - that sounds silly but like it’s not hard to make a boat that could carry a huge load,” Lee says. “If you want a boat that can go 40 miles an hour, you need a very large battery to be able to handle that.” All that extra energy on tap will help the boat “plane” at higher speeds, too, which is when it essentially skims across the water, reducing drag. “When you’re moving through water, power draw is cubic to your speed,” Lee says. This is a big reason why the battery pack will be so energy-dense. Some are using a hydrofoil to reduce drag, basically eliminating the wake altogether. This is rare in the nascent electric boat market, Lee says, because it takes a lot of energy to move through water, so other companies have looked to reduce the forces that create a wake. A 200kWh, 800-volt battery pack, and 475 horsepower on tapīetter yet, Lee says, the boat will throw a wake behind it, meaning it will be fun to use for wake sports like waterskiing.