[newgate]

Looking for submersible in-wheel motor for an amphibious project.

Seems like there are lots of in-wheel motors, but none designed for IP67 ingress protection.

Looking to scratch build an amphibious 4x4 to get to my property on an island about 1000 feet offshore in salt water. 500lbs cargo, two people, road-worthy.

 

[Electric Forklift Guy]

If you're not looking for a top speed over 35 mph...go hydraulic

There are tons of hydraulic hub motors out there, just copy the system that most electric scissorlifts use.

(Like the JLG 1932 E2)


Hydraulic hub motors, powered by a hydraulic pump , thats turned by a speed controlled electric motor.

The advantage is you only have one electric motor and one controller for a 4 or even 6 wheel drive system.

You can even hook a propeller up to a hydraulic motor so you can change drive modes at the flip of a switch.

If your worried about a spill...there are vegetable oils rated for hydraulics.

The only down side is you have about a 20% drop in range over a direct drive system but there are so many options that you can build exactly what you want.

 

[newgate]

Hey thanks for the reply! We did consider this strategy but were also concerned about top speed. Also a bit concerned about the weight, although this is just a guess that they would be heavy.
We are presently exploring brushless in-wheel hub motors from QSMOTORS, specifically the 8000W 273 50H V3. I have in hand now a sample and have an idea to make it submersible. Thinking 96V and about 21000 kwh of batteries. Kelly brushless controllers. For propulsion we will likely go straight shaft through a sailboat stuffing box and maybe 6 to 8kw brushless here as well.
The rest of the plan is: fiberglass Jeep YJ tub from Shell valley, a custom stainless frame and suspension from a corvette C3 or C4. There are lots of stainless and anodized aluminum aftermarket parts for Jeeps.
Saltwater+Lithium batteries+miles of harnesses... what could go wrong.
I'll keep you posted.

best

jeff