Diesel Electric Drive??

I saw a raw water cooled marine diesel generator for sale on ebay, new that only 133 1lbs. IAt that wieght you would have many options as to where to install the generator. If you combine it with the electric drive like Commander 227 you would basically have floating Chevy Volt.

I have thought that if I was on bigger water and needed more range I could bring along a Honda generator, but then you are using an IC engine to create 110v a/c then sending it to your charger to convert to 48v d/c to run the motor. The load to run the motor is a lot more than the charger is designed to put out. It would extend the range of the batteries for sure, but it would not give you unlimited range. What you would need is a 48 volt generator that could put out enough juice to run the motor and leave the charger out of it. Electric Yachts has a rig that bolts between your diesel and tranny. You can steam around under diesel or electric power, or use the diesel to charge batteries.