125 year anniversary of world's first motorboat
Called Rems, she was commissioned by inventor and engine manufacturer Gottlieb Daimler. He wanted something that could really test his engines, and approached Friedrich Lürssen, founder of Lürssen Yachts.
View a gallery of the world’s first motorboat
Always open to new idea, Friedrich Lürssen designed and manufactured the motorboat straight away.
The engine that powered the world’s first motorboat had a cylinder capacity volume of 0.462 litres, weighed 60kg and had an output of 1.5hp at 700rpm.
According to the stories, Daimler ran into trouble when he wanted to test the motorboat for the first time. A group of irate locals stopped him from launching the boat because they’d heard rumours of a boat that was powered by explosions. They feared it would be deadly to let him test the boat.
As previously reported, Lürssen Yachts have adopted a new slogan reflecting the history of the company: ‘Yachts built on family bonds since 1875’ and launched a new website.
You can learn more about the history of Lürssen Yachts and the world’s first motorboat with YBW’s online gallery.