Newport Vessels Trolling Motor Reviews: An Anglers Honest Opinion

For the last 12 years, Newport Vessels has manufactured and sold inflatable boats, electric outboard motors, and electric trolling motors, helping customers live their passion for the water.

Their budget-friendly trolling motors come with a 2-year warranty, circuit breaker, and are designed for dinghies, kayaks, Jon boats, and pontoons. If you ever have to use the warranty, their fantastic customer service will keep you updated and get you taken care of as quickly as possible.

Newport Vessels’ target market is not bass boats like Minn Kota, Garmin, and Lowrance. So if you’re looking for a new bow mount trolling motor for your bass boat, this Newport Vessels trolling motor review is not the article for you.

However, if you own a small fishing boat that requires a transom mount trolling motor, you’ve come to the right place!

Comparison Table – Newport Trolling Motors

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Newport Trolling Motor Reviews

Newport Vessels NV Series

Specs

• 30″ shaft length
• 36, 46, 55, 62, and 86 pound thrust options
• 12-volt or 24-volt power options
• 5 point LED battery meter
• Fiberglass shaft

Pros

• Saltwater & freshwater capable
• Five forward speeds and three reverse speeds
• Inexpensive
• Telescoping handle

Cons

• Lead-acid deep cycle battery only
• Only 4ft battery cables
• Need 24v to reach 86lbs of thrust

Why We Chose It

The NV-Series is the flagship trolling motor for Newport Vessels. For the low price of $399 MSRP for the 86lb thrust, Newport Vessels came out swinging. The most common Newport Vessels 55 lb trolling motor is only $249 MSRP. The NV-Series is the only series with a Newport Vessels 46 lb trolling motor.

They created a tough but straightforward trolling motor that is great for small boats like Jon boats, dinghies, and canoes. It’s easy to mount on the transom of your fishing boat via the wing-nut bolts.

You’ve got options when it comes to how you choose to power it. If you need more power, then use two 12-volt batteries or if you need to cut back on the weight, then use only one 12-volt battery. The battery cables are a little short, so you might need to purchase more, depending on where you place your marine battery.

The telescoping handle ensures you can comfortably operate the motor without it being in the way.

I recommend the NV-Series to anyone fishing from small boats, especially the anglers who fish saltwater and freshwater.

Newport Vessels Kayak Series

Specs

• 36 or 55-pound thrust
• 24″ shaft
• Powered by a 12-volt deep cycle battery
• Transom mount
• Five LED light battery indicator

Pros

• Designed for freshwater and saltwater
• Designed specifically for kayaks from the NV-Series
• Two-year warranty
• Five forward speeds and three reverse speeds
• Telescoping handle

Cons

• Primarily for kayaks only (Pro for kayak anglers)
• Not designed for lithium batteries, only lead-acid

Why We Chose It

It’s no surprise that the Newport Vessels Kayak Series was intended to be used on kayaks. Basically, they took the NV-Series and shortened the shaft to 24 inches to make it work better for kayak anglers. The Kayak Series made our top 10 list in our Best Kayak Trolling Motor Reviews.

The main differences between the Kayak Series and the NV Series are the shaft length, thrust options, and power options.

The Kayak Series has a shorter shaft and fewer thrust options because it’s only run off of a 12v marine battery to save space and weight in your kayak. The 55lb thrust is still plenty to push any kayak against the wind or current.

I recommend the Newport Vessels Kayak Series to kayak anglers looking for a transom mount trolling motor.

Newport Vessels X Series

Specs

• 40 or 55lb thrust
• 36-inch shaft length
• 12-volt
• Black or camo
• Ten LED battery indicator

Pros

• Saltwater corrosion-resistant materials
• Five speeds forward, three speeds reverse
• Telescoping handle and tilt adjustments

Cons

• Lead-acid battery only
• Short 4′ battery cables

Why We Chose It

The X-Series is the best trolling motor Newport Vessels makes because of its versatility and standard features that their other products don’t offer. As with all Newport Vessels trolling motors, the X-Series is safe for use in saltwater and freshwater.

If you need a trolling motor to use on your fishing/ hunting boat or canoe, then go with the X-Series Mossy Oak Shadow Grass Camo 55-pound thrust.

The telescoping handle is similar to the other models, but the tilting head means you can find the perfect position to operate the motor comfortably.

Instead of a five LED battery indicator, it has a ten LED light meter so you can know more precisely how much juice is left in your battery.

The worst thing about this motor is the short battery cables. You will probably need to buy longer cables depending on where you place your trolling motor battery.

I highly recommend the Newport Vessels X-Series to any small boat angler who dabbles in hunting and we also rated it one of the best saltwater trolling motors on the market today.

Newport Vessels L Series

Specs

• 62 or 86 pound thrust
• 40″ shaft
• 12-volt or 24-volt
• Ten-point LED battery indicator

Pros

• Use in saltwater and freshwater.
• Extendable handle
• Five forward and three reverse speeds

Cons

• Lead-acid deep cycle battery only.
• Short battery cables
• Lacks the tilting head for maximum comfort

Why We Chose It

The Newport Vessels L-Series is an electric saltwater trolling motor primarily designed for small sailboats or large dinghies. So if you need a powerful trolling motor, then I suggest taking a closer look at the L-Series.

While the L-Series has the telescoping handle and ten LED battery indicators, Newport didn’t design it with the tilting head, so you won’t be as comfortable as you would with the X-Series. They always put short four-foot battery cables on their motors, so keep that in mind because you might need longer cables to reach your batteries.

Like most Newport Vessels trolling motors, the L-Series is designed to be powered by lead-acid batteries. This is a con because lead-acid batteries are heavier and less efficient than lithium batteries.

I recommend the Newport Vessels L-Series trolling motor to anglers who primarily fish from a larger boat in saltwater.

Newport Vessels NK Series Brushless Kayak Motor

Specs

• 1.8 Hp equivalent of an outboard motor or 60lbs thrust
• 19.7″ shaft
• 24-volts
• Brushless motor

Pros

• Quiet brushless motor
• Fast – 5MPH
• Compatible with lithium or AGM batteries
• Freshwater and saltwater

Cons

• Designed only for kayaks (Pro for kayak anglers)
• A Longer, more difficult install process
• Expensive

Why We Chose It

The Newport Vessels NK-Series is an electric motor. It does not resemble your average trolling motor because it was designed to mount to kayaks. Therefore, it is also controlled differently than other trolling motors. The NK-Series is similar to electric outboard motors. I would classify it as a hybrid between a trolling motor and an electric outboard motor.

The brushless motor enables it to be faster and quieter than traditional trolling motors. It can push a kayak up to 5MPH and run at full throttle for 40 minutes on a 40AH battery. You can see how it stacked up against the more expensive Torqeedo in my Top 10 Best Kayak Trolling Motors Review.

Because installing the steering cables and mounting bracket is more complicated, the NK-Series takes longer to install than a regular transom mount trolling motor.

It has a stepless throttle control to set the exact speed you want, and it also has reverse to back out of sketchy situations.

I recommend the Newport Vessels NK-Series to any kayak angler looking to beat other kayakers to the honey hole.

Newport Vessels Pontoon Series

Specs

• 55 and 86lbs of thrust
• 55″ fiberglass composite shaft
• 12v or 24-volt
• Permanent bow mount

Pros

• Flexible handle
• Usable in freshwater and saltwater
• Five forward and three reverse speeds

Cons

• Tiller handle
• Permanent bow mount
• Lead-acid battery only

Why We Chose It

The Pontoon Series was designed to mount onto the bow of pontoons and deck boats. The longer shaft ensures your motor stays in the water even if you encounter some waves.

While this is a bow mount trolling motor, it does not have a foot pedal. Instead, the tiller handle is like the X-Series, so you can tilt and extend the handle to a comfortable position.

To max out the thrust, you will need to hook it up to a 24-volt battery or run two 12-volt batteries. I recommend two 12-volt batteries simply because you still have a backup if one goes bad while on the water.

The Newport Vessels Pontoon Series is an excellent trolling motor for anglers who own a deck boat or pontoon and don’t need an expensive trolling motor.

Buying Guide: Factors to Consider Before Purchasing a Newport Vessels Trolling Motor

Many things factor into your decision when buying a trolling motor. Price and quality are usually at the top of the list. However, I’ve come up with a few that first-time buyers might overlook.

Quietness

A trolling motor should be quiet. It will spook fish if it’s too loud, making it much more challenging to catch them. The quietest motors currently on the market use brushless motors. However, these motors are usually expensive.

It is possible to find a good quality trolling motor that’s not overpriced. I believe Newport Vessels has reasonably priced their trolling motors for how quiet they run.

Battery Life

Avoid running out of battery at all costs. I’ve been there, done that, got the t-shirt for it, and I never want to experience it again. Running out of juice in your batteries is a sure way to ruin a good day of fishing. Another reason for brushless motors is their efficiency.

They are more powerful using less juice than traditional motors, but they are more expensive.

Newport Vessels only offers one brushless motor, and it’s on the kayak motor. However, all their trolling motors have a battery life indicator so you can know when you’re running low on power so you won’t get stranded.

Customer Service

No product is going to last forever, and sometimes things break prematurely. That’s where a good warranty and excellent customer service can turn an unhappy customer into a customer for life.

While researching Newport Vessels, I saw nothing but positive reviews regarding their customer service. They were responsive and did everything in their power to make things right for their customers. That’s the kind of company I don’t mind supporting!

Standard Features

Standard features often determine the price of a trolling motor. Sometimes they are decked out like an X-Wing fighter from Star Wars, such as the Garmin Force. You can read up on all the futuristic features in my Garmin Force Review. However, the awesome features also drive up the price!

Watersnake trolling motors and Haswing trolling motors offer similar standard features at a comparable price.

If you’re not satisfied with the features offered by Newport Vessels, I suggest you read my Haswing trolling motors review.

You’ll Also Need

Once you’ve chosen your new trolling motor, there are a few additional items you will need before you head out to the water.

Battery

You will need at least one deep cycle battery or a marine battery. Most likely a 12 or 24-volt battery, depending on your trolling motor and thrust preference.

Battery Box

Newport Vessels makes an excellent box to store your battery in while it’s on the boat. Not only will it keep your battery from falling out or sliding around if you encounter rough water, but the Newport Vessels battery box also has a built-in USB port, circuit breakers, and a LED power meter.

Spare prop

You will hit a stump or rock with your new trolling motor, no matter how careful you are, so carrying a spare Newport Vessels prop will eventually save you a significant headache.

Battery cables

For their convenience, Newport puts short battery cables on their trolling motors. This is fine if you can set the motor near the battery, but you will need longer battery cables to place the battery further than four feet away.

Final Thoughts

Newport Vessels offers several budget-friendly trolling motors. While their features are limited, they don’t skimp on quality.

In their Newport trolling motor review, many Minn Kota Endura users claimed to have switched to an NV-Series, or X-Series trolling motor and swore they wouldn’t return. That’s high praise, in my opinion!

If you’re looking to purchase an inexpensive trolling motor, I suggest checking out Newport Vessels trolling motors first.

If I missed anything in this Newport Vessels trolling motor review, please let me know in the comments below!