The motor is not the best. 13.5 is a slow motion motor, no power. The esc is isn't big enough. I reread your posting and you typed that the boat ran deep. This says the prop is to big for a submerged setup. Now being the motor isn't much to write home about. You need a boat motor with torque. I was searching for a motor on 3S with dual lipos and each lipo in the sponson but no luck yet.