The railroad administration tested 6-hp outboard motors on a
variety of loaded barges in the Senegal and Niger Rivers, but
found that they were extremely difficult to keep running smoothly
when using gasoline and impossible to do so with diesel, even if
the carburetor was heated separately. There were also problems
with the batteries due to corrosion and high air temperatures.
The report concluded that the machines were too delicate for
African mechanics to maintain.
