Trolling Motor Vote

I have a 16' 1952 alumacraft...

Added a platform up front.. .probably 80-ish lbs of total weight added...

2 Grown men in the boat.... plus a kid or two... maybe...

Plus Gear, cooler and gas...

Minn Kota C2 55....

OR

Minn Kota Endura Max 40

More power, or more battery life?

55, my philosophy is to go with as much power as you can afford (or be safe with). You can always use the 55 on lower speeds to increase battery life but you can't get 55 lbs of thrust out of a 40 if you need it.

I have a 55 on my 17 footer and it is a nice match to the boat weight; my boat probably weighs more that yours though.

More power hands down. Wind picks up or even a little current you will wish you had more power.

Go with more power never know when your going to need it. 45lbs of thrust is barley enough for my 14ft v hull. I nearly got swamped when a major cold front blew in earlier than expected last fall. The motor on high wouldn't pull me out of the cove away from the stumps. If I could afford it I would put 75+ lbs of thrust on my boat. I don't think energy usage will be all that bad. I can run for 2 days without a recharge in windy conditions (15mph with a moderate chop) with my energy draining MotorGuide Brute and a size 27DC Continental battery.

Yeah If you have to stay 12v get max available power for a12v. I recently upgraded my 18.6 ft bass tracker from a 12v 46 lbs (that would hardly move the boat and forget about wind or current) to a 24v 62lbs. Absolutley night and day difference. More power the better. Having a bigger TM doesnt mean less battery. You will spend less time with the TM at max power with the bigger unit.

What Rat said.

More power. Go up a bigger battery series if its a getting weak by the end of the day.

55 all the way.

I have a 75 on my 1656 and love it.

Bigger is always better! Get the POWER!