MyFishFinder Forum
MFF US Northeast => Massachusetts => Topic started by: Baitbucket on May 02, 2021, 05:38 PM
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Many here know the saga of my trolling motor issues ive had since in got my 2000$ Minn Kota. Ive had their service center replace the Armature, Circuit Board, Power wire, etc.. Most of it I had to pay for as they only have a 1 year warranty.
Today i said FOOK IT! And decided i was going to fix it myself, even if it rendered it useless and i had to get something new.
The issues i faced, since the day i got it, was that the power would cut out to the prop. The head would turn like it was trying to navigate, but the prop wouldnt turn on. Well.. I got it fixed now. See the video for details..
PS.. Im pretty much a Minn Kota pro repair man now if anyone has issues, please feel free to ask lol..
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Good on you for sharing it out! Hopefully it works out for you, and saves someone else come headaches down the road.
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Clearly damaged during manufacturing and their service people, charged you to work on it and did not fix it... I look forward to the day Garmin works out any bugs there trolling motors might have and drop the price...
Congrats!
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Poor quality control for sure! What can you expect for $2 grand :o Pretty concerning with how much electrical is involved with these things.
Hopefully it'll give you years of trouble free service now. I have to change out a drive gear I stripped in my trolling motor and I am not looking forward to it.
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Sometimes you just have to fix it yourself! Been there done that! Did that recently with a dishwasher after having a service guy out to fix it and didn't fix it.
Thanks for sharing! If I have an issue I know where to look!
I bought a Terrova with spot lock a year ago and haven't even mounted it on the boat yet!
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Clearly damaged during manufacturing and their service people, charged you to work on it and did not fix it... I look forward to the day Garmin works out any bugs there trolling motors might have and drop the price...
Congrats!
I wonder why the wires were damaged there? Maybe a sharp bend from how the unit was packed in the box?
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I've owned 2 ipilot units used zero issues. Both 2014 models. One riptide and one terrova. Glad to see you figured it out Will.
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Pretty concerning with how much electrical is involved with these things.
There are quite a few skinny wires like these throughout the whole motor.
I wonder why the wires were damaged there? Maybe a sharp bend from how the unit was packed in the box?
The iPilot Link head was an Add-on that Cabellas had done for these series of motors. Who did the work and installed them, who knows...
I've owned 2 ipilot units used zero issues. Both 2014 models. One riptide and one terrova. Glad to see you figured it out Will.
Heres hoping Minn Kota makes it right...
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That’s some really good troubleshooting. Kudos from an old electrician.
Rg
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From what I saw and the video, it is clear to me that when they snapped on the Anti-interference High-Frequency Ferrite Core Choke Clip they damaged the wires. Looks like they are/did try to use one that is too small.
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Was a good video. Will how hard is it to remove the head in its entirety? I need to replace my collar it's cracked but have been limping along because my smooth brain can't start to figure out how to remove it.
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Was a good video. Will how hard is it to remove the head in its entirety? I need to replace my collar it's cracked but have been limping along because my smooth brain can't start to figure out how to remove it.
The bottom half of the head is held on by two screws that attach it to the shaft. The upper part is just 4 small screws that screw in through the bottom of the lower half of the head. The wires unplug pretty easy and feed thru the lower half.
(https://i.postimg.cc/Bt1j6Mwj/Capture2.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/Bt1j6Mwj)
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Thanks brother! Appreciate that.
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Still no word from Minn Kota.. Not surprised tho..
Update:
They told me it was out of warranty and there was nothing they could do, and offered me a free hat and t-shirt from my troubles....
Like i would want to advertise their products after all this...
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i work in service industry so i am always getting asked to get things covered when the very cut and warranty has expires by time or miles so i am curious...
did you send them the video you posted in this forum with the commentary?
when i first watched your video, i cringed a little bit when you said something along the lines of "hopefully i can send this out to minkota and they can figure something out but probably not"
companies will bend at times, but if you give them bad publicity (whether deserved or not) they are not going to help you..
when i reach out to companies i let them know i am reaching out before posting to forums/social media to look for a resolution, and i have found most companies are eager to correct the issue and steer you towards posting a positive experience with the company
just my thoughts...
kudos on the diy at least. beats having a paperweight and thousands less in the bank account!
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i work in service industry so i am always getting asked to get things covered when the very cut and warranty has expires by time or miles so i am curious...
did you send them the video you posted in this forum with the commentary?
I have been in contact with them several times over the years. I did send them that video prior to posting it and got no response.
After posting on their facebook feed, they reached out with the free t-shirt offer. Thats when i told them they should be replacing my motor and i began posting on forum.
I have since been contacted by their regional sales manager to work something out. Which we are working through the details of now.
Ill be sure to update this thread when we come to an agreement.
when i first watched your video, i cringed a little bit when you said something along the lines of "hopefully i can send this out to minkota and they can figure something out but probably not"
That comment was intentional. After 5 years of being in and out of their shop to "repair" it and then being offered a t-shirt for my troubles, i had lost faith in their willingness to rectify the issue.
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I wish you luck! I had ti have a buddy literally denounce Garmin to get them to fix my first Gen panoptix...crazy how some of these companies treat customers.
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Good job on finding the problem. My friend had a minkota that was in and out of the repair shop several times for an Intermittent problem. They never could fix it. He tore it down himself and found the wires that went through the shaft were severely twisted and had rubbed a bare spot in a couple wires.
Not sure how it is by you, but the "approved" repair shops here are by no means experts in trolling motors, just electrical shops.
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I wish you luck! I had ti have a buddy literally denounce Garmin to get them to fix my first Gen panoptix...crazy how some of these companies treat customers.
Especially for what they charge for this stuff..
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Amen. That's my thing. For a 50 dollar item I leave people alone. These things are a couple thousand. I think it's great you and others do what they do and post videos fixing the issues. It helps give others confidence to do it as well. Amazing what you can learn now just by watching someone.
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Their offer is to simply deduct the price ive paid out of pocket (~$700) for my repairs from a new motor. Which is a crap deal in my opinion. Ive allready got 2500ish invested in my existing motor. To replace it, i would need to shell out another 1800 after they take the 700 off.
Ive asked them to just straight up replace what i have for a similar model with the same features, and ill drop mine off at one of their service centers in exchange. It doesnt sound like they are going to go that route though.
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Still fighting this battle. Ive sent the entire story to their President/CEO via linkedin message.
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Still fighting this battle. Ive sent the entire story to their President/CEO via linkedin message.
Nice!
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It is so clearly their fault (damaging the wires while manufacturing), you had it into them while it was under warranty, the fact that they did not find their own mistake, does not mean they get to run the clock out on the warranty.
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It is so clearly their fault (damaging the wires while manufacturing), you had it into them while it was under warranty, the fact that they did not find their own mistake, does not mean they get to run the clock out on the warranty.
You would think. I havent heard back from management. I doubt i will.
I may reach out t cabellas to see if they can do something.
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It seems MinnKota has real trouble routing wires. On Sunday I had to disconnect the trim module from the shaft on my Ulterra after it failed to stow (reasons unknown right now but maybe batteries). When I went to snap it back together I had to literally push a big wire out of the way and realized that the steering module was rubbing on that wire. There is no other place to put the wire! Poor design on the most expensive motor that they make.
It's an electric motor, you'd think they would at least have the routing of wires down pat by now. Pathetic.
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Jethro I am still pretty confident you have a ground issue...most common issue that causes the symptoms you mentioned in the other thread.
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Jethro I am still pretty confident you have a ground issue...most common issue that causes the symptoms you mentioned in the other thread.
I pulled all my batteries and will have them tested today, hopefully rule that out. I'm confused how I could have a ground issue with a closed loop system? Not like this grounds to the boat or anything, it's just wires positive to negative connected directly from the batteries to the motor. I am however an absolute idiot when it comes to electrical stuff. Willing to take any suggestions.
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It took some negotiating, but they will be sending me a replacement for my motor. It wont have the ipilot link feature, but it will have iPilot with spot lock. They are also going to let me keep my current motor.
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It took some negotiating, but they will be sending me a replacement for my motor. It wont have the ipilot link feature, but it will have iPilot with spot lock. They are also going to let me keep my current motor.
Great result. If your old one was a 36v I'd make an offer. I need to upgrade.
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I pulled all my batteries and will have them tested today, hopefully rule that out. I'm confused how I could have a ground issue with a closed loop system? Not like this grounds to the boat or anything, it's just wires positive to negative connected directly from the batteries to the motor. I am however an absolute idiot when it comes to electrical stuff. Willing to take any suggestions.
For me it was always a ground issue in the plug that brings power to the motor. I called it a barrel plug in the other thread because that's what I have. 3 prongs one of which is ground. There's times where my motor does the same as yours (doesn't have auto stow) and wiggling the plug which I need to re-wire solves the issue.
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I took apart my Ulterra to replace a stripped gear last night. I was amazed at the quality (or lack thereof) of the parts and construction.
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New replacement motor has arrived.
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That took a bit of effort...
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New replacement motor has arrived.
Awesome news.
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KUDOS!
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About time they came around! Glad for ya.
Did you check he wires on the new one yet? :rotflol: