Trolling Motor Advice

[Z7Mike]

This morning my trolling motor stopped working. It is a 2012 Minnkota Maxxum 70 Lb thrust. The foot pedal was working intermittently for awhile, and then all of a sudden I heard a sizzling noise and some smoke came out of the foot pedal. After that the motor did not come on at all and I unplugged it to be safe. None of the marinas in my area service Minnkotas (one does, but only if you bought it from them). I did a search on Minnkota's website and they have a very limited number of Authorized Service Centers in the New York area.

Does this sound like something that would be repairable, or am I likely looking at upgrading to a new trolling motor? It is 8 years old, but I thought I would have gotten a few more years than that out of it. Thanks for any advice.

[Royjulius]

The best thing that ever happened to me was when my old MG Brute went to crap on me. I got a Terrova with spot lock and it changed my life. Since then they've come out with several makes and models with spot lock, but man oh man it is a game changer. Nothing like sitting on a point facing the wind and throwing rattletraps for smallies, while not having to worry about boat position.

Lisa Simpson once said that the Japanese use the same word for crisis as they do for opportunity. Homer said "I know honey, its crisitunity."

[MCIPinkie]

It may, or may not, be easily repairable. I'd bet it could be fixed.

I'd take the bottom cover off and look underneath the pedal for the simple stuff, Has a wire just come loose and shorted out against another post. Has something broken or come loose and is shorting out under the pedal?

Those old Maxxum's aren't that complicated. I would expect it could be fixed a lot cheaper than buying another, particularly if you, or a friend, can do the work.

It could be an opportunity to upgrade, but if money is short, I'd try to fix it.

[jtracc]

The best thing that ever happened to me was when my old MG Brute went to crap on me. I got a Terrova with spot lock and it changed my life. Since then they've come out with several makes and models with spot lock, but man oh man it is a game changer. Nothing like sitting on a point facing the wind and throwing rattletraps for smallies, while not having to worry about boat position.

Lisa Simpson once said that the Japanese use the same word for crisis as they do for opportunity. Homer said "I know honey, its crisitunity."

its funny I had terrova on my last boat and now have a fortrex again. I have to say I don't miss the terrova at all. It was slow, loud and the spot lock was worthless in anything more then a stiff breeze.

[MBDiagMan]

I just got through replacing my Minnkota Maxxum that sounds the same as yours. It was working well, but I replaced it with a Ghost. I would sell it for a reasonable price nut the shipping from Texas to New York would probably be a killer.

[e-tec]

If you smoked some wires you may not have a functioning circuit breaker. If it were mine I would try to fix it. Like MCIPinkie said there ain't much to them.

[AKRISONER]

its funny I had terrova on my last boat and now have a fortrex again. I have to say I don't miss the terrova at all. It was slow, loud and the spot lock was worthless in anything more then a stiff breeze.

you need to try it again on the new terrova and make sure you have enough power. A fellow Ontario guy, I wouldn’t have a trolling motor unless it had spot lock.

stand out in a chop on a windy day and park on a shoal and not touch the trolling motor just worry about fishing. Spotlock is specifically why I sold my cable drive Motorguide and bought a terrova for my boat. Also a poor man’s power pole.

[Commanche20]

All electrical devices run on smoke. When the smoke comes out it no longer works.

[Highcentered]

The magic smoke is hard to replace once you let it out. I'm betting that little computer board in the pedal is where the smoke originated.

[Z7Mike]

Thanks for all the responses. I have decided that this is the excuse I need to upgrade to an Ultrex with spot lock. I can't tell you how many times I have wanted to put the power poles down in deeper than 8 ft!

[digthemup]

This morning my trolling motor stopped working. It is a 2012 Minnkota Maxxum 70 Lb thrust. The foot pedal was working intermittently for awhile, and then all of a sudden I heard a sizzling noise and some smoke came out of the foot pedal. After that the motor did not come on at all and I unplugged it to be safe. None of the marinas in my area service Minnkotas (one does, but only if you bought it from them). I did a search on Minnkota's website and they have a very limited number of Authorized Service Centers in the New York area.

Does this sound like something that would be repairable, or am I likely looking at upgrading to a new trolling motor? It is 8 years old, but I thought I would have gotten a few more years than that out of it. Thanks for any advice.

Mike,
Call Tony up in Orchard Park near Bills stadium. He fixed my MG no problems, and he repairs all brands, if not too busy fishing.
Tony's Reel Repair. 7686 Michael Rd. Orchard Park, NY 14127. Directions. (716) 662-5692.

[Royjulius]

Thanks for all the responses. I have decided that this is the excuse I need to upgrade to an Ultrex with spot lock. I can't tell you how many times I have wanted to put the power poles down in deeper than 8 ft!

Great call. I'd have gotten an Ultrex but they didn't exist when I got my Terrova. So far the Terrova is still working too well to justify the upgrade. Good luck!

[Highcentered]

Life's too short to not have spot lock

[Schultz]

My Maxxum pro 101 did the exact same thing yesterday. I've been waiting for it to die for a while now so I could get an Ultrex, but this was bad timing. I just invested over 5k in electronics and no great Ultrex deals available at this time. After a little research, I have determined that was is the control panel in the pedal and that I can order that part for about $150 and easily replace it myself. I guess the Ultrex will have to wait until next year, hopefully it will be brushless.

[Jonestrollingmotor]

You said a 70# Maxxum, but didn't say if it was a 5-speed or a variable speed. If it's a 5 speed, look under the footpedal where the 5-speed switch is. Sometimes the flag terminal will cut into one of the wires and cause smoke and trolling motor quit. This is an inexpensive fix. If it's variable speed, will probably be a control board, but still could be a wire issue. It's worth looking at.
John

[MBDiagMan]

Thanks for all the responses. I have decided that this is the excuse I need to upgrade to an Ultrex with spot lock. I can't tell you how many times I have wanted to put the power poles down in deeper than 8 ft!

A great decision! I was hesitant to lay out almost $3,000 for an automated trolling motor, but now that I’ve done it, it may have been the best fishing related purchases I have made.

[digthemup]

You said a 70# Maxxum, but didn't say if it was a 5-speed or a variable speed. If it's a 5 speed, look under the footpedal where the 5-speed switch is. Sometimes the flag terminal will cut into one of the wires and cause smoke and trolling motor quit. This is an inexpensive fix. If it's variable speed, will probably be a control board, but still could be a wire issue. It's worth looking at.
John

Excellent advice.

[e-tec]

All electrical devices run on smoke. When the smoke comes out it no longer works.