Ultrex Corrosion on lower unit underneath/behind the prop

[db220]

I could use some help figuring out if my Ultrex 112 is on borrowed time. I was doing some maintenance last weekend and took off the prop to check for fishing line. Behind the prop the paint was peeled and there was a lot of corrosion. The motor seems to be running fine as of now.

I run this is a fresh water river system. It does run out to the bay but the area I fish doesn't have any salt intrusion. It's about 3 years old.

I'm wondering if I should order a new lower and replace it and if that's something that I can do myself since the closest service center closed a couple of years ago. It looks like it's not that hard to do. I can get a replacement with shaft for around $600 with the MDI transducer built in which is a lot cheaper than a new motor.

I didn't take a picture but found an image that looks exactly like it that I've attached.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!minn-kota-ultrex-corrosion.jpg

[Bradrodfish]

Did you buy it new or used?
What I am seeing here is a classic sign of oxidation(corrosion) on aluminum. I see it a lot here in South Louisiana. It is hard to stop it. That is pretty bad. It will eventually get worse and over time will cause issues.
How does the rest of the motor assembly look? If the center section looks pretty good then I would just change out the brush end(the one in the picture) and the cone end if it looks that bad.
If you feel that it may be too much to tackle then just go ahead and replace the motor assembly which also means you have to replace the shaft too.

[db220]

It came new on the boat when I bought it. It’s only on the brush end and nowhere else that I can tell. As long as I can run it for a while until I get a replacement I’ll just do the whole assembly if it’s easier.

[Bradrodfish]

The only thing I would be concern about is the corrosion of the inside of the part where the prop shaft seals sit. With time it could cause water to enter the motor assembly. Uless you want to change the motor out you can just change the brush end housing and you will be good as new.

[db220]

Thanks Brad. I took some pictures of what it actually looks like. It's not as bad as the image I used but I can see the corrosion moving towards the seals. I have a service center a couple of hours away so I'll send them the pictures and get their opinion, but it's good to know they can just replace the brush end housing. Here are the actual pictures.
IMG_5815.jpgIMG_5811.jpg

[Bradrodfish]