MinnKota Power Drive 55 with Ipilot add-on issues

[bently]

This past weekend I was out using my trolling motor and it started acting up. It is a Power Drive 55 with the add-on Ipilot. What it would do is:

Work great for 20 to 30 minutes while using the autopilot advanced setting along with cruise control, then it would loose teh satalite signal and the display on the controler would only show the spinning prop and speed setting. When I would turn off the controler and restart it, it would show sat signal like it should but right after I start the motor and pick a navigation option it would drop the sat signal and just show the spinning prop and speed setting. I would switch to a different battery and it would start all over again with working great for 20-30 minutes and then the spinning prop issue. When we got back to the shop we tested both batteries with a load tester and both where in the green for volts and under load.

could the electrical motor act this way just before goes bad?

Thanks

 

[ondarvr]

Re: MinnKota Power Drive 55 with Ipilot add-on issues

I haven't read my manual recently, but I think it said a low battery can cause this problem. I would check all the connections inside the head where the add on ipilot unit is housed first to make sure all the conections are solid. A bad connection can simulate a bad battery.

 

[bently]

Re: MinnKota Power Drive 55 with Ipilot add-on issues

I did not think of that, thanks. It worked fine prior to this weekend and the water was rough with three footers and water could have gotten into the head to make matters worse.

 

[Star]

Re: MinnKota Power Drive 55 with Ipilot add-on issues

The electronics are sensitve to low voltage. Put a meter on the 12 volts going into your motor under load (running). On water connections go bad quickly if they are not good. I am sure you will find that you are not getting 11 volts to your motor! I use modified anderson plus on all my 12 volt systems.