MotorGuide Trolling Motor won't shut off

[TheLum]

I have a very strange issue with my MotorGuide EF76V trolling motor. I searched the forums but didn't find any posts with the same issue.

It just started a few weeks ago. It gets stuck on. Meaning, I take my foot off the button, but it continues to run. I have to hit it on and off anywhere from one to five more times to get it to turn off. I hear the microswitch clicking, I don't think that's it. What's really weird to me is that the faster I'm running it, the more often it happens. On turtle and slow, almost never. Turtle but increase the speed, it increases the likelihood that it happens. If it's on rabbit, it's about a 1 out of 3 chance. That, to me, makes it unlikely that it's the microswitch.

Even stranger, it only happens in the water. I have never been able to reproduce it once when out of the water. But in the water, I can make it do it just by putting it on rabbit and trying a few times. I'm totally baffled. Any ideas you could help me out with? Thank you

 

[Ahall8799]

I did a quick google search and it seems like your not alone. Try taking it apart and check for water on any electronics and that should be your issue. If not replace the switch. If its not neither of those then my guess is its mechanical. I just searched "motorguide ef76v trolling motor wont shut off" so if yours still having trouble there's that. Let me know what you figure out

 

[TheLum]

Thanks for your reply. I did that search, and most of what I came up with was problems with it getting stuck on high speed, which isn't exactly my issue. I did, though, just come across one that I think might help...the issue was similar, and the culprit was water in the lower unit. That wouldn't explain, necessarily, why it happens more at higher speeds, but it could explain why I can't reproduce the problem unless the lower unit is in the water. I'll open it up tonight and see if there are signs of water being in there.