What's wrong with my new Minn Kota Ulterra? 2025
tcbass reply :
Never had an issue with my anything on my 2014 Stratus 186VLO. Bought it used and owned it for 1 year. This year put a new Minn Kota Ulterra on it, took off a Minn Kota Terrova. Haven't had any problem with either TM or their batteries.
Brought my boat into the shop because I thought the motor was smoking too much. Found out that it was fine and that 2 strokes just smoke. It was outside overnight, something that it never is as it is always stored in my pole barn.
Well, I took it out to the lake for the first time to test it and everything worked well, except my trolling motor. The green "power" light came on and then it only deployed it about 2" inches. After a few tries I got it stowed. It seemed that whenever it got any power it turned off. Then the red "low voltage" light came on the Ulterra next to the "power" light. So my thinking was bad battery.
Update: Tried it again today after full charging. Same problem. It seems that when it starts to deploy it pops the breaker and turns off.
I can immediately turn it back on but it won't deploy but obviously it's not flipping the breakerMaybe the batteries did go bad.
Im going to take it back to NTB and not charge the battery as recommended and see what happens.
Plugged the boat's Minn Kota charger in back at the house for 2 days and the batteries said fully charged.
Went up to check the Ulterra and the red "low voltage" is still on, so now I'm worried if I go back to the lake the trolling motor won't work again.
Brought the boat to NTB and they tested all 3 batteries (2 deep cycle, 1 cranking) and they all checked out fine.
Update: All connections are tight and all fuses/breakers are good. Boat has worked fine for a year, and worked well for 10 trips or so with the new Ulterra, no problems. Water level in batteries is good.
Got home and read the manual, apparently a solid red light is "stowed", a blinking red light is "stowing/deploying" and no light when the motor is on is "deployed".
Well, if this is the case then I don't know why my motor wouldn't stow or deploy on the lake, I will take it out on the lake and attempt to use it again (I wish I could do it on the trailer but the TM hits the trailer) and reset it if I have to.
What's wrong with my Ulterra?
Could the shop have done something to screw up my trolling motor?
*** The TM batteries have 30amp fuses on them (covered in red rubber) and then a breaker that you can see on the bottom left of the pic.
I also tried to reset it per Minn Kota's instructions but it wouldn't do that either.
Scott F reply :
I would check for tight connections between the trolling motor and your batteries. Especially, check both the trolling motor plug and the receptacle.
tcbass reply :
On 9/3/2017 at 1:18 AM, Scott F said:I would check for tight connections between the trolling motor and your batteries. Especially, check both the trolling motor plug and the receptacle.
Thanks, I'll check. There is no plug in as it is hardwired in, so I'll check to see if that became loose at all. I know the battery connections are tight.
sully420 reply :
Im thinking your batteries arent linked up correctly. There should be a sheet with instructions for three different options of wiring your batteries together for 24 volts. I had that problem then i re wired the batteries and it worked well.
iabass8 reply :
charge them to full, unplug the charger and let the batteties sit overnight OFF the charger. Check the voltage of each battery. Should be 12.6-12.7 on each.
Check the water levels in your batteries.
make sure they actually are hooked up correctly for 24v. Jumpet between the non used + and -.
Check the connections on the head and make sure they arent loose.
Make sure they are tight on the batteries and void of corroison.
Take it to a minn kota repair shop. Its still under watranty.
sully420 reply :
If you could post a pic of your 2 battries and how they are rigged that would help
tcbass reply :
On 9/3/2017 at 1:43 AM, sully420 said:If you could post a pic of your 2 battries and how they are rigged that would help
Done.
tcbass reply :
On 9/3/2017 at 1:42 AM, iabass8 said:
charge them to full, unplug the charger and let the batteties sit overnight OFF the charger. Check the voltage of each battery. Should be 12.6-12.7 on each.
Check the water levels in your batteries.
make sure they actually are hooked up correctly for 24v. Jumpet between the non used + and -.
Check the connections on the head and make sure they arent loose.
Make sure they are tight on the batteries and void of corroison.
Take it to a minn kota repair shop. Its still under watranty.
Going to try not charging the batteries.
slonezp reply :
Unit is under warranty, find an authorized MK shop and drop it off.
tcbass reply :
On 9/4/2017 at 9:11 PM, slonezp said:Unit is under warranty, find an authorized MK shop and drop it off.
If I have to I will but I have a fishing trip I am going on in 2 weeks and want it back before then and not sure I will if I drop it off.
Bulletman20XD reply :
I'm no expert on that TM but I have heard from a friend that bought one and on *** that they have had lots pf problems with the Ulterra and the Ultrex with Spot-Loc. It is a problem an authorized shop can fix.
tcbass reply :
On 9/4/2017 at 9:51 PM, Bulletman20XD said:I'm no expert on that TM but I have heard from a friend that bought one and on *** that they have had lots pf problems with the Ulterra and the Ultrex with Spot-Loc. It is a problem an authorized shop can fix.
Well, the spot lock has worked well so hopefully it's not that.
This just has a problem that whenever you try to deploy it it turns off. I think it's a battery issue........
Scott F reply :
To me, it sounds more like a limit switch problem. When you stow the unit, it is supposed to hit a switch to shut the power off. If the switch or actuator is bad, it looks like it shuts itself off even when it is off the cradle. Call Minn Kota.
tcbass reply :
On 9/5/2017 at 4:31 AM, Scott F said:To me, it sounds more like a limit switch problem. When you stow the unit, it is supposed to hit a switch to shut the power off. If the switch or actuator is bad, it looks like it shuts itself off even when it is off the cradle. Call Minn Kota.
It happens when I attempt to deploy it. I also tried to reset it per Minn Kota's instructions but it wouldn't do that either.
I turn it on, both green "power" light and red "stow" light come on.
I then hit deploy and it deploys about 2" inches and shuts off.
Does that sound like the limiter?
Scott F reply :
On 9/5/2017 at 4:47 AM, tcbass said:
It happens when I attempt to deploy it.
I turn it on, both green "power" light and red "stow" light come on.
I then hit deploy and it deploys about 2" inches and shuts off.
Does that sound like the limiter?
It does to me. But I would call Minn Kota.
VolFan reply :
It's under warranty. Go to a MK dealer and have them assess it. Futzing with it based on internet advice is only heading you towards voiding the warranty. If it can't be ready by your planned trip, wait until after the trip to get the work done.
tcbass reply :
On 9/5/2017 at 5:24 AM, VolFan said:It's under warranty. Go to a MK dealer and have them assess it. Futzing with it based on internet advice is only heading you towards voiding the warranty. If it can't be ready by your planned trip, wait until after the trip to get the work done.
Well, I really need it to work for my fishing trip. lol. I'm between a rock and a hard place.
slonezp reply :
On 9/5/2017 at 5:24 AM, tcbass said:
Well, I really need it to work for my fishing trip. lol. I'm between a rock and a hard place.
You are your own worst enemy. Call Minn Kota tomorrow morning. Could be something as simple as a software upgrade. If not, a reputable shop may have a free loaner. The way I see it, it doesn't work now. Not bringing it to a MK shop is only prolonging you not fishing.
tcbass reply :
On 9/5/2017 at 9:53 AM, slonezp said:You are your own worst enemy. Call Minn Kota tomorrow morning. Could be something as simple as a software upgrade. If not, a reputable shop may have a free loaner. The way I see it, it doesn't work now. Not bringing it to a MK shop is only prolonging you not fishing.
Yeah, definitely calling tomorrow and seeing what to do. It's not like I've just been letting it sit, I brought it in to get the batteries checked a few days ago and have had to work the last few.
tcbass reply :
On 9/3/2017 at 1:42 AM, iabass8 said:
charge them to full, unplug the charger and let the batteties sit overnight OFF the charger. Check the voltage of each battery. Should be 12.6-12.7 on each.
Check the water levels in your batteries.
make sure they actually are hooked up correctly for 24v. Jumpet between the non used + and -.
Check the connections on the head and make sure they arent loose.
Make sure they are tight on the batteries and void of corroison.
Take it to a minn kota repair shop. Its still under watranty.
Brought it to a dealer and they hooked it up to a battery and it ran fine. So the problem has to be my batteries, fuses, breaker, wires, or corrosion. I told them what you said about leaving the batteries off of the charger over night and they said that that was a good idea. I wish I would have done that before I brought it to NTB.
They think that it's most likely the batteries since they are over 3 years old.
They did say that a lot of Ulterras and Ultrexs have come in with problems.
I'll also say that I really regret not using a quick release bracket when I installed this Ulterra like a lot of folks on here recommended.
iabass8 reply :
On 9/6/2017 at 1:55 PM, tcbass said:
Brought it to a dealer and they hooked it up to a battery and it ran fine. So the problem has to be my batteries, fuses, breaker, wires, or corrosion. I told them what you said about leaving the batteries off of the charger over night and they said that that was a good idea. I wish I would have done that before I brought it to NTB.
They think that it's most likely the batteries since they are over 3 years old.
They did say that a lot of Ulterras and Ultrexs have come in with problems.
I'll also say that I really regret not using a quick release bracket when I installed this Ulterra like a lot of folks on here recommended.
Looking through your updates I'm a little confused.
IF the TM turns off and then you can turn the TM back on and you actually see that it has power without flipping the breaker, then your breaker is fine. You wouldn't get any power if you have to reset the breaker. You may want to check the breaker size and make sure you have the right size for an Ulterra.
If the TM works perfectly where you took it on their batteries but not on your batteries, odds are one of the batteries is weak. Just charge them to FULL and then remove everything off the battery and let them sit. Take the voltage the next day. If it's below 12.6, replace them BOTH.
tcbass reply :
On 9/6/2017 at 9:52 PM, iabass8 said:Looking through your updates I'm a little confused.
IF the TM turns off and then you can turn the TM back on and you actually see that it has power without flipping the breaker, then your breaker is fine. You wouldn't get any power if you have to reset the breaker. You may want to check the breaker size and make sure you have the right size for an Ulterra.
If the TM works perfectly where you took it on their batteries but not on your batteries, odds are one of the batteries is weak. Just charge them to FULL and then remove everything off the battery and let them sit. Take the voltage the next day. If it's below 12.6, replace them BOTH.
Yep, that's what I'm going to do. Hav had it off the charger. Going to get them tested soon and most likely replaced.
Basically the batteries tested well when fresh off of the charger but as soon as you put a load on them go right to too weak to operate the trolling motor which doesn't show in a voltage test.
tcbass reply :
Update:
So, after having the Ulterra tested and it working fine I know that it's got to be fuses, breaker, wiring, or batteries.
I left the batteries off of the charger for 3 days and brought them in today. The batteries tested well and the woman at Batteries Plus said they'd keep my old batteries, I could test these and if they didn't work I could return them and get my old batteries back and a refund (makes me a fan of Batteries Plus).
Brought the batteries home and same exact problem. It starts to deploy for about 1/2 a second shuts off. So, now I know it's not the batteries and it must be a fuse, breaker, or wiring. I'm thinking it's the breaker since all the wiring looks good and tight, the fuses look good......so it must be the breaker right?
Here's a pic of the breaker:
It is "on" when I'm testing it.
The positive wire goes from the battery into the breaker and then out to the boat to the TM.
Everything worked well until I brought it into the shop to have the outboard looked at. Could the shop have done something?????
I'm going on my trip on Tuesday and hoping to get this resolved. Am I missing anything? What could it be?
iabass8 reply :
You didn't need to take the batteries in to be tested. Buy a volt meter. Just take the voltage at the battery after they were left off the charger...
In the picture, your breaker is off. I'm assuming you aren't trying to use it /w it off....
If your breaker is ON when you are using it, and when it stops mid deploy, the breaker IS NOT being tripped, your breaker is fine. If you have to go back to your fuse and reengage it, then I would look at replacing it /w the recommended 60a breaker.
Am I just not seeing them or are there no wires coming into that breaker...?
tcbass reply :
On 9/11/2017 at 9:03 AM, iabass8 said:You didn't need to take the batteries in to be tested. Buy a volt meter. Just take the voltage at the battery after they were left off the charger...
In the picture, your breaker is off. I'm assuming you aren't trying to use it /w it off....
If your breaker is ON when you are using it, and when it stops mid deploy, the breaker IS NOT being tripped, your breaker is fine. If you have to go back to your fuse and reengage it, then I would look at replacing it /w the recommended 60a breaker.
Am I just not seeing them or are there no wires coming into that breaker...?
I added a better pic.
The positive wire goes from the battery to the break and then from the break to the front of the boat to the TM. The old pic was just at a bad angle.
Where would the fuse be? Would it have a fuse it if has the breaker?
So the fuse would look like it's working but it in fact is not, so that I should just change the fuse and it should work? (I know I wrote fuse might be bad, but I assumed if it had a breaker it didn't have a fuse).
iabass8 reply :
On 9/11/2017 at 9:25 AM, tcbass said:
I added a better pic.
The positive wire goes from the battery to the break and then from the break to the front of the boat to the TM. The old pic was just at a bad angle.
Where would the fuse be? Would it have a fuse it if has the breaker?
So the fuse would look like it's working but it in fact is not, so that I should just change the fuse and it should work?
Your TM has a circuit breaker, not a fuse like your on board charger, electronics, or accessories.
When you turn your breaker to OFF, your TM should not turn on or get any power what so ever. When you turn it on, it should be getting power. If it does this, your breaker is doing it's job. It is there to protect your batteries/boat from a fire when in case of overheating.
When your TM has it's issue, is your breaker being flipped to OFF? If the answer to this question is no, and the breaker stays to "on", your breaker is not the issue.
If the breaker is being flipped to OFF, then you either have a wiring issue, or a breaker issue.
I have no idea what the wires /w the fuses /w the red caps are that are hooked to your TM battery.
tcbass reply :
On 9/11/2017 at 9:44 AM, iabass8 said:Your TM has a circuit breaker, not a fuse like your on board charger, electronics, or accessories.
When you turn your breaker to OFF, your TM should not turn on or get any power what so ever. When you turn it on, it should be getting power. If it does this, your breaker is doing it's job. It is there to protect your batteries/boat from a fire when in case of overheating.
When your TM has it's issue, is your breaker being flipped to OFF? If the answer to this question is no, and the breaker stays to "on", your breaker is not the issue.
If the breaker is being flipped to OFF, then you either have a wiring issue, or a breaker issue.
I have no idea what the wires /w the fuses /w the red caps are that are hooked to your TM battery.
Breaker is staying on and I can turn the Ulterra right back on again and attempt to deploy where it will do it for another 1/2 second before shutting off again.
The red fuses/wires are from the charger. I left this un-connected in the latest pic.
And correct, when I have the breaker off the TM and small fish locater get no power and can't do anything.
So, all my Ulterra has is that breaker, there is no fuse?
iabass8 reply :
On 9/11/2017 at 9:48 AM, tcbass said:
Breaker is staying on and I can turn the Ulterra right back on again and attempt to deploy where it will do it for another 1/2 second before shutting off again.
The red fuses/wires are from the charger. I left this un-connected in the latest pic.
And correct, when I have the breaker off the TM and small fish locater get no power and can't do anything.
So, all my Ulterra has is that breaker, there is no fuse?
If you have a fish locator on your TM, take it off...you should NEVER have anything on your TM batteries (especially 24+v TM) except for the TM and onboard charger. Put it on your cranking battery. You're drawing down that battery and your TM will not get the power of 2 full batteries. If one battery is at 99% and the other is at 87%, you are only getting 87% on a 24v series instead of 99%.
If the TM worked fine at the dealer, you have new and verified good batteries, then it's something in your boat. Being your TM is hardwired, there's only 2 things it can be. Your breaker or the wiring. Have you checked the wiring at the bow? You haven't said anything about the bow connections. You can always take the positive TM wire off the breaker and put it directly to the battery to test it. If it works then , you have a breaker issue.(Don't use the TM w/o hooking the breaker back up after testing...) If that doesn't fix it, the only thing left is your boat TM wiring.
I believe the Ulterra has a 3a fuse in the head but it's for the US2 connection, not your TM.
tcbass reply :
On 9/11/2017 at 10:20 AM, iabass8 said:If you have a fish locator on your TM, take it off...you should NEVER have anything on your TM batteries (especially 24+v TM) except for the TM and onboard charger. Put it on your cranking battery. You're drawing down that battery and your TM will not get the power of 2 full batteries. If one battery is at 99% and the other is at 87%, you are only getting 87% on a 24v series instead of 99%.
If the TM worked fine at the dealer, you have new and verified good batteries, then it's something in your boat. Being your TM is hardwired, there's only 2 things it can be. Your breaker or the wiring. Have you checked the wiring at the bow? You haven't said anything about the bow connections. You can always take the positive TM wire off the breaker and put it directly to the battery to test it. If it works then , you have a breaker issue.(Don't use the TM w/o hooking the breaker back up after testing...) If that doesn't fix it, the only thing left is your boat TM wiring.
I believe the Ulterra has a 3a fuse in the head but it's for the US2 connection, not your TM.
Ok, I'll disconnect the fish locator. It it did work fine with the fish locator on it for like 10-12 trips.
I un-mounted the TM and brought it to a dealer and they hooked it up straight to a battery and it ran. So, the TM isn't the problem.
The wires in the bow look good.
Maybe the US2 fuse in the head is blown and causing the problem?
Or the fish locator was too much?
iabass8 reply :
On 9/11/2017 at 10:49 AM, tcbass said:
Ok, I'll disconnect the fish locator. It it did work fine with the fish locator on it for like 10-12 trips.
I un-mounted the TM and brought it to a dealer and they hooked it up straight to a battery and it ran. So, the TM isn't the problem.
The wires in the bow look good.
Maybe the US2 fuse in the head is blown and causing the problem?
Or the fish locator was too much?
The fish locator on your TM battery isn't going to cause this issue. It will just cause you to replace your batteries sooner than later.
The US2 fuse wouldn't have anything to do /w the power or losing power on your TM. It's just there for your electronics. I think some times people say it causes interference on your locator. If it worked fine at your dealer on their batteries, then it isn't anything in the TM or the US2 fuse. I get you're looking for a 3 minute fix but this is in your boat unless you're missing telling us something.
If you feel the bow wiring is clean, and this TM worked fine prior to your out board service..and the only place in theory they would have been during this time would have been back near the batteries..I would start looking there.
Run the TM directly to the batteries. Take the + wire off the breaker and put it directly on the battery post that the breaker + wire came from. If the TM works like this, replace your breaker. If it doesn't work, you have a wiring issue between the back of the boat and the TM.
Hard to diagnose via forums but you've swapped batteries for brand new, you've said all connections are clean and solid, TM has worked fine in the past, and the TM works on your dealers batteries. The only things you didn't take with you to the dealer were the wiring and breaker...Only can be 1 of 2 things now.
You really should have taken your boat to the dealer in the first place and not just the TM being at the time it could have been 10 different things.
tcbass reply :
On 9/11/2017 at 11:05 AM, iabass8 said:The fish locator on your TM battery isn't going to cause this issue. It will just cause you to replace your batteries sooner than later.
The US2 fuse wouldn't have anything to do /w the power or losing power on your TM. It's just there for your electronics. I think some times people say it causes interference on your locator. If it worked fine at your dealer on their batteries, then it isn't anything in the TM or the US2 fuse. I get you're looking for a 3 minute fix but this is in your boat unless you're missing telling us something.
If you feel the bow wiring is clean, and this TM worked fine prior to your out board service..and the only place in theory they would have been during this time would have been back near the batteries..I would start looking there.
Run the TM directly to the batteries. Take the + wire off the breaker and put it directly on the battery post that the breaker + wire came from. If the TM works like this, replace your breaker. If it doesn't work, you have a wiring issue between the back of the boat and the TM.
Hard to diagnose via forums but you've swapped batteries for brand new, you've said all connections are clean and solid, TM has worked fine in the past, and the TM works on your dealers batteries. The only things you didn't take with you to the dealer were the wiring and breaker...Only can be 1 of 2 things now.
You really should have taken your boat to the dealer in the first place and not just the TM being at the time it could have been 10 different things.
I was going to but the dealer said only bring in the TM, which sucks because I had to un-mount it and would rather have just brought the boat in.
Good to know it can only be one of these two things.
tcbass reply :
Also, it's always stored inside.
When it was at the shop it was parked outside in a huge rainstorm. Maybe something important got wet and ruined or lighting struck nearby and fried some electrical or something?
tcbass reply :
Update: Solved.
Problem was a bad breaker.
Shout out to Action Fishing Electronics for helping me on such short notice.
And Batteries Plus for keeping my old batteries so I could get them back if the batteries weren't the problem.
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