Minnkota terrova NOISE

[Randaln]

24v Minnkota terrova
Making a noise while turning head while underway…I think it does it real bad ,turning counter clockwise..
Sounds like plastic on plastic
And NOT a mechanical bearing out type grinding noise.. I’ve read up a little on it ..
Heard of people using armor all spray on the collar and shaft to quiet it down…
I’m not a cheap *** but I don’t want to buy a 300 dollar steering box if I don’t have to .

 

[Still Afloat]

Is it a ticking noise? I can hear the gearbox wrrr-wrrr while turning and that seems normal for a servo motor. Occasionally, it will tick when turning clockwise and that concerns me more than the drive noise. I think it’s coming from the pin that attaches the gearbox to the bracket. Both of my Terrovas make the same ticking noise.

 

[Randaln]

It’s not a ticking noise
More like a grind..but not a metal or bearing grind noise..
Kinda like a loud chatter..

 

[Still Afloat]

That doesn’t sound good. I‘ll bet the servo/steering gearbox is self destructing. It probably has missing or rounded off teeth on some gears. (Coincidentally, my 72” mower deck just made the same type of noise a few weeks ago.) Is it under warranty? If not, Northland Marine, Lakeside Marine and few others have good parts availability. Download the parts diagram for your TERROVA, get the part number(s) then shop for the best price.

Attached is an exploded view of a Steering Housing for a 2022 TERROVA 80 with iPilot. Your‘s may vary.

 

[Still Afloat]

FYI - Lakeside probably has better prices but, they use Shopify for order fulfillment. Shopify will retain your personal and payment information for future use without your permission. Some people might be Ok with that but, it’s a show stopper for me. I will not do business with any site that uses Shopify.

 

[Randaln]

Here’s what I found so far
No damage to any gears..
Butttt found a burned up main hot lead that goes down to the trolling motor itself..

 

[Randaln]

 

[Randaln]

I cut those off and replaced them .
It also burnt the blue sleeve that goes over those connections.

 

[Still Afloat]

Good to know that your gears are Ok but, something is binding. It’s drawing too much current. Fixing the wiring is a patch. Find the root of the problem.

 

[thill]

Good catch.

Did it work?

 

[FuzzyGrub]

That looks to be the main power lead. The steering motor draws very little compared to the drive motor. Surprised to see spade connector being used. My guess this is corrosion issue. It will add resistance and cause heat problems like what is shown.

I had a MG Wiresless bind the steering and fail to turn. I thought it must have stripped the gears. I found all the gears in good shape and it would steer with light load. One gear was spinning on shaft under load. MG only sells the whole transmission and it was NLA. Only old stock with very high prices. I ended up using a plastic epoxy thinking it would never hold up, but it has been 2-3 years now.

The root cause was binding was in the plastic sleeves. It appeared that the plastic had swelled over many years of use. I did allot of fine sanding to get a nice slip fit. Using lubricants can also cause swelling.

Anyway, posted just in case you still have binding after fixing the wiring.

 

[jethro]

You can buy almost every gear inside the steering box direct from Minn Kota for about $15. How do I know? I've had to do it for my 36v Ulterra. You'd be amazed how a $3000 motor is built with parts that are akin to a childs toy.

 

[Still Afloat]

Missing a few teeth there. Is that normal wear or did the motor bump into something like a rock?

 

[jethro]

Missing a few teeth there. Is that normal wear or did the motor bump into something like a rock?

Tough to explain but it was my fault. This motor self-stows and lost it's home position alignment and I misunderstood how to reposition the head.

 

[Still Afloat]

Stuff happens but it looks like you are on top of it.