Minn Kota Ulterra V Motorguide

[fishing111]

I know there have been some very unlucky people who have purchased the Minn Kota Ulterras who have ongoing issues with the auto trim, deploy/retrieve failing, but my question is that reflective overall, or just a small percentage having these failures? Looking at the pricing between the Motorguide and the Minn kota there is a huge difference, however the initial upfront price may recede a little if everything works and keeps on working on the Minn Kota. I think I would like the idea of not going through the cabin hatch every time, however if the Ulterra is going to fail all the time that would wear very,very thin on me for the money asked. I also don’t want to consider a unit that is going to die shortly after the warranty expires, or not even make it to the end of the warranty without multiple failures and being in for repair all the time, so looking for some real world usage, honest feedback. Cheers

[NAGG]

Electric motors are problematic at the best of times - auto stow / deploy is just more to go wrong ….. and they do .

From my discussions with a dealer who sells both brands - he doesn't feel that one brand is more reliable than the other ( he also repairs them) …… But he does believe that the aftersales support from BLA (Minn Kota) is better ( carrying parts - responding to claims etc) .

Each & every Minn Kota that I have owned (5) have had at least one issue during the warranty period ….. though I will say there are not the multiple issues that I had with my first 3

Chris

[rayken1938]

I have had an ulterra link since september 2006 with zero problems. Used at least 2 days a week on fresh water dams and stored out in the weather between trips. Only thing is that I turn off the back light and adjust the auto off to 30 minutes on the remote to conserve battery power in the remote. Absolute lifesaver to me as I am old fart with crook shoulders and was unable to deploy and retrieve my old i pilot. Not only is the stow and deploy great the ability to alter the trim to enter shallow water or slip over logs without leaving my seat at the stern is fantastic.
Cheers Ray