# Motorguide Xi5 Not Pulling Like It Should



## cheddarthief (Jun 18, 2013)

Last year while on Erie I noticed that my trolling motor batteries weren’t pulling that hard AND they would drain quickly. After looking at the batteries I realized they were 6 years old and probably worn out. So this year I bought 3 brand new Group 31 AMG’s. I installed them and charged them full (they were almost full at purchase but not complete). Yesterday I took the boat out on a local lake for a test run as I always do. I tried turning it up to the max speed and the fast SOG I could reach was 2.4 and I tell it just wasn’t as loud as before. Does anyone have any idea why this may be happening? How could the trolling motor be that weak with brand new $200 batteries powering it?


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## leeabu (Apr 10, 2004)

Take the prop off and look for line/weeds wrapped on the shaft. Look for a bad electrical connection.


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## Jose' (Aug 31, 2013)

Check and make sure you have the batteries hooked up in a proper series..sounds like you have a 36 volt system. Maybe one of the jumper wires between batteries isn't secure?


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## cheddarthief (Jun 18, 2013)

leeabu said:


> Take the prop off and look for line/weeds wrapped on the shaft. Look for a bad electrical connection.


I looked in the prop. Nothing. By bad electrical connection, where exactly? Maybe not getting the full 36v?


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## cheddarthief (Jun 18, 2013)

Jose' said:


> Check and make sure you have the batteries hooked up in a proper series..sounds like you have a 36 volt system. Maybe one of the jumper wires between batteries isn't secure?


Is there a way to check and see if the trolling motor is getting the full 36v? Maybe a volt meter at the connection up front?


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## leeabu (Apr 10, 2004)

You can check at the trolling motor input with a volt meter. You will have to do it on the water with the trolling motor on high. With fresh batteries you should see close to 36 volts. Do you have a plug to power you trolling motor? That is where most electrical connections go bad.


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## cheddarthief (Jun 18, 2013)

leeabu said:


> You can check at the trolling motor input with a volt meter. You will have to do it on the water with the trolling motor on high. With fresh batteries you should see close to 36 volts. Do you have a plug to power you trolling motor? That is where most electrical connections go bad.


Just out of curiosity, why would it have to be on the water with the trolling motor at full? Should the 3 batteries wired in series provide 36 volts whether it's called for by the trolling motor or not? When you put a volt meter on a 12v battery's terminals, it's shows 12 volts regardless of whether an item is calling for the juice or not. I would think if I take off the access cover where the power supply to the trolling motor is wired up front, I should be able to get the 36 volts at that point. No?


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## mrramsey (Apr 18, 2018)

You might need to get an ammeter hooked up and see how many amps the motor is actually pulling. Check with motorguide they should be able to tell you what it should be pulling. 


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## cheddarthief (Jun 18, 2013)

mrramsey said:


> You might need to get an ammeter hooked up and see how many amps the motor is actually pulling. Check with motorguide they should be able to tell you what it should be pulling.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Under load?


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## mrramsey (Apr 18, 2018)

Yes under load. Just say the factory spec says at full speed it should draw 2.5 amps and you are drawing 5 it would indicate a short somewhere (these are made up numbers I have no idea what they are actually supposed to be) but motorguide will. 


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## mrramsey (Apr 18, 2018)

Though now that I think of it motorguide may be able to tell you the no load amperage. I.e running it dry out of the water. 


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## leeabu (Apr 10, 2004)

cheddarthief said:


> Just out of curiosity, why would it have to be on the water with the trolling motor at full? Should the 3 batteries wired in series provide 36 volts whether it's called for by the trolling motor or not? When you put a volt meter on a 12v battery's terminals, it's shows 12 volts regardless of whether an item is calling for the juice or not. I would think if I take off the access cover where the power supply to the trolling motor is wired up front, I should be able to get the 36 volts at that point. No?


Under full load, a bad connection will not pass all the current it should and heat up. When it does this, some of the voltage will be dropped across this bad connection and therefore not available to the motor. Kind of like you plugged another device in series with the battery. You would see the full 36 volt with the motor off and a drop in voltage with the motor on.


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## Popspastime (Apr 1, 2014)

You mentioned the word "series".. are you running 36 volt or 24 volt. Either way they are NOT hooked up in "series".. just wondering..


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## leeabu (Apr 10, 2004)

three 12 volt batteries must be connected in series to give 36 volts. two in series will give 24 volts series means + of first battery to - of second battery + of second battery to - of third battery trolling motor connected to - of first battery and + of third battery


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## bar2 (Nov 2, 2012)

Do you have appropriate gauge wire connecting the batteries?


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## cheddarthief (Jun 18, 2013)

bar2 said:


> Do you have appropriate gauge wire connecting the batteries?


Yes. These are the same cables from Ranger that were always in the system. The only thing that changed is that I now have three brand new batteries in the boat. When I bought the boat used 5 years ago, it had three new trolling batteries in it. These were tired and needed replaced. As a matter of fact, I noticed the last two years that the time before they were out of juice was decreasing with each use. But the new trolling motor from day on pulled very hard, around 5 SOG at top speed. Now it's around half that with brand new batteries. This can't be right.


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## mrramsey (Apr 18, 2018)

Like I indicated before, check the amperage draw with it running at a given setting( probably high speed) see what the draw is. Check with motorguide and they should be able to give you a range of what it is supposed to be. If you are pulling more than what is spec then the motor is the problem. (Bad windings, bad bearings etc) if the amp draw is ok then it could also be a bad electronic speed controller which is probably built into the circuit board. 

If all of the battery connections and wire connections from the batteries to the unit are tight and corrosion free then the problem is internal to the motor or the ESC. 

I am not a trolling motor expert but have a good understanding of electric motors and electronic controls. Basic principles are the same. 


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## leeabu (Apr 10, 2004)

Go to Harbor Freight and purchase item 93084 IR laser Thermometer for 19.99. While on the water and running full speed. Check the temperature at each of the electrical connections on the batteries and the connection for the trolling motor cable. You will most likely find at least one that is hotter than the others. Replace any suspect connections. If all your battery connections are over 5 years old, I suspect they all should be replaced.


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## Fishingisfun (Jul 19, 2012)

Good suggestions here. If your unsure how to use a voltage meter find a compentent person that can do some tests for you. Just owning a meter does not bring an understanding of how to test something. Most new 12 volt batteries will read 12.4 to 12.6 volts without load. If all your batteries are 12 volts even that is not good. Also another consideration is when you boat went faster it was with a clean hull and likely a lot less nessessary gear stored inside all the lockers. Weight of the boat, wind current etc. plays a factor in speed. Check all connections without a batteries connected on a resistance scale. Readings should be low. Any reading with a K or M after the number is a problem. I would expect reading across connections to be less than 10 ohms or close to zero. Continuity settings on some meters are testing in higher scales. Let us know what you find.


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## Meerkat (Aug 10, 2008)

I know the batteries are new but I would do a load test on them to make sure one of them is not a dud. Dont know where you live but Craig at Erie Outfitters has one. Or you can buy one for ~$50. I have one and test my batteries couple of times a year.


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