Motor Guide vs Minn Kota

[Thumperman]

Looking for some opinions on Motor Guide vs Minn Kota trolling motors. Will be purchasing a new motor this year and been doing some reading. I'm leaning toward MG because they run a little less expensive than MK. I do not need the bells and whistles, just something basic. My main concern is performance and quality. Any opinions?

[ChipVet]

Looking for some opinions on Motor Guide vs Minn Kota trolling motors. Will be purchasing a new motor this year and been doing some reading. I'm leaning toward MG because they run a little less expensive than MK. I do not need the bells and whistles, just something basic. My main concern is performance and quality. Any opinions?

I have run the Minn Kota for years ( 7 + ) with the co pilot and absolutely love this unit. It has been reliable without all the bells and whistles except the co pilot which I would not be without as you get better turning, speed control and don't have to be in just the right position with you foot control. I can even run this while casting from any position in the boat.

[deantre]

I had the co pilot and upgraded to the I Pilot. Found the I pilot tends to respond slowly where as the co pilot stays on the compass heading. The I-Pilot drifts a good distance then corrects, then drifts again, a real pain. Perhaps the gen 2 version is more precise. The spot lock feature is nice though and recordatrac is good if the speed is high enough. I like to work an area thoroughly and the speed needed is too great. With the co pilot I just make corrections for the wind drift and it works pretty well, lots better than having to keep my foot on a pedal. Dean

[LarryO]

I just upgraded to a Motor Guide Tour Edition with the built in transducer and so far am very pleased. This model has a very solid, well built feel to it. Before, I also had a Motor Guide but it was the cheaper Freshwater series. The Freshwater series had a rack and pinion steering system which was prone to breaking when coliding with a stump or even when attempting to ues the unit on power setting 5. It would produce a lot of torque which actually made it hard to hold the pedal down. The Tour Addition uses cable pull pull steering and doesn't have any of those issues. I recommend it. I prefer the cable steering over the motorized steering but that is just my preference.

If you want motorized steering, I think Monn Kota is probably your best option. Most of my friends use Minn Kota but many of them have commented that my Motor Guide is much quiter than theirs when they fish with me. Not sure if that is really true but several of them have made the same comment.