Minnkota PD V2 40lb Blowing Fuses

Hello to all. I think I have some kind of problem with my boat. I used to run a all-terrain 40 from minnkota and had no problems at all. I recently purchased a Power Drive V2 with co-pilot and was using it the other day. All was well untill I made a long run of about 15 min in high speed and the 30 amp inline fuse blew. I went to my back-up which is only a 10 amp, and that blew immediatly. With the old motor i never blew either fuse. Do the newer motors pull more amps ? I am running about 15 feet of wire from the batteries to the motor. What guage wire should I be using, and what amp fuses, if any shoud I have iniline ? I took the motor apart to look for water intruson, and found none. The brushes are fine and seals are great. Confused. I must say that although it requires some getting used to, the co-pilot system seems to be a nice feature. Any ideas, as i am ready to rewire the boat for the new motor if i have to. Thanks in advance for your time. Dave

Re: Minnkota PD V2 40lb Blowing Fuses

You need to remember that 15 feet of wire is only one leg of the trip for the current to flow through. The ground side is also 15 feet so the round trip is 30 feet. The very minimum you should have is 6 gauge and that depends on how big the V2 motor is. If you had a 40 and this one is a 50 or 55#, yes, the new motor will draw more current at high speed, but less at lower speeds. If the fuse holder has wires smaller than the rest of the circuit that can be an issue as well. The fuse holder wires need to be the same size or larger than rest of the wire. Your PD needs a minimum 40A and preferably a 50A fuse or breaker (again depending on size.)

Re: Minnkota PD V2 40lb Blowing Fuses

I believe that motor is rated at 42A at full power.