Ep. 36 | MOTOGUIDE Xi3 with Pinpoint GPS | First Time Review | New Trolling Motor for Bass Fishing

FINALLY! We have put up with the antique trolling motor long enough. This video is our initial thoughts about our brand new Motorguide Xi3 trolling motor. This trolling motor has Pinpoint GPS and anchor mode (other trolling motor brands refer to this as spot lock). I was so excited to take it out for its maiden voyage. From the moment I hit the anchor button, I was in love. It worked perfectly!!! This is obviously going to make vertical jigging and fishing in windy situations much easier.
We ran into a bit of a hiccup on our trip (nothing to do with the trolling motor) so we had to cut our time short. But, I was very impressed with the Motorguide Xi3 trolling motor and cannot wait to take it out again for a more extensive bass fishing trip.

[@eyupcanyigit9645]

*This makes my old motor look like a toy **enjoyable.fishing** recommend it's well built. I haven't had it on the water yet, but I'm very sure it will perform just fine.*

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Have you had a chance to try out your new trolling motor yet? Thoughts? Hope you like it!

[@sebastiantoney3373]

Seriously thinking of getting this trolling motor.

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Its a good one to start with, but as I stated in the videos, it has its drawbacks

[@truecrimson1]

If your fish finder has GPS and NMEA you can connect it and it can drive you to way points you set.

[@robertbennett6418]

Just purchased the Xi3. Am replacing a Minn Kota Power Drive. Bought a Motor Guide for multiple reasons one of them was because Minn Kita customer service people were such jerks. My main concern was modifying the quick release mount I used with the Power Drive. Didn't want to drill different holes to mount on my boat. However it turned out to be no problem. The Xi3 fit perfectly on power drive quick release mount. Fish On!

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

I'm glad your install was easy. I hope you enjoy the motor. Let me know your thoughts!

[@stevendoan4676]

Thanks for sharing and good luck!

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Thanks for watching! Have a blessed day!

[@ractaurine]

Really good review

[@badmoonryzin7251]

The music though!!!! Aaaaargh!!!!

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Haha! Glad you liked it. :-) Thanks for watching.

[@Cbill1987]

I know it’s horrible

[@nainabla]

Can this motor be used for autonomous boat for a trip from Japan to Canada? Do the waypoints have a distance limitation?

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Thank you for your comment, but I am not too sure on if I can answer you question fully. I would say, not a fully remote controlled trip.

[@joshuafridley3104]

You should turn off the background music in your videos so we can hear you talk.

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Thank you for the feedback

[@1207jaydavis]

Man... kill the music.

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Thanks for the feedback

[@BBCOutdoors313]

Nice review but kill the music so we can hear you talk better next please.

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Thank you for your comment and feedback

[@kurtgreen1040]

How many times did you think you were going to get wet using the foot pedal?

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Haha! Multiple times that petal would flip around and do a full 180. I would be prepared for the boat to go one way and the petal would send me the opposite direction at full speed. It was rough!! :-) I definitely DO NOT recommend the petal. Thanks for watching!

[@starshooter1003]

Thanks for the video! My pontoon is setup for catfishing and I have the motorguide Xi3 non-gps enabled. I am considering ordering the module kit to enable gps. But, I have a concern about how effective the spot lock will be on a windy lake. If I have multiple lines out around the boat, how much transom swing will I get based on the "anchor point" created by the trolling motor is similar to using one anchor on the bow. My question is, in your experience, will the aft end of the boat swing causing my lines to cross? Thanks!

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Thanks so much for watching! I appreciate it. Great question. I haven't experienced enough movement that I think it would cause lines to get tangles. Honestly, I feel like the motor does a good job of holding location. In fact, I feel like it does a better job in windy situations than in really calm waters. Hope that helps.

[@morreythomas4320]

@@CatchinTheReelLife I ordered the gps module after seeing how effective it works! Thank you very much for taking your time to share.

[@jasonstokley7274]

The trolling motor always points into the wind. So days that the wind is light and changes direction a lot the boat will also.

[@morreythomas4320]

How effective would it be to drop an anchor off the stern, tighten the anchor line, then use the spot lock on the bow to serve as a second anchor of sorts?

[@morreythomas4320]

@@jasonstokley7274 thanks! Just installed the module

[@pywifishingandoutdoors]

About 8 months into mines, and spot lock and straight heading has gone bizarre. Spot lock will put me on for about 1 min, then suddenly go into a winding death spiral until it gets itself stuck with the wires and jam. Straight heading will go straight for 40 secs then turn back around. Did recalibration multiple times and done my circles. Dont know what is wrong with it, gps might of gone bad and needs to be replaced.

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

My best guess would be the GPS unit inside the head. It might have a loose cable or something of that sort. Keep us updated with the process. Hope it works out sooner rather than later. :)

[@elonmust7470]

Well you can't spell the word "mine" right, maybe it's user error..

[@fishingismydrug1]

Did you get this figured out?

[@pywifishingandoutdoors]

@@fishingismydrug1 Yes, its the head unit, apparently motorguide's connection wiring up in the gps module is causing interference. Move it away as far as you can wrapped tightly from the gps module inside the head unit. Others have spoke about using foil to wrap the wires as well. Not sure if that makes any difference, but so far it has done the job for me and many others. Hope that helps.

[@freeagentangler5159]

Music waaaay to loud

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

um...okay. Thanks for sharing.

[@jessemccoy1661]

And the elevator music is terrible!

[@tbrown737]

i am thinking about buying this exact trolling motor.. after some use do you feel the same way about it?

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

I would have to say this trolling motor has done an outstanding job. We have been abusing this motor, running it through thick brush and trees and it holds up perfectly. Not having a foot pedal kinda sucks, but if you can use a remote and cast at the same time then you're golden.

[@elonmust7470]

I wonder where the bad reviews come from? people expecting entirely too much maybe?

[@UnterwasserKameraat]

Hi, is the anchor mode optional or include ?

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

You can get a version with the anchor mode and a version without. The version I have has the anchor mode included. I already had a trolling motor that worked fine, it just didn't have anchor mode so that was the only reason I upgraded. Thanks for watching!

[@UnterwasserKameraat]

@@CatchinTheReelLife Thank you ! how long can i use with 100 Ampere Battery ? 6,90m Boat (RIP)

[@bonbont6912]

do u need the hummingbird fish finder unit to make the motorguide xi3 to spotlock?

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Nope! The spot lock feature is in the trolling motor. No fish finder required.

[@robertbennett6418]

I have a question. Just took my xi3 out on the water yesterday. Couldn't get the track record to work. Recorded a track and saved it. When I hit the play button then the button I assigned to that track the unit beeped but nothing else. Didn't go towards the track. Motor Guide customer service says that the prop has to be on and running before I hit play button. Can you confirm that advice?

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Robert, I wish I could confirm or deny that information. I have not tried to use the track function at all. I wish I could help. Let me know if it works when you get out on the water. I'm curious!

[@robertbennett6418]

Will be back on the lake monday. Hopefully it will work well. Will let you know. Fish on!

[@esboutdoors8019]

What kind of speed you getting from it? Can’t decide on the 55 or 70lb xi3 gps

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

I'd say 7mph or so. Definitely worth the buy.

[@esboutdoors8019]

@@CatchinTheReelLife I’ll be ordering one today! Thanks for the reply and great review! 🤙🏻 tight lines bud

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

@@esboutdoors8019 Let us know if you like it! We're interested to hear about your experience.

[@esboutdoors8019]

@@CatchinTheReelLife will do! 🤙🏻

[@Jonesy9881]

What model number is the trolling motor. I would like to order one but want to make sure I get the correct one.

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Here's the sku number for the exact one I got: 940700020. Go to the Motorguide website: www.motorguide.com/us/en.html. Click on the search button (magnifying glass) in upper right hand corner. Put in that sku number and it should pop right up.

[@jemhidiahssj4114]

Lighten up on the music, can barely hear you speak.

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

thank you for your feedback!

[@user-es8do8pd3k]

sorry but the music was way too annoying to sit through the whole video.

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Thank you for the feedback

[@mobytroy2079]

How long does a battery last?

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

All day. :-) I've never had the battery run out, even on windy days with lots of spot lock action fighting wind a waves.

[@jonm345]

What length shaft is this?

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

I think I have the 54" shaft.

[@gilianrampart8514]

Why the mesmerizing music?

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

To mesmerize you...🙂

[@timmywimsatt134]

Like and subscribed. But that is most annoying useless music I’ve ever heard😂😮.

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Appreciate the sub. Sorry about the music. Haha! Had no idea it was so loud when I edited the video.

[@BigCityCountryBoi]

@3:35 "...I didn't won't to spend another you know hundreds of dollars up front..." Nice way not to say how much you actually spent on a toy in front of the wifey...🤣

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Hahaha! You know she can read these comments, right?!?! :-) You're giving away my secrets! Haha! Thanks for watching.

[@richie2dicks468]

How much was it?

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Too much!!!!! Haha! After using this for a while, I am less and less impressed and would recommend a different motor. I'm on my second handheld remote. I bought the wireless foot pedal and it was a piece of junk!!! I paid around $1300, but wouldn't do it again. Thanks for watching!

[@richie2dicks468]

@@CatchinTheReelLife I’ve heard about the same of minn koda maybe try rohdan

[@spookify]

@@CatchinTheReelLife This is what I'm worried about... Im in the market for a new trolling motor and I have heard both MotorGuide and MinnKota have huge problems... I dont know what to do...

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

@@spookify I really wish I could recommend this trolling motor. After having it for several months, I am just not happy with it. Using the handheld remote is very inconvenient and the foot petal is a joke. The spot lock feature also has some pretty wide variance from time to time. Maybe this is normal will all motors. I do like that the motor doesn't use much battery power, but that is the only positive I can think of. Thanks for watching the video. I hope it helped!

[@elonmust7470]

@@CatchinTheReelLife So you too don't like it?

[@thomaskalisch4678]

Can't hear. With that music

[@r.minnis9722]

i can hear fine

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

I'll be honest, I've listened to this video several times and I hear every word I'm saying. IDK, maybe it's just because it's my video. :-) I probably could turn the tunes down a bit. What can I say. I'm a full-time DJ. I like my music loud. :-)

[@brandonthompson8550]

Just finding this video but have been back and forth as most videos give this a horrible review. Which maybe they had way higher expectations etc, based on yours it seems legit and may be worth a crack On winds closer to 15 MPh has your 16ft boat blown off your spot ?? Lot of factors on current and such, lake vs river etc. what battery did you go with ??

[@CatchinTheReelLife]

Thanks for watching. I'm torn on this motor. For a entry level motor with spot lock, it does a great job. I run it off a 12V battery. It holds position well, even in higher winds. (However, I haven't tested that very much. I thought I was going to fish in the middle of the lake the other day in 13-15 mph winds and I couldn't keep the trolling motor in the water! Haha!) My biggest complaint is that it is only remote control directed and it is REALLY frustrating to have to continually take my hands off my rod to make micro-corrections in my heading. Also, the foot pedal is a complete joke! Don't even waste your time with that. In short, I LOVE the spot lock function and it works great. I hate that I have to constantly have my hands on the remote if I'm trying to fish up and down a shoreline. Hope that helps!