Minn Kota PowerDrive V2 power issue

[robhj]

Curious if anyone has experienced this. I have an older Minn Kota PowerDrive V2 that came with the boat when I bought it in 2004. Although I'd like one with more power, I haven't had any issues except for having to replace the foot pedal twice. I went out this wknd and the power/forward stopped working. I was able to turn the motor left/right but could not get the prop to spin. I checked the battery & trolling motor wire connections & everything looked fine. I then bought a new foot pedal but that did not fix the issue. What is really frustrating is that I can get the prop to spin when the motor is in the stored & locked position. As soon as I disengage the lock & lower the motor, it stops working. I called a marine shop/dealer & they had never heard of this issue. I assume there must be a wire in the shaft or housing unit that is getting pinched somehow when the motor is deploye?. My question is has anyone taken apart a minn kota and is it relatively easy to do? I left a msg for a repair guy in Grand Rapids area that I was referred to. Maybe this is a sign from the fish gods to upgrade my trolling motor.