mmiller wrote:
Warranty on the drive is now 2 years.
The only other time we have seen accellerated wear like that is in very gritty water. A guy toured the Mississippi via Hobie Mirage Kayak. His drive wore down in the stainless parts!
Mine did that too, but I attributed that quick wear to a dealer overtightening the chains to remedy the wear problem. Grit? That might explain some of my past problems.
I kayak in the bottom of another large river basin, much like that of the Mississippi where the water is always turbid. 40 miles further to the east of here, the waters start to clear up. Do you think gritty water can speed up the wear of parts significantly?
Because Hobie strengthened the components and implemented a wide range of other Mirage enhancements and redesigns, I decided to do my part in helping the sluggish economy by getting a 2009 Outback for Christmas.
Matt, let me know if you want me to do any beta testing of components in this gritty environment.