During a season, I will put in over 500 hours in my kayaks and cover about 1000 miles. I have three Hobie Mirage Drives: two from 2007, and one from 2013. I have only had one breakdown, during some hard pedaling against a strong current on a section of the Detroit River. At that time, I took the opportunity to upgrade my version 1 Mirage Drive to a version 2.

If you still have a v.1 Drive, I would recommend upgrading to the v.2. There are certain improvements that will make your drive more dependable on the water. One of the things that was updated is the mast is now screwed into the sprocket. In the v.1 Mirage Drive, it was seated with a set screw that would sometimes back out and result in the front of the fin dropping off the drive.

With normal use, your Mirage Drive needs very little care, and with a little preventative maintenance can last many years. Here are some basic care recommendations to help keep you pedaling for a long time. Before getting started, rinse off any dirt, sand, debris, or saltwater. Hold the Mirage Drive up, cycle it, and listen for any sand or debris that might still be lodged in moving parts. I personally use Break-Free® “CLP” to clean and lubricate the steel parts. Back in 2008 when I first started maintaining my Mirage Drives, I read on the Hobie Forum that Break-Free® was a popular product that would penetrate, clean, and lubricate all the metal components.

The lubrication points are:

• Sprocket shaft - forward, middle and aft

• chains, front and rear, both sides

• inside of drum-shaft, both sides

• idler pulley, front and rear bearing surfaces

• pedals where they connect to the rank arms

Cycle the Mirage Drive and wipe the excess lubricant.

A few more tips for maintaining your Mirage Drive:

• Check the idler cables to make sure they are not coming loose. Don't over tighten.

• Rinse after each use, making sure any sand or debris is removed

• Pull the Mirage Drive before beaching.

• When launching, make sure you have enough draft before installing the Mirage Drive.

It might be a good idea to get the spare parts kit from Hobie, and keep it in your kayak with the necessary tools to repair your Mirage Drive if you have a failure while on the water.