Does your Mavic do this on start-up too?

looopson · May 24, 2017

Hi All:

I am becoming increasingly convinced that something is very wrong with my gimbal. Since I have owned my Mavic Pro, I have been receiving "Motor Overload" messages on start-up almost every time. These messages only appear for a second at start-up and quickly disappear. Please see this short 17 second video of my Mavic Pro starting up (with audio turned up). I should note I have calibrated my gimbal many times, always with success and as far as I can tell, the gimbal works great otherwise. I have also calibrated the IMU but only once.

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I should note that about 10% of the time when starting up it does not do this and the gimbal smoothly adjusts and looks straight forward with no 1 or 2 clicks. Again, I think this clicking is directly associated with the "Motor Overload... check Gimbal Clamp" error that I've been getting.

I contacted DJI on their live chat and their immediate response was (paraphrasing) "not a software issue, this is a hardware issue, send it in". I'm a little nervous about it though because I heard they've been sending these refurbished ones back to people. I also think this might not be a big issue since otherwise its been running just fine! Do you think I should just hold on to this and see what happens or is this a gimbal just waiting to fail? It's two months old now so I figure the longer I go from the purchase date, the harder it could be to get them to repair it for free (?), which I'm assuming they'll do. I do have the DJI Refresh but I would expect this should be covered under their standard warranty.

Thanks for your opinion. If anyone has had this clicking sound too, let me know!

Michael Ainsworth · May 24, 2017

Nope, it sounds like a gremlin stuck in there.
Maybe something needs a touch of light oil.

Former Member · May 24, 2017

looopson said:
Hi All:

I am becoming increasingly convinced that something is very wrong with my gimbal. Since I have owned my Mavic Pro, I have been receiving "Motor Overload" messages on start-up almost every time. These messages only appear for a second at start-up and quickly disappear. Please see this short 17 second video of my Mavic Pro starting up (with audio turned up). I should note I have calibrated my gimbal many times, always with success and as far as I can tell, the gimbal works great otherwise. I have also calibrated the IMU but only once.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="

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" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

I should note that about 10% of the time when starting up it does not do this and the gimbal smoothly adjusts and looks straight forward with no 1 or 2 clicks. Again, I think this clicking is directly associated with the "Motor Overload... check Gimbal Clamp" error that I've been getting.

I contacted DJI on their live chat and their immediate response was (paraphrasing) "not a software issue, this is a hardware issue, send it in". I'm a little nervous about it though because I heard they've been sending these refurbished ones back to people. I also think this might not be a big issue since otherwise its been running just fine! Do you think I should just hold on to this and see what happens or is this a gimbal just waiting to fail? It's two months old now so I figure the longer I go from the purchase date, the harder it could be to get them to repair it for free (?), which I'm assuming they'll do. I do have the DJI Refresh but I would expect this should be covered under their standard warranty.

Thanks for your opinion. If anyone has had this clicking sound too, let me know!

You have a 1 year warranty. Dont use a Refresh if you ever send it in for this problem. You can wait until the 12th month, and then send it in since your refresh will almost be expired anyway. When you get it back from DJI, sell it and get a new one.

BTW I fix Mavics every day, and some do this and some dont. I would not waste 2 months sending it in as long as your videos are not effected in a negative way. The gimbal motors will continue to give you that error message, but as long as the gimbal finally finds center after the initial power-on calibration, I would fly it until the 12th month. It s probably not going to get any worse.

looopson · May 24, 2017

Thunderdrones said:
You have a 1 year warranty. Dont use a Refresh if you ever send it in for this problem. You can wait until the 12th month, and then send it in since your refresh will almost be expired anyway. When you get it back from DJI, sell it and get a new one.

BTW I fix Mavics every day, and some do this and some dont. I would not waste 2 months sending it in as long as your videos are not effected in a negative way. The gimbal motors will continue to give you that error message, but as long as the gimbal finally finds center after the initial power-on calibration, I would fly it until the 12th month. It s probably not going to get any worse.

That's a great idea -- hold on to it for 11-12 months after my purchase date and return it (assuming no issues prior). It would be great to avoid that DJI Refresh return since you need to pay $79. I have had a hard time finding details on their standard warranty to determine whether this would be covered by it though.

Former Member · May 24, 2017

looopson said:
That's a great idea -- hold on to it for 11-12 months after my purchase date and return it (assuming no issues prior). It would be great to avoid that DJI Refresh return since you need to pay $79. I have had a hard time finding details on their standard warranty to determine whether this would be covered by it though.

It should be covered unless you crashed it, which you didnt. Here are the warranty terms.

This policy does not cover the following:
× Crashes or fire damage caused by non-manufacturing factors, including but not limited to, pilot errors.
× Damage caused by unauthorized modification, disassembly, or shell opening not in accordance with official instructions or manuals.
× Damage caused by improper installation, incorrect use, or operation not in accordance with official instructions or manuals.
× Damage caused by a non-authorized service provider.
× Damage caused by unauthorized modification of circuits and mismatch or misuse of the battery and charger.
× Damage caused by flights which did not follow instruction manual recommendations.
× Damage caused by operation in bad weather (i.e. strong winds, rain, sand/dust storms, etc.)
× Damage caused by operating the product in an environment with electromagnetic interference (i.e. in mining areas or close to radio transmission towers, high-voltage wires, substations, etc.).
× Damage caused by operating the product in an environment suffering from interference from other wireless devices (i.e. transmitter, video-downlink, Wi-Fi signals, etc.).
× Damage caused by operating the product at a weight greater than the safe takeoff weight, as specified by instruction manuals.
× Damage caused by a forced flight when components have aged or been damaged.
× Damage caused by reliability or compatibility issues when using unauthorized third-party parts.
× Damage caused by operating the unit with a low-charged or defective battery.
× Uninterrupted or error-free operation of a product.
× Loss of, or damage to, your data by a product.
× Any software programs, whether provided with the product or installed subsequently.
× Failure of, or damage caused by, any third party products, including those that DJI may provide or integrate into the DJI product at your request.
× Damage resulting from any non-DJI technical or other support, such as assistance with “how-to” questions or inaccurate product set-up and installation.
× Products or parts with an altered identification label or from which the identification label has been removed.