Troubleshooting Guide

It depends which model you have, and you should always confirm with your airline before you travel.

• Subnado Lite: 98 Wh, which sits under the 100 Wh threshold most airlines apply to lithium batteries in carry-on baggage.
• Subnado Plus: 144 Wh, which is above 100 Wh. Batteries between 101 and 160 Wh normally require prior approval from the airline.

Rules differ between carriers and routes, so check with your airline in advance. We can supply the UN38.3 test report and MSDS documentation if they ask for it.

About 1.2 hours for a full charge on both the Lite and the Plus, over USB-C.

The Lite charges at up to 100 W (PD3.0) and can also work as a power bank. The Plus supports 140 W bi-directional fast charging (PD3.1).

Topping up with a lower-power charger is fine, particularly when the unit is already showing five or six bars.

Stop here first: if the battery is swollen, hot, wet, leaking or physically damaged, do not charge it and do not test it. Go straight to a warranty claim.

Otherwise there are three safe checks worth doing:

1. Fit the battery to the board, power on, and confirm the board runs when you pull the remote trigger. That tells us whether the pack is holding charge at all.
2. Check that the two screws on both the charger plug and the battery terminals are not loose.
3. Wipe the infrared sensors on the battery and the charger with alcohol. They communicate optically, and a smear is enough to interrupt it.

If it still will not charge, file a claim and attach a 30-second video showing the charger indicator, the battery screen and the button on the DC cable in the same frame. That one video usually tells our team what is wrong.

Stop using it and stop charging it immediately. This applies if the battery is swollen, unusually hot, smoking, leaking, has got wet, or has been dropped or physically damaged.

Move it away from anything flammable and leave it alone. Do not try to test it, discharge it or charge it to see what happens.

Then file a claim and tell us what happened. Mark it as urgent, because our team treats battery damage as a priority case.

Two safe checks:

1. Try a different charger and cable. If it takes charge, the original charger is the problem.
2. Look into the charging port for corrosion or burn marks.

If it charges but stops before full, unplug and replug into a different charger a few times and see whether it resumes. Topping up on a lower-power charger is fine when it is already at five or six bars.

If neither helps, file a claim and describe what you saw.

This is usually a seating or gasket issue rather than a fault. Pick the clip that matches what you are stuck on:

• Installing the battery compartment plate
• Installing the battery itself
• Taking off the rubber plug
• Removing the rubber gasket

If anything looks damaged or is missing while you are in there, stop and file a claim so we can send the replacement part.

Isolate which part is at fault before anything else:

1. Try a different charging cable, or charge a different remote with the same cable.
2. Look into the charging port for corrosion or damage.

If the remote still will not power on normally, file a claim rather than opening it.

Yes. Our products contain lithium batteries, and carriers, customs officials and airlines sometimes ask for the paperwork. Both documents are below.

The UN38.3 test report covers transport testing; the MSDS covers material safety.

First confirm both the remote and the board are charged and the firmware is current. Then:

1. Restart both the remote and the EVO.
2. On the remote, long-press Power and Minus together. This drops the old connection and starts a fresh Bluetooth search.
3. Once the remote picks up the mast signal, pull the trigger to pair.

If the remote cannot find the mast signal at all, file a claim. Record a pairing video in a quiet room with the startup sound audible and attach it, so our team can hear what is happening.

Nothing is wrong. The R means the remote is in reverse gear.

To toggle it: with the remote locked and the lock icon showing, hold Minus and Plus together for three seconds to enter reverse. Repeat the same action to come back out of it.

Only if you have a software problem to solve. We do not recommend updating firmware on a board that is working normally.

If you do need to update, use the Waydoo app and follow the video for your model. During the update the EVO mast broadcasts its own WiFi hotspot, which your phone connects to before the app takes over. Let the mast finish beeping completely before touching anything. If the progress bar stalls, restart the board and the app.

Run the grease and installation check before you use it and before you charge it. It takes a couple of minutes and it is the single most effective thing you can do to keep water out of the unit.

The video below walks through it.

The seal is what matters. Apply a small amount of grease to the green O-rings on the cable connector regularly, ideally before each use. A thin layer on the contact points between the controller plug and the main unit also helps the seal.

Two things to avoid:

• Do not over-apply. Too much grease stops the cable seating properly, which causes the problem it is meant to prevent.
• Do not take it apart after every session. Repeated disassembly wears the O-ring.

Some noise can occur if the propeller is sitting close to the rear cover, and that on its own is not a fault.

If the sound is clearly abnormal, or you can see a bent or broken motor shaft, stop using it and file a claim. Include a video with the sound audible and a clear photo of the propeller area.

Two safe things to try:

1. Inspect the connection between the mast and the propulsion unit for water ingress or rust.
2. Recalibrate the throttle using the video below.

If it still will not drive, file a claim. Record a booting video in a quiet environment with the propulsion unit's startup sound audible and attach it. That recording is what our team listens to first.

Press the controller down while you secure the waterproof cover in place. It needs that pressure to seat fully.

Then check the controller port and connector. Excess grease is the usual culprit: wipe it back with a soft tissue and try again. A thin layer helps the seal, but too much stops the connector seating.

If it still will not connect, try a different controller to see whether the fault follows the controller or stays with the unit, and check the metal pins for corrosion. If the part is defective, file a claim.

Some messages are normal operating states rather than faults:

• Charging paused, waiting for cooling. Expected if you started charging straight after a ride. It resumes once the pack cools.
• ESC overheating. Normal after continuous hard running. Ease off the speed and carry on. If it appears immediately at startup, that is worth reporting.
• GPS No Data. Wait for the signal to recover.
• Low battery warnings. Get ashore and charge.

For anything else, take a clear photo of the message and file a claim with it. Most codes are diagnostic and our team reads them alongside your battery or mast logs.

Any message about battery temperature, water in the battery, or a battery fault should be treated as urgent. Stop using the board and do not charge it.

Check which model you have first. The Standard and the Plus use different upgrade tools, linked below.

The process: install the upgrade tool (on Windows, install the driver as well), power the Subnado on, connect it to your computer with the USB-C cable, then update the main control and ESC firmware to the latest version.

If the update fails, try a different cable or a different computer, and restart both the Subnado and the tool a few times. If it still will not complete, file a claim. A persistent failure usually points to hardware rather than software.

Check the charging port for corrosion or burn marks, and confirm the unit is actually holding charge by trying a different charger.

That is as far as we would ask you to go. If it still will not power on, file a claim. Do not open the unit, because breaking the seal will cause more problems than it solves.

Both jobs have an official video. The trigger replacement involves removing the silicone glove, unscrewing the bolts and fitting the new trigger.

Before replacing anything, confirm the controller is actually the problem. Connect a different controller to the unit and check the metal pins on both for corrosion. If the part is defective rather than worn, file a claim and we will sort the replacement.