sending goal to move_base_simple has no effect

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Hi! Still getting acquainted so please be patient.

From ROS electric (have to deal with legacy code, can't upgrade), I'm trying to simply move my turtlebot around using the move_base_simple topic. At first, I tried using actionlib, succeeded in connecting to the server, setting up a goal but sending it actually had no effect. For debugging purposes, I'm now trying to simply publish the goal from command line.

Here is my current setup:

First ran:

roslaunch turtlebot_bringup minimal.launch
roslaunch turtlebot_navigation move_base_turtlebot.launch

now from rostopic list I have:

/move_base/goal
/move_base_node/current_goal
/move_base_simple/goal

I then try to publish the goal as follows:

rostopic pub /move_base_simple/goal geometry_msgs/PoseStamped '{ header: { frame_id:  "/base_link"}, pose: { position: { x: 0.2, y: 0 }, orientation: { x: 0, y: 0, z: 0, w: 1 } } }'

Nothing happens. If I try: rostopic echo /move_base_simple/goal, I can see that the goal is set. I tried changing the turtlebot_drive_mode to either drive, twist or turtle, no effect. I also tried to teleop the bot with the keyboard, it works. Tried to send velocity commands, also works.

If anyone can shed some light on why the robot isn't responding to the commands, it'll be greatly appreciated! (I've spent more than 5 hours digging on this issue).

Thanks!