1996 seadoo overheating and then loss of power...........

[JKSTI&R1]

Hey guys,

So we took out one of our ski's that we got with the 2 place trailer for the first time today. Its a 1996 gts or gti not sure off hand because the stickers are gone( green 3 seatter ) but it started to over heat and then had no power. My daughter was on it for like 30 mins, then back to camp for about 10 mins then I took it out for a spin. Worked great for about 5 mins, then the overheat light came on and had no power and wanted to die. I eased off the gas till the light went off and then kind of got on it heading back to camp to put it up and it overheated like 3x's and all the way back to shore. So what do you guys think is wrong? Bad senor, motor ? Thanks for any help :thumbsup:

 

[AdamXP800]

A bad temp sensor should not cause the loss in power I don't believe. The 96 Gts was green Gti yellow

 

[JKSTI&R1]

Damn. So do you guys think its a bad cylinder? That would suck......

 

[JKSTI&R1]

So what should I test or check or try to do? Im going to go and test the cylinders now...........

 

[JKSTI&R1]

OK went out and checked the cylinders and they both have about 130-135 psi each and it started right up. It also will read low volt as soon as i put the key in or right after it turns over for a second. It goes off and the battery is at full charge and has no problem starting in like 5-6 seconds. So is it just a bad temp sensor and it lost power due to being over heated? Or is there a deeper problem? Also it idles around 3k when it starts but only out of water and in the water its normal. I was going to adjust the idle but damn is it a bitch to get to the screws on the air box, no room to work....lol. Anyways any help of thoughts would be awesome

 

[JKSTI&R1]

Any ideas ?

 

[mike_dmt]

Did it overheat while she was riding, or after you took it back out? Did she say it was beeping?

I'd leave it strapped on the trailer (all of the straps), back it into the water and run it. Seat off. Can you touch the exhaust and block after running for a while? Does it beep?

Almost sounds like it's not cooling correctly. There should be a tell-tale pissing out the back, if I remember right. If there's sealant goop around the exhaust pipe to engine flange, the gasket maker might have squished in and is partially blocking the cooling passages. 20 minutes of pulling the water box and exhaust, and it'll be pretty evident if one or both passages have an issue..

 

[mike_dmt]

3k is about normal out of the water from what I understand. 130-135psi will run for a while more, but there's a chance it's about done. Guys will say it's a full rebuild time, if it gets much lower on the compression than that.

I'm not 100% the overheating is related. Some of the experienced guys on the board will probably chime in.

 

[JKSTI&R1]

She didn't say anything about it beeping or overheating. I doubt she would even know what to look for, lol ( she's 14 ). It had to be running good for her because she was trying to keep up with me on my XL1200 and it never lost power like it did with me on it. I did see the water ( peeing hole ) out the back when she was on it, but couldnt tell when I was driving it. It did ok for about 5 mins and then the light came on but it never beeped at all, just the light flashing and the gauge telling me it was hot. Let idle for a few mins and it went away. I ordered a new temp sensor so ill see it that helps but still not sure about the loss of power. Im hoping it was because it was hot, but I dont know. I have a few 95 xp's that are in the 120 psi range and they run very strong and hit mid to high 40's all day for hours at a time, so 135 psi sounds like a good compression to me but Im not a mechanic lol.......

If its the cooling and I pull the box and exhaust. There should be water in there right? And if not then there is no water getting to it right? But then why does it cool down when I let it idle? Shouldnt it stay hot if there was no water getting through the motor? Ill put it off anyways and check tomorrow. Thanks for the input and help. I hope to find the problem so I can at least know what to fix.LOL.......

 

[JKSTI&R1]

So how would I check and see if it is cooling right? Hook it up to the hose and run it and see if it gets hot?

 

[summer]

I'd leave it strapped on the trailer (all of the straps), back it into the water and run it. Seat off. Can you touch the exhaust and block after running for a while? Does it beep?

[/QUOTE

Let it pump water through itself naturally. If its not flowing water correctly you can feel the block/pipe getting hot. Your sensor is just that, a sensor, all it does is tell the gauge to tell you its getting hot. It doesn't tell the motor to ease up cause its getting hot. What do your plugs look like? Is it lean and maybe trying to seize? I'm no expert just throwing out ideas and suggestions.