1997 seadoo xp

[wallisjj]

hi there , new to the forum today , bought my first jet ski on friday and im having problems already. i really need some help so i can do some checks myself before taking it to a dealer and getting charged a fortune.

when i bought it the guy informed me the engine had a complete top end rebuild and i have receipts for the parts but nothing for labour as he claims a friend done it for him. the ski started first time and sounded sweet but loud

i took it out saturday and it started prior to putting it in the water but as soon as it went in the water it just would not start, lucky enough a guy had a battery jump box and it started after a bit but imediatley started pulling forward (as if it was in gear) i jumped on it and had a little spin but then it started having power problems! one minute there was full power and the next there was nothing, it did not matter how much the throttle was open , there
was just nothing and then there was power again. after this i pulled it out of the water and looked at the throttle and cable adjustments , its confusing to me as there are two different adjustments below the air box so i loosened them both off and tried it again. still no joy. i dont want to touch anything else untill i get a little advice

would really really appreciate some advice on what to do/check , i have a service and repair manual on dvd , is this any good?. am i best to just take this in for repair? it seems like its something simple.

many many thanks to anyone who can advise.:cheers

 

[Dr Honda]

welcome,

It sounds like the carbs need cleaned.

As far as the adjustments... you shouldn't have moved them. One of those cables is to the oil injection pump. If you moved it... you could be starving the engine of oil at high RPM's.

As far as the book you have on CD... I can't tell you if it's good or not. Is it the factory manual? If it is... then it's very good.

 

[wallisjj]

welcome,

It sounds like the carbs need cleaned.

As far as the adjustments... you shouldn't have moved them. One of those cables is to the oil injection pump. If you moved it... you could be starving the engine of oil at high RPM's.

As far as the book you have on CD... I can't tell you if it's good or not. Is it the factory manual? If it is... then it's very good.

Hi Tony. Many thanks for the advice, the Cd is a cheap one off the internet, i have had a little look and it looks ok but obviously not great.

i have taken both the carbs off and have checked the carbs over and they all look fine, the only thing i did notice was an adjustment screw further in then the other, meaning that one carb was very slighly open when the other was shut. could this have been the cause? i also think the adjustable throttle link that conects the carbs and makes them work in cink was out and therefore one carb was getting more fuel than the other?. could this be right or am i barking up the wrong tree??

many thanks and kind regards

 

[L_C99]

Someting very similar to this was happening in my ski, check the compression in the cylinders. One of my cylinders was going so it didn't have very good compression. Even though it did just have a rebuild done it is still worth a try.

 

[6KJR]

Usually a problem like that is related to fueling on these older machines. I wouldnt mess much with the settings unless you know what your doing, which you can learn from places like this.

And Yes, once you start your watercraft, its go time. As soon as the engine turns over your moving water through the pump. Always make sure your ready to go when your about to start your machine.

 

[wallisjj]

I know how carbs work and i understand all the adjustments now i can see them , whats the best way to test the compression? , i have never done this! .

also should there be a gasket between the carbs and the engine? when i removed them there was no gasket!

appreciate the help

 

[Dr Honda]

Yes... there should be a gasket. It's probably there... but it's hard, and stuck to the manifold. Go to your local dealer, and buy some new ones.


With what you were saying about the carbs... all of that will make it run poorly, but it should have started.

To check the compression ...

1) remove the spark plugs.
2) ground the spark plug wires on the terminals on the mag cover
3) install a compression tool into one of the spark plug holes.
4) open the throttle
5) crank until the max pressure is achieved. (4 or 5 revolutions)

 

[wallisjj]

There is def no gasket there. i have just looked again. better get some

i think the main reason for it not starting is the battery was too low , im gonna charge it up fully , conect everything back up and try it , if still no joy i will test the compression and go from there.

regards

 

[luckysaturn13]

if no gaskets maybe you were getting an air leak

 

[wallisjj]

hi , i have just discovered that the gasket between the head and engine has gone , only when i connected everything back up and tryed it did i notice and felt air being forced from the joint , i have obiously been totally ripped off as the guy said that this was rebuilt.

now is this something i could attempt myself , im clued up with things like this as i have stripped many a motorcross engine and rebuilt them but is this similar? , it looks straight forward. or am i best to take it in and have the work done? trouble is i dont have lots of money at the moment.

any help for how to do this would be much appreciated.

 

[Dr Honda]

Don't jump to conclusions. I like to think most people are truthful, but I also believe that most people shouldn't own tools.

The head on most of the Rotax engines don't have a "gasket". They just use big O-rings. It's a very simple job to change them.

You may find that one was split, or fell out of it's grove , and got cut.

But then again... the last owner could have been a douche.

Pop the head shell off, and let us know what you find.