1999 GTS falls flat on acceleration

[dperkinstx]

I just bought two 1999 Bombardier GTS's. I put Ski #1 in the water last weekend and it ran fine, although I thought it wasn't very fast. Ski #2 had a very weak battery and wouldn't run.

Today I put both in the water. Both did the same thing... when accelerating, they took off fine, then fell flat and died. They would start right back up and idle fine. They would run at maybe 1/4 throttle OK. But when I tried to go fast, they'd run maybe three seconds, then fall flat again. I'm a newbie, so any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Donald

 

[LittleAl]

Sounds to me like both of them are fuel problems. Fuel filters should be replaced, and fuel lines replaced. I know mechanics that also recommend replacing the fuel shut off valve.

 

[rushfan]

Look at your fuel lines, if they gray then those are the orig. lines and you need to REPLACE them. Seadoo used subpar fuel lines at the build and they will go bad. (brake down on the inside of the hose). While your at it replace your fuel shut off valve. You will need about 20 ft. of fuel line to do the complete job. I have 2 seadoo and they both did the exact same thing and that was the problem on them both.

 

[LittleAl]

Not to mention a good carb clean and rebuild, if its carbureted.

 

[dperkinstx]

Look at your fuel lines, if they gray then those are the orig. lines and you need to REPLACE them. Seadoo used subpar fuel lines at the build and they will go bad. (brake down on the inside of the hose). While your at it replace your fuel shut off valve. You will need about 20 ft. of fuel line to do the complete job. I have 2 seadoo and they both did the exact same thing and that was the problem on them both.

I've attached a picture. Are these the original fuel lines? They look more like beige than gray.

 

[LittleAl]

Yes, those are original, GET'M GONE !!!!!!

 

[Rotor13B]

Yes, those are original, GET'M GONE !!!!!!

Yeah what he said.
Did you try switching to reserve and running it? I had this same problem, I would pin it and get on plane and all of the sudden it would just die. Damn near threw me over the handle bars the first time, lol. This was before I changed out the grey lines. The main fuel line was sucking air past the nipple and causing a no fuel situation. Using reserve it would run fine so I changed the lines and cleaned everything. Works great now.

 

[dperkinstx]

Sounds like I'll be changing the fuel lines. Being a newbie, I have more questions:

1. Is there something special about watercraft fuel line, or can I go to the local auto parts store for the fuel line?
2. Those are odd looking clamps (no screw to tighten them). How do they come off, and can they be reused?
3. It looks like the air box needs to come off to get to the fuel connections at the carb. How does the airbox come off?
4. I'd also like to get the carbs off to at least clean out the bowls. How does the carbs come off?

Thanks again for everyone's help.

 

[LittleAl]

As long as it's cabureted you can use regular parts store fuel hose, those clamps are called otiker clamps, they simply unwrap, grab the tail with a side cutters and twist them off. Be carefull not to break the plastic nipples. They can't be reused and they do require a special tool to install, you can use all staainless hose clamps in place of them. As far as the airbox and carbs, you should be able to download the manual from this forum, it will come in very handy.

 

[rushfan]

All the replys are very good advise and right on point. I just need to add a few more that are very important. MAKE SURE YOU MARK ALL THE OLD FUEL LINES WITH THE LOCATION THEY CAME FROM, DO ONLY ONE HOSE AT A TIME TO PREVENT ANY CONFUSION. when you replace the fuel selector valve, make sure you put the new hose connection's back in the same place. DO NOT just clean the old selector valve--REPLACE IT.. Your their already so do it. they are about $20 new. What I did was removed my carb and just took it too someone to have them rebuild and clean it. This will save you some money on labor and it will get done right.

 

[Strizzo]

so you bought those two GTSs that were for on CL for so long? like has been said, you'll want to replace the old grey fuel lines and rebuild the carb in both skis. about 20-22 feet of 1/4 inch fuel line per ski should do it. if you do one line at a time and go slow, you shouldn't run into any problems. there is a tutorial on rebuilding and setting up carbs on this site, but you'll need a pop off tester pump to make sure everything is setup correctly. if you're not comfortable working on the carbs yourself, there are a couple people on this board that will do it for a reasonable cost.

if you don't mind my asking, what did you end up giving for them?

 

[gettenskevin]

i have a 96 gtx thats doing the same problem so when i get home im going to look at the lines and probobaly replace them and hopefully fix the problem. thanks for all the help!

 

[Strizzo]

i have a 96 gtx thats doing the same problem so when i get home im going to look at the lines and probobaly replace them and hopefully fix the problem. thanks for all the help!

not just the lines, there are little filters inside the carbs that need to be cleaned or replaced, as well as the water separator filter. when i did mine, i replaced all three (two little carb filters and water separator filter) as cheap insurance. this is also a good time to check pop off and clean out the carbs, replacing needle/seats if needed.

 

[dperkinstx]

Update:

I ordered a 50' spool of fuel line from O'Rielly Auto Parts. When I got there, they had a roll for me, but it was only 25'. Also, the only local SeaDoo dealer that had a shut-off valve was 50 miles from home, they only had one, and they want $40+ for it.

Today I replaced the fuel line in ski #1 and cleaned out the valve. I decided to put both in the water to see how ski #1 ran with the new fuel line and how ski #2 would run if I put the valve in the RES position. Both run good for 45 minutes. Then ski #1 started doing the same thing again. The fuel gauge showed to be almost empty so I'm hoping that was the issue. While out on the water I tried to run ski #2 in the "on" position and it fell flat again. "Res" allowed the ski to run fine.

I'll be ordering two shut off valves tomorrow. I'll also get more fuel line and replace the lines in ski #2 even though it ran fine in the "res" position.

At this point I'm hoping I don't have to tear into the carb but that may be next.

 

[Rotor13B]

Update:

I ordered a 50' spool of fuel line from O'Rielly Auto Parts. When I got there, they had a roll for me, but it was only 25'. Also, the only local SeaDoo dealer that had a shut-off valve was 50 miles from home, they only had one, and they want $40+ for it.

Today I replaced the fuel line in ski #1 and cleaned out the valve. I decided to put both in the water to see how ski #1 ran with the new fuel line and how ski #2 would run if I put the valve in the RES position. Both run good for 45 minutes. Then ski #1 started doing the same thing again. The fuel gauge showed to be almost empty so I'm hoping that was the issue. While out on the water I tried to run ski #2 in the "on" position and it fell flat again. "Res" allowed the ski to run fine.

I'll be ordering two shut off valves tomorrow. I'll also get more fuel line and replace the lines in ski #2 even though it ran fine in the "res" position.

At this point I'm hoping I don't have to tear into the carb but that may be next.

You should just clean the selector valve and try it. At the most you would have to replace the o-ring in it and if it doesn't work you're not really out anything.

 

[dperkinstx]

Update:

Ski #1 was just low on gas. Ever since I replaced the fuel line and cleaned out the fuel line it has run great. Ski #2 has been running fine in the RES position so I've been delaying working on it.

Last weekend I finally got around to ski #2. I replaced the fuel line and blew out the selector valve. I put it in the water this week. It wouldn't run more than 5-10 mph. The thing just wouldn't go.

I'll go back and double check all the lines, using ski #1 as a reference, making sure I didn't run any lines the wrong way. I'll also re-clean the valve. If that doesn't do it, I might bypass the valve just to rule it out as the issue. After that I guess I'd have to clean out the carb. I'm hoping I don't have to go that far.