2006 RXP took on saltwater,pls help!

[juice it]

Not the first post I would like to have but my brother in law was at my beach house this weekend and had the RXP and RXT out in the bay (saltwater) and said all was well until the RXP started feeling strange and stopped running. His buddy came over with the RXT and they realized the ski had taken on alot of water. They towed it back to my house,somehow got it on the platform and called me and I explained how to open the drains on the back which he did. Now it is drained,won't start and they came home and I can't get down to the beach for a week. First question is what would cause it to take on water (drain plugs were in and tight) and next is how high is the lowest point that water can enter the engine somehow? He couldn't tell me exactly how high the water was in it but if it won't start it must have done some damage. Nothing I can do until I get down there but what most likely happened? Thanks for any help.

Jeff

 

[rxtxfreak88]

There could be a couple places the water got in. You need to get the water out of the motor if there is any in there as quick as possible. If not start looking for another motor. Do you have anybody down there that can take the spark plugs out and try and crank it over?

 

[Dr Honda]

Yep... salt water will kill the engine in a few hours.


Water could come in the driveshaft seal, around the exhaust outlet, a cooling hose for the exhaust, or a crack in the hull.

The inside of the hull needs flushed with fresh water immediately. also, you need to pull the spark plugs, and crank it to blow out any water that may be in the engine... and finally, change the oil a couple times to make sure all the water is out of the engine.


If your seals are bad, water can enter the engine as soon as the crankshaft is under water.

 

[juice it]

Thanks guys. The water was drained and the hull and engine were hosed off with fresh water but I won't be able to get to it until later this week to see what real damage has been done. I rode it two weeks ago and it was fine so not sure why it took on water now. Would a bad wear ring cause this? Anyway, thanks for the help.

 

[bruester420]

I can tell you from experience that if salt water actually entered the engine and you can't get to it for a week just go ahead and start shopping for a new engine. DR. Honda has it right, it only takes a few hours for salt water to ruin an engine.
No way could a bad wear ring cause water to enter the ski.

 

[rxtxfreak88]

Bruester is right a bad wear ring would not cause it. I would check the OPAS system. On 4-TECs this is the biggest cause of most of them taking on water.

 

[juice it]

OK, got down to the beach today and took out the plugs and it spattered out water but when I put them back in I could not get it started. After a few min. the battery was drained. I have a charger on it now. I have no idea how much water was in there and how much could still be in there. At least it turns over freely now but not sure what my next step is. I will try again after the battery charges up a bit but what else can I do? On a side note, a couple weeks back I put a new battery in and the ski beeps with no key and the vts has disappeared from the display. Now every time I am done I have to disconnect the battery. Any idea on that?

Thanks,
Jeff

 

[BAMF1500]

if the salt water was actually in the cylinders im gonna guess its toast, if you want you can fog the cylinders like you do when you go to winterize it but im sure the salt water corroded in the cylinders and caused some damage, after you fog it if your lucky enough to get it started i would check the compression, but salt water in the cylinders that sits for any longer than the ride home is bad news, Good Luck

 

[juice it]

Ok, here is the update. Towed it down to our local marina where I keep the skiis on a platform. They got it running and changed out the oil and found out what the problem was. It was taking on water because 2 hose clamps that held on the exhaust somewhere rusted apart and just let water gush into the hull. Getting the steering cable changed and a new wear ring while it is there. I guess thos clamps aren't stainless steel. All I can say is I hope I don't have future issues becasue of this and make sure you saltwater guys check those older skiis for this problem. Thanks for the tips!