2009 Sea Doo RXT 215 RPM and speed are not what they oughta be. Help?

[jisgett]

Hello all, and first, let me say thanks for some seriously funny AND informative posts. I'll try to be quick here.

I am new to watercraft but have spent a lot of time working on cars. If it needs repar, I would always rather do it myself.

Bought a 2009 RXT 215 that is gorgeous, 50 hours on it. BUT, I had my father do the check on it, since it was sold locally near where he lives. He said it ran great, and I took his word for it (bad on me, yes, I knew it, even then).

I took ski out for the first time last weekend, and here is the issue: It will not get higher than 6500 rpms or 53 mph with the yellow key. I spoke with a Sea Doo mechanic this morning and he thought, wear ring, impeller or supercharger replacement. I have read up on the forum as much as I can since I still have work to get to today.

From what I have read on the forum:

1. I will replace the plugs first, they may be at fault.
2. I will do a compression test on each of the three.
2. I may need to replace the impeller and/or wear ring.

Any other thoughts, and have I missed something else obvious? Looking for any constructive thoughts from you all, and thanks again. BTW, any preferences out there on plugs, or is this same/same as with cars.

Also, I have attached three pics of the impeller, wear ring, etc.

 

[Seadoobuddy]

Your wear ring and impeller looks very good.
How do the plugs look? Right kind?
Compression?
Weeds in Grate????

SC usually need rebuild after 100 hrs or so.

others will chime in with a more definite answer.
just wait a bit.

 

[djredman99]

May just need fresh gas as well. These skis do not like old gas.

I wouldn't say your wear ring looks "very good" as seadoobuddy suggested as you definitely have some grooves there and the blade of the impellor is chewed up just a little. But, this should not be limiting your RPMS. It could have an effect on your speed but since your RPMS are low too, I would think the issue is somewhere else.

Change the plugs, put in fresh 91+ gas and see if the issue is still there.

 

[Seadoobuddy]

dj - I guess my eye sight is going, Yes, I see the groove in pic #2 now.
I did see the little rough edges on the blade, but didn't think that would effect high revs only higher speeds.

Yes, do as suggested and use fresh gas if you haven't already.

how is the compression???????

 

[jisgett]

Going to replace plugs and check compression tonight. I hope that is all that was wrong. Interesting that you mentioned the fuel. I have not filled it up yet, myself. It had a full tank when I got it. Old fuel (1 month or more) or 87 ish octane can have that kind of effect on RPMs? I have always dealt with naturally aspirated motors, not much experience wit sc's.

dj - I guess my eye sight is going, Yes, I see the groove in pic #2 now.
I did see the little rough edges on the blade, but didn't think that would effect high revs only higher speeds.

Yes, do as suggested and use fresh gas if you haven't already.

how is the compression???????

 

[djredman99]

Running 87 octane would not affect the skis performance all that much. You may not accelerate with quite the same pull, but you should still be able to reach your top speed.

I suggested old gas because who knows how old the gas was from the previous owner. Could have condensation built up in the tank as well, and therefore water in the gas. The engine would not like that and performance could take a big hit like you are seeing.

 

[BMANN06]

Since your not getting any check engine light errors on the dash I'm leaning towards a mechanical problem. There are a ton of sensors on these rigs so that's why i'm leaning towards something real simple. What I would do first:

1. Follow above posts (gas/plugs/compression)
2. Check the throttle linkage

On the intake you'll have your throttle cable, it may have come loose and not allowing you to get to wide open throttle. If the nut comes loose the cable will pop out of its holder. Take a look and post back.

 

[jisgett]

So, I was all set for the compression test and plug replacement, only to find out my dear wife had rented a compression test kit that does not fit the narrower diameter of these plugs *sigh*. So, with fresh plugs in hand, I will hold off on installing the new ones and pick up a viable compression kit tomorrow from a local parts house or the HF. As for the throttle linkage, cable is in great shape and with WOT there is no further rotation available on the throttle body. One less possible cause. I'm really hoping its a fuel issue. It may well be that the fuel in the tank now is quite old. Only a little bit left for me to run out and then only premium from here on out. I am also publishing a pic of the plugs I pulled today.

 

[lovbyts]

I see enough nics on the edge of the blade to cause some cavitation and limit your speed. If the plugs and new gas does not work try a new impeller.

 

[jisgett]

OK, just got finished with the compression test and after about five revolutions per cylinder I was getting up to about a peak of 131 psi, engine cold. The number 2 and 3 were dead equal as far as I could tell and number 1 was about 129. Those numbers seem ok to me, so I hope that is good news, but at the very least, we continue to eliminate. Gonna put the new plugs in now and test her this afternoon with new gas. *crossing fingers and sayin' a prayer*.

 

[crisso]

With the nicks and cuts on the impellar,I doubt it is causing cavitation otherwise you would have full revs.As you are not hitting the redline,work on the basics first.Like you said,eliminate the small stuff

 

[devonte007]

You mentioned in your first post that you were using the 'yellow key' to run the ski. Did you get any other keys when you bought it? If you got multiple keys, one of them might have been programmed as a 'learner' key which would limit speed and RPM. I think that speed on a learner key should be limited to about 30 mph, so this is probably not your problem but thought I would throw it out there as a possibility. If you have a different key I would try that and see if anything improves. Otherwise, if your RPM's are limited then there is probably something wrong with the supercharger and it may be time for a rebuild.

One last thing, check the oil level and make sure it is not overfilled. Oil should be right in the middle of the two bends on the dipstick.

 

[jisgett]

devonte,

Could it be that simple? I hope so. I just checked the oil level and it actually seems to be just barely above the upper level of where it bends back straight. I am assuming there is a thread somewhere here on how to remove oil, since I doubt it's just like a car engine in this respect. I will remove the excess and get it within the bends. Still haven't been able to get it out and check it since replacing spark plugs and fuel. Maybe it will be one of the above. Thanks for the post!

 

[ski-d00]

your key is fine, learner keys won't get to 53mph, but your sc may not be fine. remove the intake tube and see if it spins freely, takes 2 minutes. I wouldn't expect a sc failure since yours doesn't have the ceramic washers but your rpm and speed numbers are kind of the magic numbers when the sc is not working.

 

[jisgett]

I will check it right now. Thanks, ski.

 

[jisgett]

OK, Ski, I went and checked the sc, and as long as I checked correctly, I think the sc may be ok (at first glance). I tried to pull up on the vanes with my fingers and could not budge it. I pushed downward and it would move, but not easily, and certainly not free spinning. Once I got it to move downward just a bit, I managed to pull a little harder and get it to move upward as well, but definitely not easily. I have attached a pic of where I was working (with a nice little arrow, because I'm just that big of a geek), just to make sure I am in the right spot--no real experience with sc's prior to this. Also, no dirt or oil inside the area/lip where I pulled off the intake.



Thoughts?

Thanks as always,

Jeff

 

[ski-d00]

yes, that is the correct place to check and the stiff movement you are getting is turning the motor which is good.

change your plugs and take it out for a test drive.

 

[jisgett]

Ski,

As I have spent the last day or so reading, all the old posts with RXTs, etc having the same symptoms as mine seem to indicate sc failures. This, of course, concerns me, but I am not alarmed. If there were any severe engine damage, I would know just in the one hour we have ridden it on the lake, correct? Additionally, if I do the work myself, will I need to replace the sc, or just rebuild?

I know the little inspection I just did probably isn't the end all, but if the sc indeed has failed, I guess my first question is: how else will I know if it is in fact a sc failure? Will I need to remove it, etc, or take to the dealer? (hope no to the dealer).

Thanks,

Jeff

 

[jisgett]

And I will get out for the test drive just as soon as I can get someone to go with me to the lake. Just ain't that easy with three little kids .

 

[ski-d00]

If you want to test the sc further, use a wooden broom handle and place it in the jet so that it stops the rotation of the motor. Then use a torque wrench to measure the slip torque by turning the acorn nut on the impeller where you just felt the vanes, it is a left handed thread, so you should turn it counter clockwise which will actually be tightening but feels like loosening. Slip should be at least 50 in-lbs.

To remove and rebuild the sc it is quite simple, you don't need to take it to a dealer. I doubt that it is your sc with the problem because it is not free spinning and generally from your description, it would be. Could be plugs, they do foul, and they do run pretty well with a fouled plug. you also should remove some oil to get it between the marks to eliminate that as a possible issue/contributor. there is no plug, you have to suck it out with a pump through the dipstick.

 

[jisgett]

Will do, Ski.

I just spoke on the phone a little while ago with a real helpful fella from Riva Motorsports down in FL. Super nice guy who gave me about 4-5 mins of time and answered questions very plainly. He said that based on the sc not free spinning, it is still connected and probably not the problem (although, like you, he said it might be slipping, but that would be rare). He thought with the low hours it has, sc problems were unlikely, but the plugs and fuel were extremely likely culprits. He pointed out that quality of fuel in the last couple of years has really deteriorated. He said a ski that had set with fuel for as little as one month might encounter some marked performance problems, and that fuel filters/pumps have had problems with clogging, failing, etc. Those fuel pumps are pricey, btw. Anyway, just thought I would pass along the things I found out to any who might be interested.

I will update as soon as I can get a test drive done.

 

[ski-d00]

I agree fuel quality degrades quickly but I don't think that is your problem. Bad or old fuel make them run just terrible, yours doesn't sound like it is running too bad from your description. You are seeing major rpm loss, you should hit 8k rpms or close to it. Fuel pumps generally work or they don't in most cases, rarely do they just have low pressure.

 

[jisgett]

Gotcha,

Well, here's hoping it's the plugs then . With respect to the oil, I bought a little hand pump from the local marine shop, about how much should I look to extract? 1/2 quart? I read up where you need to crank up the engine, get it warm, then, hold throttle at 4000rpms while you shut it off before taking a reading to be sure it is accurate. Once I remove a little, is that still the procedure? Remove some oil, crank it up, shut off at 4000 and take another reading?

 

[jisgett]

I guess what I am getting at is I want to be sure that when I check the level, I am doing it the right way.

 

[ski-d00]

yes, get it warm by running it for 3-4 minutes on the hose. then extract a half quart. you don't need to worry about revving to 4k for 10 seconds, that is for a complete oil change to get all the oil out of the pto housing and into the tank.