2013 GTI Coolant Leak

[bwhite]

Well, memorial day weekend has put me one boat less. Luckily, we still have a boat running great.

We rode for about 10 minutes and the temperature sensor started buzzing. Shut it off and inspected under the seat to find quickly that it was flat out of coolant. Got it back to shore and put some coolant in it, tried to idle and find the leak but no dice. The hose running from the reservoir (black hose) was fine and the clear hose is as well. I filled it up and idled for about two minutes and it sucked the whole reservoir out. Any places to check for leaks? It'd got less than 50 hours on it.

 

[Nike12000]

If its not in the ski then it would have to be being burned off. was it smoking or anything or smell sweet when running?

 

[bwhite]

Not noticeably different than normal. I didn't smell a sweet smell, though I do have a cold.

 

[Nike12000]

I would get a good compression tester and check each cyl and see what compression is. also maybe try and pressurize coolant system and see if you can find any leaks

 

[bwhite]

Well, I seem to have found the leak. I read that there is a flush screw on the back of the ride plate, by the jet nozzle and found this. Any idea what parts will probably need to be replaced for this?



EDIT: After further review it looks as though I will be needing the following as a bare minimum:
Rideplate Ass'y: 271001860
O-Rings: 293300121
Gasket: 293250087

It also looks like there is some sort of adhesive that is glopped on it. Any idea what this would be?

 

[Coastiejoe]

Check with [MENTION=41828]Minnetonka4me[/MENTION], he may have the Ride Plate.

The plate is seriously attached. You will want to read the manual on how to remove it. It actually calls for blocks of wood and a jack...

 

[bwhite]

Is it involved to replace? Jet pump/iBR system need to be removed? It's hard to tell.

EDIT: After closer inspection, it does not appear necessary according to the parts diagram that I've seen.

 

[bwhite]

Well, I got the ride plate assembly and a few of the O-Rings in today. It looks as though I may need to get the straight plastic fittings, though. Part number 293710111. #58 in this image, it looks like that could be attached to the ride plate prior to mounting it to the hull with adhesive, but I'm not positive — will update later.

 

[Lexa158]

Please keep us updated. Perhaps I need to replace my ride plate too soon :-(

 

[bwhite]

Please keep us updated. Perhaps I need to replace my ride plate too soon :-(

Will do. I plan to get it on this week. I have to pick up some adhesive — probably going to go with Loctite 5200 or Loctite PL Marine. That should get the job done, I would think.

 

[bwhite]

Well, we got some adhesive and managed to pull the old ride plate off. Now, the ski manual does call for removing the jet pump and using a bottle jack/steel plates. All we had to use was a few small crowbars, razor blade, putty knife and some rags (to keep from scratching the hull). We did not need to remove the jet pump or iBR system. Unfortunately, this did require a few helping hands so, no pictures.

Step-by-step:
* Drained the remaining coolant from the system
* Unhooked the supply/return coolant lines from the plastic fittings inside (seen in pictures above)
* Removed the intake grate
* Removed the bolts on the rideplate (impact drill necessary)
* Razor bladed the heck out of the sealant and pried the ride plate off

Obviously the rest is pretty self explanatory. Cleaned the remaining gobbly gook off of the hull, squirted adhesive per the manual on the ride plate and back on we went.

One thing I am curious about though. After we let the sealant set, we filled up the reservoir and ran it on the hose for a minute. Water (not coolant) did drain from the intake grate, and frankly I can't remember if that was normal or not.

 

[Lexa158]

Sound not too complicated - thank you.

And yes, it is normal that water will drain out from the intake grate while running on the hose. Mine dose the same.