A Seadoo Repair Story

[seaduuude]

I have a 1992 Seadoo GTX. I was having problems with it in the spring of this year with hard starting and when it ran, after 20 minutes it would bog...then fast...then bog. Next day...the same thing.

Here is the advice I got. Carburetor rebuild, fuel lines, fuel valve, top end rebuild, compression problem. I took it to a very respected Seadoo shop and 300 dollars later, a carb rebuild, fuel lines...and the compression is a strong 150psi per cylinder. Took it on the water. Hard start...runs strong for 20 minutes, then bog..full...bog cycle starts again.

I pulled it out of the water and went back on-line (including this forum) for more advice. Even called several Seadoo mechanics. Here is the advice this time; improper carb rebuild, plugs bad, plug wires snip to shorten, bad check valves on fuel tank, bad starter switch, bad safety switch. One guy said the bottom is gone and I might as well scrap it!!

You can imagine my frustration. So many opinions, no REAL solutions. So I went on line and googled 2 stroke engine starting problems, without using the word "Seadoo". This time it comes back as the coil and/or the fuses/ignition.

So, I downloaded the Seadoo shop manual and started to educate myself. I found some good sources for parts and started ordering them. After they all arrived, this is what I did: I replaced the plugs, check valves, fuel valve, fuel filter. CDI MPEM, coil and plug caps.

Moment of truth. I crossed my fingers, closed my eyes and cranked it over. IT FIRED UP IN 2 SECONDS!!!!! Dropped it in the water, fired up and it runs like a scolded dog! No problems now.

The moral of this story is this. Opinions are like A*******, everyone has one, but real solutions take research and practical knowledge. Before you believe everything folks tell you, start with the basics. It may not be as bad as you think. Good luck with your next project.

 

[emspjay]

So you replaced 7 things at one time? I'm a DIY guy but replacing 7 things at one time does not figure out what the real problem was. So now nobody knows what was the solution to your problem and this will not help anybody else. So was it the plugs, check valves, fuel valve, fuel filter, CDI, MPEM, coil or plug caps???? That is not how to troubleshoot a problem.

 

[seaduuude]

Neither was listening to the crazy amount of wrong advice from so called "Seadoo" experts. In fact, I posted my issue several times on this forum and many others with no actual solutions. Sometimes, no one bothered to help or even make a suggestion. Like I said, I finally stopped googling the word Seadoo and approached it as just a two stroke engine problem. The coil and mpem was the problem yet not a single "Seadoo expert" suggested that. Most said things like, "the coil and mpem rarely fail on these machines". And now I have you scolding me for repairing my jet ski. Nice. How nice it would have been to have had someone as eager as you to reply when I was having the problem. Have a nice day.

 

[SabrToothSqrl]

You get what you pay for?

 

[seaduuude]

Now that is the best advice I got here yet. Thank you. Lesson Learned!

 

[wfo speedracer]

Never take anything posted here as gospel.

 

[mikidymac]

I think it is great that you finally got your seadoo issue solved and can enjoy your ski.

However it appears that you are attacking the members here that do all we can to help for free and share our knowledge. Maybe you are not doing that but that is sure how it comes across.

We give the best advice we can from our knowledge and it is very difficult to diagnose every problem over the net without ever seeing your ski or knowing what exactly it is you are doing.

Like I said I am happy you got your ski figured out but if you are that unhappy with this community maybe you should just find another one that you feel better about.

 

[jhjesse]

All “advice” here is free by non paid members sacrificing their time to a sport they enjoy. They do the best that they can by information given. The problem is the ski is not in front of them to physically touch,hear, smell, perform diagnostics etc., so all the great people here can only go on is what is written. Sometimes the people writing are unsure what to write, but are expecting results. Frustration sets in when the free advice given doesn’t work.
I am glad you decided to educate yourself. So many people expect the internet to solve their problems, then get frustrated when it doesn’t just happen. Glad you got your 25 year old ski fixed, but maybe next time show a little more patience and understanding towards people who are just trying to help you get your problem solved.

 

[seaduuude]

So funny. You think I am lashing out or angry. I am not. What I find funny is the amount of responses I am getting when all I was doing was posting my experience. Once again, I wish I would have had this amount of enthusiasm when I asked for help. If I may offer my advice? When someone asks for help? Imagine they might actually be serious and offer good solutions. Or forever hold your peace.

 

[ocod]

So funny. You think I am lashing out or angry. I am not. What I find funny is the amount of responses I am getting when all I was doing was posting my experience. Once again, I wish I would have had this amount of enthusiasm when I asked for help. If I may offer my advice? When someone asks for help? Imagine they might actually be serious and offer good solutions. Or forever hold your peace.

Probably for the best............

 

[soccerdad]

Posting the solution to the problem is appropriate. The rest of your post is not. I hope you can see that you A) never isolated your problem and solved it through what I call Pep Boys toubleshooting (just buy a bunch of stuff and pray). AND B) you then came back and said the the help your received here sucked and that you should have just done it yourself. And now you do not like the response to that post.

Well then I will quote a classic line from Animal House... "You F'ed up, you trusted us". No actually, we tried to remotely help you, and YOU could not give us enough valuable information to get to the answer. So next time, just google around and find it yourself. I am SURE you will NEVER find any bad information on the internet.... Peace, love and BRAAAAAPPP.

 

[benjilafouine]

I would have changed the parts one at the time starting with the least expensive one (or set of parts that go hand in hand). That way you may have saved a few bucks and know for sure what the problem was exactly especially if it ever comes back.

I will take as an example my job as an IT person: someone brings me a non working PC (meaning dead) and I decide to replace the motherboard, the hard disk and the power supply at once. In the end the computer restarts and yep, I have to spend hours on it reformatting it and re-configuring it. Assuming that the problem was only the power supply, it cost the poor client lots of money. If I had just changed the power supply in the first place, the PC would have restarted all configured and like it was before.

It would be too easy to tell a client that his machine is fried every time I get my hands on one and replace it all or most likely, he would not have believed me and gone somewhere else.

Benji.

 

[Mickirig1]

Well it is a 25 year old machine. I have had a few "Sea Doo Mechanic's" tell me they replace all kinds of parts to get a ski to run right. Most will not touch one older the an 2008 now. At least now he knows some of the main parts are new. Hopefully it will still live a long life.