Initial maintenance for 1999 Challenger

[bailey_1317]

I am a first time SeaDoo owner. We recently purchased a 1999 Challenger 1800. I belive it has twin 110hp motors. It had been sitting outside for quite sometime. We took it out for a short test ride and mechanically, all seemed fine. Would someone please compile a check list of suggested initial maintenance to help assure all is in good working order. I would consider myself an 'above average' garage mechanic and would be able to tackle most maintenance tasks. I do not mind spending a little extra cash on extra maintenance, even if it some tasks appear to be overkill. I appreciate browsing all of the information on this site, thank you for the opportunity.

John

 

[seadoosnipe]

Maintenance?...

Welcome to the forum John. Your in the right place!

Your boat has twin 110hp Rotax engines with about 38hp at the pump end, times 2.

If the boat has been sitting a while, I'd recommend you dump the old gas and go with fresh, 87 octane. Clean the fuel filter. If your still on oil injection, change the oil filter. Grease the shafts at the PTO hub, change the jet pump oil in both pumps, with attention to the oil you remove, looking for signs or water infiltration.

Inspect your wearing rings. Looking from inside the suctions, you can have someone with a flashlight shine in from the back. If you see a slight halo, then your probably o.k......if it's bright, the clearance is probably bad. The rings need replaced for anything over.040". But to me, you'll see a loss of power and efficiency at about .025-.030.

Your RAVE valves will need to be cleaned. The RAVE (rotax automatic variable exhaust) system should be cleaned once a season, to remove carbon build up. If they are dirty or sticking, the first thing you'll notice is the engines straining to get over 4 or 5k rpm.

If your fuel lines are the old, grey lines, you probably should remove the MAG fuel pump. This is accessible without taking off the carb and houses the internal fuel filter. This will give you an idea of what the other carbs look like. If that micro mesh filter looks bad, remove all carbs and clean. If you do this with patience, you may be able to just remove and clean, without ripping a gasket.

Lastly, at the bottom of this post you'll see a link to my thread "a look inside the 787". I recommend you click on that link and go over those parts. I took many pictures and gave descriptions on how many of these parts work. It might help you get started with what your already capable of.

Welcome to the world of Seadoo!..........:cheers:

 

[bailey_1317]

Thank you for the quick and thourough response!

In the driveway, I had the hose hooked up to the intake and the engines fired just fine. When I pumped the throttle, the rpm did not go above approx. 2,500. In the water on the test ride, it was fine. Is it normal not to rev high when the hose is hooked up to it?

Thanks in advance for you time,

John

 

[timmyboy76]

in order for it to rev past those rpm's, you needed to put the lever in "F" position, keep'n it in "N", will cause the rev limiter to kick in...

 

[seadoodude1]

Get the used guide and service manual which has list of maintenance items and how often to do them as well as showingg you how to do them.

Be sure the water is off when the engine is not running or you will flood it with water. At least that is the way it is with those engines on a PWC.

 

[seadoodude1]

Get the user guide and service manual which has list of maintenance items and how often to do them as well as showingg you how to do them.

Be sure the water is off when the engine is not running or you will flood it with water. At least that is the way it is with those engines on a PWC.