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Lost Steering wheel control at high speed !

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cyberjo

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Okay, this was NOT expected from a Seadoo RXT X AS260 2012 able to go 72 MPH ON THE WATER... The Bolt connecting the Steering wheel to the steering cable just fell off by itself... the nut with a nylon anti-loosening failed royally... Has anyone had a similar problem ?

Someone would think this particular bold would have a cutter pin so it can't NEVER fall off by itself...

I also suggest anyone to check this bolt whatever model you have as console removal is quite easy !

Any comments or suggestions are welcome !

JG
Montreal, QC
 
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If it has happened I have not heard of it as of yet.. Was there no play in it before it failed?
 
Coastiejoe said:
If it has happened I have not heard of it as of yet.. Was there no play in it before it failed?
Click to expand...


Not play in the steering as it is not the Balljoint that got loose but the bolt going through the balljoint attaching it to the steering itself.
 
It seems like all the weird unusual (and dangerous) problems seem to happen on the suspension models.
 
cyberjo said:
Okay, this was NOT expected from a PWC able to go 72 MPG ON THE WATER... The Bolt connecting the Steering wheel to the steering cable just fell off by itself... the nut with a nylon anti-loosening failed royally... Has anyone had a similar problem ?

Someone would think this particular bold would have a cutter pin so it can't NEVER fall off by itself...

Any comments or suggestions are welcome !

JG
Montreal, QC
Click to expand...

Report it to Seadoo and your country's equivalent of the Federal Trade Commission. If for no other reason than when it happens to someone else and someone gets hurt, Seadoo has a record of other instances of that failure and cannot claim ignorance.
 
This is my next step as there is no other similar cases reported in my initial Google search on this issue... Thanks for the suggestion !
 
okay, I tried to talk to BRP directly and they won't let me talk to a tech lead... But the CSR opened up a issue number and documented our conversation.... they keep saying go to your dealer... go to your dealer... The dealer won't see nothing as I reinstalled the nut...

BRP said there was supposed to be a counter nut installed which wasn't... Also in their parts website they show NO counter nut part the installation....


if BRP meant I need to add a counter nut to reduce the chances of another full steering disconnection, that is a temp solution.... you need a cutter pin/fail proof connection here as we are talking steering loss....

It appears BRP refuses to talk to me in person and dont want to acknowledge this serious steering weakness.....

I can't believe how BRP is reacting to this issue, really !!! :-(
 
Did you find the bolt and nut inside the hull? Because, honestly....I don't buy it.

Nylon lock nuts don't "just back off". The bolts are ss and don't "just break".
 
Has your jet ski ever been serviced such that the nut would require removal?

Nylon lock nuts are actually a "1 time use" item - most people don't know this. When you install the nut the nylon has been compressed and will not hold as tight when installed again after being removed. There is a temp solution to heat up the nylon so it can "recover" a little and thus grab again when tightened onto something.

I too do not believe a nylock nut would randomly decide to stop holding on.

However, to give you more peace of mind, you can use some red locktite upon reinstalling said nut.
 
I always use blue loctite when re-installing nylock nuts, I never replace them. I highly doubt it backed off. I agree with the idea that it was not properly installed. There is not supposed to be a counter nut and a cotter pin is not necessary. I've never seen one come loose.

Chester
 
the problem using locktite is that the bold is retained by the plastic steering assembly, so if you need to disassemble it the plastic may slip under torque pressure caused by the locktite grab... my son is a 2nd year Mechanical engineer and he will drill an M6 bolt so we can add a cutter pin to it making it serviceable and very secure... Wish BRP had thought of that before someone actually gets seriously hurt....
 
Hi Chester,

even the cable aluminium connecting plate is getting eaten by the bolt thread, you feel it grab and release as you turn the handle. this grabbing of the bolt on the sorfer aluminium might explain why it got loose in time, a thousand of an inch each time.... the new bolt with cutter pin will have no thread where it meets the cable aluminium plate , so no more wear here.

I asked the BRP CSR to contact me to explain this to them, they are afraid to talk directly to customers and hide behind their dealers..... typical of big corporations unfortunately....
 
My bet....the assembler started the nut...hand tight...and never got around to putting a wrench on it.

I've got multiple nylon lock nuts on various bolts in my steering/bucket linkages....removed and re-used multiple times...all w/o lock-tite....never had one come apart.
 
I doubt it as we ran it all of summer 2013 and until mid June 2014 before it actually fell off.... a hand tight would have never lasted that long....
 
Well...we'll just have to agree to disagree. Lets hope after your 2nd year Mech Eng gets done installing a cotter pin...it doesn't sheer from the stresses involved.

Just a friendly tip...pics in a situation like this often help. A different perspective can identify things that're missed on initial inspection.
 
Another trick you can use instead of buying a new Nylon lock nut is to cut a small piece of fishing line run through the nut and then screw it down on the threads. The Nylon fishing line does the same thing as the original nut did and fills the small area between thread surfaces and tightens the fit locking it in place. Just another option to look at on nylon lock nuts instead of thread lock.
 
Yes, a hand tightened one could last a couple years. Even no nut on it could last a couple years since it is not oriented in a way that it will fall out easily and that bolt has very short threads that don't go very far through the nut like most so it would be difficult to see.

Sounds quite strange and hard to believe. I've never seen a nylon lock nut just fall off that was properly tightened. I never use Loctite on them and BRP doesn't recommend to replace them nor use Loctite. So, I'm guessing the tens of thousands that I have installed and even reinstalled could fall off at any time?

You don't need to drill a hole through the bolt and use a cotter pin, that's crazy. Just buy a new nut if you makes you feel better and reinstall properly this time and it won't fall out again.
 
Your dealer installed the wrong bolt during prep when it was new. The correct bolt is nearly identical the one you "machined" and extends past the end of the nylon lock nut. SeaDoo has used this identical design for years but the correct bolt does need to be used.

There are not threads in the eye of the cable arm. It appears they are threaded on yours but is just from the wrong bolt pressing its threads into it during use. The correct bolt has a longer shaft and that is what is supposed to be pressing on it.

Do you think SeaDoo would design a bolt with a nylon lock nut that doesn't even engage? You need to stop blaming BRP's design and start blaming your dealer.
 
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