• This site contains eBay affiliate links for which Sea-Doo Forum may be compensated.

*New owner* 2003 4-tec Sportster

Status
Not open for further replies.

kakoeradio

New Member
Hey!

I just purchased a 2003 4-tec Sportster from Craigslist for $6,000. I am going to go pick it up tomorrow and the owner tells me that it has been sitting on the trailer for a while now. Of course it needs a good cleaning but I'm planning on changing the battery, oil, oil filter, sparks, and use some fuel injector cleaner and 93 octane fuel to "clean" the fuel system.
What else should I do?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
 

Attachments

  • temp 3.jpg
    temp 3.jpg
    8.5 KB · Views: 35
Thats a tough one, first question is how long has it been stored?
Second question: Is this your first jet boat?(whats your knowledge on jet boats as well)
These forums can and probably have answered almost any question you will come up with. They are a valueble resource, you just need to do some legwork searching..

If its yours already, first thing i would after doing what you have planned(After removing the old fuel and put new in) is hook it up to a hose, start it up, start the hose running, and and give it some revs. Dont run it for too long, we are just making sure the motor turns over here and everything is running properly. Turn off the hose and turn off the motor(very important that you do it in that order. NEVER have the hose running when the engine is not.) Almost forgot one step, make sure you run the blower first, if you have one(i think this one does), this gets any fuel vapor out of your engine bay, and can prevent catastrophic detination. Again, i am not sure what your boating knowledge, so i may go through some stuff that you may already know. Check your running lights and all of that, after a sucessful startup, i would take it to a boatramp, preferably one thats not busy, or during a non peak time. Put it in the water but leave it on the trailer. Again, run the blower before firing it up, i think its about a min or two(my pops always did 5 on our regular boat). fire it up, not looking for any revs here, open the engine compartment and check for leaks. I own PWC's myself, so some of the boat guys will probably give a better answer, and fill in some blanks. I hope everything works out, keep us informed.
 
Thats a tough one, first question is how long has it been stored?
Second question: Is this your first jet boat?(whats your knowledge on jet boats as well)
These forums can and probably have answered almost any question you will come up with. They are a valueble resource, you just need to do some legwork searching..

If its yours already, first thing i would after doing what you have planned(After removing the old fuel and put new in) is hook it up to a hose, start it up, start the hose running, and and give it some revs. Dont run it for too long, we are just making sure the motor turns over here and everything is running properly. Turn off the hose and turn off the motor(very important that you do it in that order. NEVER have the hose running when the engine is not.) Almost forgot one step, make sure you run the blower first, if you have one(i think this one does), this gets any fuel vapor out of your engine bay, and can prevent catastrophic detination. Again, i am not sure what your boating knowledge, so i may go through some stuff that you may already know. Check your running lights and all of that, after a sucessful startup, i would take it to a boatramp, preferably one thats not busy, or during a non peak time. Put it in the water but leave it on the trailer. Again, run the blower before firing it up, i think its about a min or two(my pops always did 5 on our regular boat). fire it up, not looking for any revs here, open the engine compartment and check for leaks. I own PWC's myself, so some of the boat guys will probably give a better answer, and fill in some blanks. I hope everything works out, keep us informed.
Thanks for the reply!
I used to own a '98 Yamaha Exciter 270 and an '07 Yama VX 110 Deluxe, so I have a little knowledge, but I can not call myself an expert by any means, so any help is grealty appreciated.
Friends have told me not to worry too much, becuase this is a 4 stroke and that it should be fine, but I still have my doubts.
 
Thats good, if that wake tower is stock, you may want to check on the recall from BRP. I am not sure if your model is affected.
 
Thanks for the heads up!

Literally...hahahaha

I don't think it falls into the recall, due to the model year, but I will call a local dealer and will ask what's up.
 
Since I still have not taken possession of the boat, I will have more information tomorrow night.
Please come back for updates.....

Thanks!!:)
 
Picked it up last night.....HELP!!

So I finally picked up the boat last night.
It's in great shape, previous owner never used it in salt water!
Hasn't been turned in since about July of last year, so I went ahead and changed out the battery and the spark plugs. The fuel tank was was completely full, so I poured some fuel stabilizer and....4 beeps.
Checked the manual, 4 beeps=not in neutral.
Place into neutral, press the starter....nothing. Get a little crank, but no turning over.
Took out the sparks, to make sure the pistons aren't stuck, so I tried turning it on and oil flew everywhere.
thought it was the new battery, so I tried jumping it.....Again, little crank.
Don't know what else to do, any advice?
 
Is the battery you are using new? If so what brand? Make sure you are indeed using a good and fully charged battery. Otherwise, I'm probably not much help with the diagnosis. Also, never jump it with a running vehicle. And its kinda late but never buy a boat without at least running the engines. Hope it works out for you!!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Is the battery you are using new? If so what brand? Make sure you are indeed using a good and fully charged battery. Otherwise, I'm probably not much help with the diagnosis. Also, never jump it with a running vehicle. And its kinda late but never buy a boat without at least running the engines. Hope it works out for you!!

:agree:

The battery is an Interstate 12v for marine use. It was actually recommended by the local shop.
I'm trying to avoid going to the shop, but if thats the last option, it'll be going in on Monday.
I wish I could get it working before then though :banghead:
 
That could be the problem. Interstate batteries have been known to be junk right off the shelf. Don't listen to some local shop, listen to us. :rofl:

Have that battery load tested. Or if you really want to make sure its good, take it back. Get a die hard or optima.
 
That could be the problem. Interstate batteries have been known to be junk right off the shelf. Don't listen to some local shop, listen to us. :rofl:

Have that battery load tested. Or if you really want to make sure its good, take it back. Get a die hard or optima.

A neighbor actually lent me a different battery, which is at 100%, and nothing......:banghead:
I hope its something dumb (like me)
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top