new to jet ski

[jeepmiller09]

Just bought a 2003 sea doo gtx 4-tech supercharged jet ski from a friends buddy with 60hrs on it for what they owed 3,400.00 he use to work for a seadoo dealer and did all the service on it. The jet l:blushoks in amazing shape. So I couldn't pass up the offer. My wife and I could only find 2 strokes in that price range. I keep reading about a washer I believe in the supercharger that will fail around 100hrs. Can anyone explane this better to me or post a link that can? Also any other issue I should be aware of with these skis that might need to be addressed?

Thanks,
Miller

 

[red2blue]

2003's I believe had metal washers. Have you run it at all? Protect the fuel system in the winter...new plugs and oil/filter in the spring.

Have fun.

 

[jeepmiller09]

thank you for your help! Nope I just got in home tonight!!! like 5 mins ago. The guy I got it from started it up for me. it has 68 hours on it. He replaced the plugs just as u posted and did the oil the same way! Thanks again!

 

[Michael211_2000]

The entire supercharger is supposed to be rebuilt every 100 hrs of operation (all new bearings new seals new shaft new slip washers). 2004 was the 1st year they tried using ceramic washers as I've read repeatedly, so yours should be steel and not the ceramics which were prone to cracking and falling apart inside the engine.

If you don't have one find and read the owner's manual for your year model!!! Cover to cover. There are sections in there that you need to know about: how to upright an overturned watercraft towing procedures that MUST be followed how to properly use the flush port etc.

Best thing is to put Stabil or SeaFoam treatment in every 5 gallons of fuel you put in the tank year round. I only fill mine up 5 gallons at a time so I can mix Marine Stabil in.

I highly recommend an auto electric bilge pump be installed in the hull with the thru-hull fitting put right under the rear handle and the auto wire ran directly to the battery (with inline fuse of course) so it's in Auto mode full time. This way you will KNOW if you start taking on water (you'll see water discharging from under the rear grab rail) and it'll buy you more time to get back on the trailer or beach it! The cost is minimal it takes just about 2-3 hours if you take your time and the peace of mind that's just priceless!!!

ps. The OEM auto-bailers only work when the engine is running and they aren't high-flow they won't keep up with a serious leak that pours water into the hull; it's when you're at anchor or tied to a dock eating lunch that the auto electric bilge pump will save your behind!

pps. Congratulations on your new baby and welcome to the SeaDoo Watercraft community! :hurray:

- Michael

 

[micropterus]

I have the exact model that you just bought and so far, I really like it. Mine has some minor cavitation (think of a burnout in a car, spinning tires but not really going anywhere), but other than that, it runs great.

I'm not a SeaDoo expert by any means, so I can only contribute a little bit. Here's what I will say: When I first put mine in the water, I like to idle around for maybe 3-4 minutes just to let the engine warm up. It may not really hurt anything, but I don't like to put it into the water, fire it up, and then just immediately go and run full throttle.

 

[jeepmiller09]

Sounds good I will be sure to get a pump. How fast will you take on water in the hall?

 

[Michael211_2000]

In what hall? I do not understand the question. :-\

If you meant "hull", that depends on what's leaking and how bad. Leaving the drain-cock plugs out, it'll slowly sink lower and lower in the water (see post today from fellow who's friend borrowed his RXP and left the drain-cock plugs out then left it tired to a dock while going in to eat lunch... fun fun fun!). If you're riding around constantly and only stopping briefly you might never even realize you've been taking on water thru the drain-cocks the entire day, but if you stop and tie up to a dock for awhile to go eat or drop anchor to go play on the beach you will likely come back to a sunken watercraft!

If the jetpump seal fails, water can come gushing into the hull very quickly sinking the watercraft while you're riding it in fact... nothing will keep up with that kind of water flowing into the hull (but shutting off the engine will generally slow the water flowing in thru the seal as the jetpump stops pressurizing the water).

No matter what, better to have an automatic electric bilge pump and not need it than not have one and NEED IT!

- Michael

 

[jeepmiller09]

Sounds good. where is the best place to buy a bilge pump?

 

[Michael211_2000]

Acadamy Sports and Outdoors has a good small 600 GPH SeaSense automatic bilge pump. The footprint is small, 600gph is quite sufficient (it's like a waterhose flowing wide open when it engages), and pretty easy to install. Get a rocker switch and mount inside glove box for manual override. Hook automatic hot wire to battery hot post (with inline fuse, like 20amp). You'll also need a thru-hull fitting and a hole saw the same diameter as the fitting... yeah you gotta drill a hole thru the hull for this mod, so pick your location carefully measure 3 times and drill just once!!! Mine is inside the gap of the rear hand rail. I have pics in another thread on here from last Spring.

- Michael