Reflashing a 2015 Sea Doo GTS 2015... Many Questions

[Thechrisalan]

So I've read some things that led me to believe that the factory chip is limited by the manufacturer. Some people are saying you can reflash this to open the full potential of the watercraft.

I have a lot of questions in regard to this topic now:

1. The sites that offer the kit to perform this are pretty expensive, are there dealers or individuals out there that offer this? Can it only be done once? (I wonder because it essentially uploading data, I assume, why not do it for your watercraft and for your friends?)

2. How much more performance is expected after the reflash?

3. Is it healthy for the machine to have this done? (I want to believe that if the engine can perform more, than unlocking the full potential shouldn't be harmful?)

4. Any suggestions or experience using certain companies (online or shops) that you have used and have seen a difference in your watercraft?

 

[ski-d00]

ECUs can be reflashed but it does very little unless you change/add other performance mods to go along with it. Your 130 is limited by its camshaft. You could put a 155 camshaft in it and reflash to turn it into a 155 hp but would be cheaper to sell your 130 and buy a gti 155.

There are individuals with maptunerx that could do it for you cheaply but it's an uphill battle with a 130. If you had a 260 or 300, sky's the limit!! How fast do you want to go and how much do you want to spend.

 

[Thechrisalan]

I see that MapTun will bring a GTI 130 HP to 145 HP. From what I understand the GTI and the GTS are the same engine? (So I assume it will also work on a GTS) How much difference would 15 HP do?

With these products do you have the ability to dial in what you want to reflash to? (Like you mentioned: reflash to 155HP.)

I am curious what the best bang for your buck mods might be!

 

[ski-d00]

15hp isn't really much. most people that test ride a 130 and a 155 right after one another can't even tell the difference.

best bang for your buck is to sell your 130 and get at least a 215. you are fighting a losing battle with the 130.

not that familiar with maptunerx so not too sure what it is capable of.

 

[gti 130 wow]

So I've read some things that led me to believe that the factory chip is limited by the manufacturer. Some people are saying you can reflash this to open the full potential of the watercraft.

I have a lot of questions in regard to this topic now:

1. The sites that offer the kit to perform this are pretty expensive, are there dealers or individuals out there that offer this? Can it only be done once? (I wonder because it essentially uploading data, I assume, why not do it for your watercraft and for your friends?)

2. How much more performance is expected after the reflash?

3. Is it healthy for the machine to have this done? (I want to believe that if the engine can perform more, than unlocking the full potential shouldn't be harmful?)

4. Any suggestions or experience using certain companies (online or shops) that you have used and have seen a difference in your watercraft?

Check out my thread in the build section . A V- tech tune boost hp while staying pretty much in the engines designed 1800 to 7300 rpm range so no cam or other improvements are needed just a more suitable impeller to take advantage of the extra torque . Also making hp with torque as apposed to higher rpms goes much easier on your engine in many respects .

 

[Spimothy Leary]

I can't see any logical reason to invest in reflashing a 130 except to throw away money.

ride it as is or sell it and get something that will actually perk up with mods, or quite honestly if you get a 255 you probably won't need to perk it up, bone stock it will be quite a bit more impressive than the 130. Even a 215 will do the trick

 

[Sea Dood]

I can't see any logical reason to invest in reflashing a 130 except to throw away money.

ride it as is or sell it and get something that will actually perk up with mods, or quite honestly if you get a 255 you probably won't need to perk it up, bone stock it will be quite a bit more impressive than the 130. Even a 215 will do the trick

True. It is pointless to invest the money to reflash a 130. If you want more power, sell it and get a supercharged model. We have a bunch of folks in our riding group that have 130 and 155 HP models, and there is hardly any difference in noticeable power between them when you ride them. When you get off those models and get on a supercharged model, you really notice a big change.

 

[gti 130 wow]

Like any boat , its all about both short and long term cost and how deep your pockets are .
Here are something to ponder about the GTI -130 with a V- TECH tune and a Solas 11-19 impeller

1 : Top speed for me so far with temps around 80 is 61 mph at 10 gal / hr
That's only 4 mph below the stock (US ) sc pwc's . Because some of the sc pwc's extra power is obtained by rpm's (8000 vs 7300 ) as apposed to more efficient torque , that always translate into a big spike in fuel consumption .
2: ECNO top speed is running now 40mph @ 5 gal per hour or 8 mpg which I doubt a sc boat could match .
3: The boat right now can do the old top speed of 55 at half throttle so acceleration is there
4: The engine is running at a reasonable rpm with a peak of around 7300 rpm so this is a combo that one can go 1000+ hours on I think .
5:Supercharger failure cost including the one on the recent ace engine is major pain in the ass on many levels not to mention long term cost . I may one day trade up to a SC pwc but defiantly not until this problem is resolved .
6: The fuel tank on all the larger boats are about 15 gal . The warning beep is really much to early for a NA pwc but I guess its configured for the sc boats that at full throttle can drain a tank in a little more then a hour . Having to plan to be around a gas pump is less of a pain in my na tuned boat .

7 : The 1st question my Allstate agent asked when I was obtaining insurance was how fast does your boat go .
I don't know if that's a big deal but it may be .

8: Because the gains are coming in between its designed 1800 to 7300 rpm range , I don't have to screw around with the neighbors by screwing with my intake and exhaust that will make it louder and also run the risk of getting water in the engine if the boat flips over .

So in conclusion like on any boat , one needs to look closely at the short and long term cost and how much you are willing to be hassled by a more complex machine .

 

[Coastiejoe]

I own two skis, one is a 155 and one is a 255. I let a guy ride my 255 as he wanted to see of a SC ski ran. I rode his 130 in the mean time. I was shocked at how well the 130 ran. It was only marginally less in regards to top speed and performance of my 155. Marginally less to the degree that buying a 130 is a great option when it comes to initial cost and fuel economy..

 

[gti 130 wow]

I own two skis, one is a 155 and one is a 255. I let a guy ride my 255 as he wanted to see of a SC ski ran. I rode his 130 in the mean time. I was shocked at how well the 130 ran. It was only marginally less in regards to top speed and performance of my 155. Marginally less to the degree that buying a 130 is a great option when it comes to initial cost and fuel economy..

Keep in mind that the difference is only 13 hp as indicated from the rotex ( 131 for the 130 and 144 for the 155 ) web site .
Because that 13hp bump up was done with a cam I believe , that means low and mid rpm power and fuel economy was somewhat compromised by raising the torque peak by 200 rpms and max power from 7300 to 7500 rpm because theirs no free lunch with cams . If you don't have a sc , the last thing you want to do is compromise your low and mid rpm torque with or without a tune .

Just check out this guy as he applauds the low rpm punch of the GTI-130

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLYW3SZjuBc

 

[Coastiejoe]

Cam and MPEM is the difference from the 130 to the 155

 

[Hawk388]

Like any boat , its all about both short and long term cost and how deep your pockets are .
Here are something to ponder about the GTI -130 with a V- TECH tune and a Solas 11-19 impeller

1 : Top speed for me so far with temps around 80 is 61 mph at 10 gal / hr
That's only 4 mph below the stock (US ) sc pwc's . Because some of the sc pwc's extra power is obtained by rpm's (8000 vs 7300 ) as apposed to more efficient torque , that always translate into a big spike in fuel consumption .
2: ECNO top speed is running now 40mph @ 5 gal per hour or 8 mpg which I doubt a sc boat could match .
3: The boat right now can do the old top speed of 55 at half throttle so acceleration is there
4: The engine is running at a reasonable rpm with a peak of around 7300 rpm so this is a combo that one can go 1000+ hours on I think .
5:Supercharger failure cost including the one on the recent ace engine is major pain in the ass on many levels not to mention long term cost . I may one day trade up to a SC pwc but defiantly not until this problem is resolved .
6: The fuel tank on all the larger boats are about 15 gal . The warning beep is really much to early for a NA pwc but I guess its configured for the sc boats that at full throttle can drain a tank in a little more then a hour . Having to plan to be around a gas pump is less of a pain in my na tuned boat .

7 : The 1st question my Allstate agent asked when I was obtaining insurance was how fast does your boat go .
I don't know if that's a big deal but it may be .

8: Because the gains are coming in between its designed 1800 to 7300 rpm range , I don't have to screw around with the neighbors by screwing with my intake and exhaust that will make it louder and also run the risk of getting water in the engine if the boat flips over .

So in conclusion like on any boat , one needs to look closely at the short and long term cost and how much you are willing to be hassled by a more complex machine .

My GTR 215 running ECO mode at 42mph has a 6 gal/hr burn rate. Not far off from yours. Now doing 66mph it's 13 gal/hr burn rate. But I've spent a whole day on the lake and still had six gallons left. You're not running top end the whole time. But at least with my 215, I can have me, 240lbs, my wife riding spotter at 130lbs and my son pulled up on ski's, 240lbs, without an issue. I can also pull those big ass three man sit down rafts with no issues at all.

The 2016 GTR215 has a S/C rebuild time of 200 hours. Double what it used to be.

 

[gti 130 wow]

So I am getting from your results about a 15 % edge over you at around 40 mph with my midfield GTI 130 well I will take that . I have now owned my craft for but 13 months and have put 305 hrs in it so the savings help . This is my call but after talking with my service tech , my boat can make it 300 hrs without major maintenance because time is also a factor in my case and many of the parts on my craft are the same as the sc types but with parts that are less stressed . I have read from techs on many sights including this one I think , that their were no upgrades to your sc ski to warrant a doubling of the maintenance interval which is kind of scary and maybe more work for lawyers and that it was bumped up to help sales . That's just another reason why some may want to look at ways to make the atmosphere work for you especially after the ACE supercharger is starting to grenade itself .

I don't now how it is where you live , but here in Va Beach PWC's are sold by small companies that don't have a huge staff of techs . So if I had to bring my pwc in 3 times for " normal" stuff in one year that would be 3 times on a waiting list with my pwc sitting at the shop it and would have been a hardship . The two times I had it in the shop this year one for them to re glue the depth finder transducer , I did not complain because I see they are not like some large car dealership and was glad that I did not have to do this as much as some people do .

 

[Sea Dood]

Getting back to topic, the consensus is that spending $900 to VTEC flash your 130 is a complete waste of money. The only person that disagrees already wasted his $900, so he is trying every reason in the book to justify that he wasted this money. Smart readers will see through his nonsense. He has continually bashed SC skis for no apparent reason, they are different animals for different purposes.

Want to spend less money, and don't care how fast you go or don't care about quick acceleration? Buy a NA ski. Want performance, go faster and more top speed? Buy a SC ski, don't waste your money on mods to a NA ski.

 

[gti 130 wow]

Getting back to topic, the consensus is that spending $900 to VTEC flash your 130 is a complete waste of money. The only person that disagrees already wasted his $900, so he is trying every reason in the book to justify that he wasted this money. Smart readers will see through his nonsense. He has continually bashed SC skis for no apparent reason, they are different animals for different purposes.

Want to spend less money, and don't care how fast you go or don't care about quick acceleration? Buy a NA ski. Want performance, go faster and more top speed? Buy a SC ski, don't waste your money on mods to a NA ski.

Yea you can take the $600 not $900 it cost to do a V-tech reflash that you didn't not have to spend and use it to "help" pay for your sc rebuilds during the "first" 200 hrs of ownership . Its defiantly a how much you want to pay to play thing !

 

[Coastiejoe]

I will agree that to buy a NA ski does cost substantial money to get noticeable performance out of the NA engine. In most cases, it can cost a grand to get 2 MPH..

 

[gti 130 wow]

I will agree that to buy a NA ski does cost substantial money to get noticeable performance out of the NA engine. In most cases, it can cost a grand to get 2 MPH..

Less then a $1000 will get you a re flash , solos impeller and a 5 mph bump up to 61 mph from from the stock 55 mph at around 80 degrees while paying for itself by reducing overall fuel consumption .
When compared to the purchase , short and long term cost to get 11 mph from a GTR 215 , its like night and day .
Its all about what you want and how willing you are to pay . The 2 mph figure you quote is a worse case unless you want to use a different impeller for summer and winter when the temperature is around 100 degrees .

Summer with temperature pushing 100 degrees and very warm water

Speed : 57+ mph @ 7000rpm , 194 F , 1/2 tank
Fuel : 93 octane (US) Max fuel consumption dropped from 10+ to 9+ gal/hr
A moderate drop in acceleration and maybe = top speed compared with the stock impeller but a big boost in fuel economy .

.................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .......................................

Fall : 9/23/2016 with air tempt of about 80 but with still warm water

Speed : 61+ mph @ 7220 rpm , 192 F , 1/3 tank , 10+ peak gal/hour
Fuel : 93 octane (US) , Estimated peak hp up from 131 to 163.5 , ""6"" mph gain over stock configuration , long term sustainable .

The time form 0 to 55 mph is less now very quick compared to the stock prop/ v tech combo so 220 rpm bump up + dense , cool air from the summer rpm is a big deal !. More top speed and snap acceleration = more fuel consumption but if I go easy on it the mpg gain is still there . I mean in the econo mode today I hit a sustained 40mph @ 5+ gal /hr up from about 36 mph in the100% stock configuration at the same 5+ gal/hr which is good for another 64 miles on a tank of gas . For people who like to travel long distances it shows that some may benefit with a V-tech / Impeller combo change . My GTI-130 today was able to obtain the stock top speed of 55 mph at half throttle so I think that's pretty impressive and explains the rapid rise to that 55 mph speed . . Lastly at this lower air tempt , the proposing problem just about disappeared which also may be a reason for the new top speed . Keep in mind that with this configuration , performance improvement is happening by increased efficiently and not by figuring out how to throw more gas on the fire . A full day of performance orientated fun cost me about $40 right now at $2.2 /gal or about 18 gal of high test gas . For those of you who are into sounds , added hp created by additional advanced timing , induced torque makes a low pitch rumble like a sub woofer that's cooler then the pingey sound of higher rpm derived increase in hp again with no intake or exhaust mods .

 

[Hawk388]

I'm glad you like your 130. But on my GTR215, I can have a full tank of gas, me and my wife on it and still smoke a tuned 130 to 60 and do 65mph easily. If I were worried about gas while having fun on the lake, I wouldn't have bought a Ski at all and just gone with a pontoon boat.

A tune on my 215 really raises the HP level. But I bought the ski I wanted because I didn't want to spend another $1000-$1500 to eek out a few more MPH. Also, I like having my two year warranty intact.