What year XP should I buy?

[dooingit]

Looking for advice on a used XP. Which year to buy? My hx's had carbs and never had a problem in 16 years of ownership. Noticed the XP's came with injection in 2003 & 2004. With a stated 35% increase in gas mileage? Is this true? This would interest me as I like long distance riding. Not concerned with speed. I have cars to run fast with. If 60 is stock that is good enough for me. More concerned with reliability as my stock hx's were bulletproof and never had a problem.

I have sure seen alot of threads on new motors, bad cranks, won't rev past certain rpm, too many computer woes, bad reed valves... etc... SCARY!!!

Are certain years of XP's lemons? I would like the injected model if reliable and good on gas for distance riding...

As the skis are hi-tech, no problem, I have no desire to tinker with them any longer, hours of wrenching, bent over the hull is not my idea of fun any longer... Did that on my Si with all the high performance products. The HX's were only about 50 mph but was fine with me and what a scream to ride! I personally loved them! I like the XP for the reason it is just a larger version with a little storage and twice the fuel on board. I will be MORE than HAPPY to have the XP serviced yearly by a extremely competent SEADOO Tech! I do not want to clean the rave valves, grease the driveshaft, replace the wear ring, UGHHH...

SOOOO... as long as I don't try to use my very limited knowledge to service a good, used XP DI which is surely built to very high technical standards and I yearly have the pump oil changed, and everything gone over... Are the XP DI's bulletproof or should I go with an earlier carburated version? And if so what year?

Thanks for your thoughts and knowledge!

Dooingit Solo!

John

 

[Minnetonka4me]

Welcome to the site!

I think the hardest part about watercraft is not buying a turd. Any yahoo can shine a machine up but if there isnt a folder full of receipts...how do you know if its be taken care of?

One of the biggest things you can do is look the thing over and look for any hardware that isnt stainless...that to me is the first sign that an owner doesnt see the value in doing things right.

Obviously...that isnt the only thing to look for...but it has seemed to hold true to any machine I work on.

The DIs are great machines when they run...but if you have issues?? Be ready to bust out the wallet and it better be full of money.

People with direct knowledge can give you more exact reasons and what to look for...

 

[LouDoo]

O.K., as you can see from my list of ski's that I might be just a little prejudice. I love my 96XP, very fast, very fun to ride with plenty of power. It's a 787 with 110 HP. The drawback is if you're looking for a ski to ride for a long time this one ain't it. That's why I have 3 skis, if I'm going for a long ride I'll take the 96GTI or maybe the 96GSX. For pure excitement the 96XP is the ski, with the X4 hull nothing jumps wake like this ski, it's not the most stable ski and in my opinion strictly a one person ski. It's very easy to maintain, and so far it's been real reliable.

If you want good performance and ultimate reliability, but not necessarily the best performance, you also might want to look at a 95XP, with the 717 which is 85HP, still a fun ski with little maintenance. My GTI has the 717.

Hope this helps.

Lou

 

[Minnetonka4me]

totally agree Lou...but his post makes it sound like he is in the market for a XPL hull....Or any machine that is performance minded in a race-y hull.

The 787 X-4 is the best machine any manufacturer made ever. All machines have their issues, but for power to weight ratio, balance, fun factor...best ever. 2 up?? nope. Long distance traveling? Not really.

I personally wont own anything else...but I also just chase big boats and go big.

 

[SabrToothSqrl]

The 98-02 XP is the 951 carb model.
that's what you want.

 

[dooingit]

This forum is SWWWEEEETTTT!!! Thanks for all the replies!!! I will look for a carb model... Dan at Full Bore agreed as well. I am definitely looking for the XP with the shock under the seat and will be adding and HX later. I loved my HX's and only sold them due to a money crunch... The best thing about an HX is everybody wants to ride your jet ski right?... Just shove it away from the dock and say: "Sure... you can ride it.... IF YOU CAN GET ON IT!!! LOL.... Because 95% cannot!

Also, I guess I am different but every long distance Sea Doo run I went on...(usually 130 miles or more), I rode the HX and had a blast! NOBODY else did, as 3 seaters are a better ride for long distance but some of us are CRAAAAZY and that would be ME!!! The shock under the seat is the smoothest ride I have found... The XP has the same system so I am sure it will be even better for a long distance ride since it has at least a little storage, (the HX had none) and it holds twice as much gas.

Thanks again for the advice and if anyone else has any thoughts on this subject... BRING EM ON!!! No better way to learn than from experience...

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Johnny will be dooingit soon!

 

[SabrToothSqrl]

I love my XP, it's wicked in the turns, and with 14 gallon tank can cruise with my wife's GTX with 95% the range (usually less since I'm harder on throttle).

I might pickup a 98 XP with a bad engine and replace it with one rebuilt w/a 2 year no fault... just to give me something to do this winter... The XP is easy to work on, flip up the hood, and remove the pin atop the shock, and the deck lid flips WAY up out of the way... working on anything in the back however... is not so fun... i've had the engine / in out of mine at least 4 times now, but this latest time it now has a warranty!

 

[crisso]

This will throw a spanner in the works.I have a 98/99 gtx ltd.It goes pretty well.I have put photos on here and I can ride it quite hard.My mad son goes harder and faster 1 2 or3 up .At about 45, he can back it into turn and holeshot.Don't be too quick to judge any ski.

 

[SabrToothSqrl]

No worries, I respect the GTX, I've owned one since 93, 96, 99, and now a 02. each faster than the previous.... but the XP can 0-60, jump, turn and more WAY faster than a GTX... it's simply over 100+ lbs lighter... but after a day on the lake, the person on the GTX won't be nearly as sore! and the GTX makes a great place to bring lunch along! and a tow rope.. and an anchor...



Also, a Solas Concord is a GREAT impeller for this ski. I run one on both of my skis, and swear by them. It's really the only 'mod' you need. a new impeller + wear ring. Also make sure you get one with WORKING trim. the trim makes this ski 10x more fun.the HX would be much more fun if it had electric trim.

 

[crisso]

Sabr
I run out the same speeds 1 2 or 3 up.It goes like a cat shot in the arse.Turns as hard as you want to push the throttle.What more do you want.the son can outride an xp all day.he has more guts than me.At the end of the day(so to speak)the rider has more to do with it than the ski.
The son rides a wrf yamaha and passes yzf on moto tracks often.he is the one in the Qld photos.All the skiis go hard.If you want them too

 

[harryb]

We have two XP's, a '95 with the 717, and a '96 with the 787, both are fun quick machines. They will wear you out if ridden hard and are not extremely fuel efficient. I normally budget $150.00 for fuel for a weekend of riding, I run the pontoon all season with that much fuel.

 

[LouDoo]

Hi Harry,

You and I really got a lot in common, I sometime think the 96XP is trying to kill me, but it's really fun to ride. How's the ride on the 95XP with the 717 is it any tamer?

I've also got a 20' Bentley pontoon with a 60HP Merc. 4 stroke, I just got the motor this year, really quiet and great on gas.

Lou

 

[harryb]

Lou; The '95 is a great machine, the engine gave up this year after 16 years of fun, had it rebuilt by SES and installed it about two weeks ago. The weather here hasn't been good enough to ride so the break in period will be next year. It's a great machine to ride and preforms right along with the 787 except on top speed. We run a 50hp Mercury on the pontoon, two stroke, it ain't fast but it gets us to the lake and serves as a floating dock for our machines. We are on the Seneca River which is part of the canal system here and there is a large lake about a ten minute ride from our docking location where we spend a lot of time .

 

[SabrToothSqrl]

I'm not going to argue; the XP is much lighter, smaller and faster. Simple physics: same power, less weight. I own both an XP and GTX. I know which can be ridden in what style. I've been riding now for 18 years. It's as pointless as back in high school when my friend told me his Mustang was "better" than my Wrangler... they are different machines, each with different capabilities. I enjoy riding both, however I prefer the XP. If you are in PA, I would be more than happy to meet up so we can setup a buoy course and have at it

 

[Minnetonka4me]

If you go carbed model...try to find an 01-02...they made some upgrades to a few things one being the exhaust manifold and the pump/seal that are good to have. The 01 Is the best color scheme the XPL had...the 02 was kinda ugly IMO.

 

[SabrToothSqrl]

ouch; ugly?!

But yes, the 01 has the improved exhaust gasket design. it shouldn't actually be hard to change that on any 951... just change the exhaust manifold and then it would use the rubber gasket vs. the flat one. or is the pipe different too? I've never looked at a 00 vs 01 pipe side by side.

what's the pump/seal you are referring to? the older ones 99 (my GTX anyway) had a bronze pump vs the plastic ones my 02s have... is that what your talking about?

http://www.seadoosource.com/seadoomodelreference.html

one of the years of the XP had gaping holes in the front that water would get in, so i've seen plugs in them in the 98 i think? they were/arefor air, but would allow water in...

Right now I'm looking for a 99 GSX LTD, 01 RX, or 01 RXX... they look like fun machines!

Is the RX the same hull as the GSX was? they look so close... but even my 02 GTX can run circles around my '99... and they looked 'the same'... the 02 is faster, rides smoother, and cuts and turns 10x better...