Sea doos?

elkymutt

elkymutt

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Looking for some input about sea doos (pwc's)...

Im gonna have a look at a '98 sea doo gtx. Does anyone have any input as to what to look for, what to avoid, common problems, alternates to this model?

Any knowledge on this model, or any other model would be much appreciated.
I have a budget of $2500-3000, and would be using it for touring two up with the occasional tubing/watersport.

Cheers
 
dont buy it.....too old.....many back then had endless problems
all parts are aluminum (pump) and wear quickly.....costly to fix
 
Stay away from Sea doo's in general. A lot of problems and very expensive parts. back when I used to be into the jet ski thing, every time i put them in there was always a sea doo ont he dock with problems.

Ask about the CDI box, has it been replaced, if not, its going to be big money
How many hours? that model, if i remeber correctly does have an hour meter, anything at 150-200 is getting close to a rebuild.
Dont ever buy a jet ski/wave runner/sea doo etc... unless you have done a compression test, if you dont have the gauges, then buy a set, this will save you money in the long run
You must water test the ski, if u cant water test it, dont buy it
Make sure it has ownership, lots of skis out there do not have ownership.

Personally, i liked Kawi and Yamaha for jet skiis, not sure what you want it for but if its mostly for solo stuff, look at the stand up models, way more fun (like night and day) in bike world, its like comparing a GSXR 1000 (stand up) to a Honda Shadow 750(sit down)

As for models, if you want a cheap, reliable, easy to fix, plenty of parts available sit down ski, I would buy a Yamaha XL700, any year, its the most bullet proof ski ever built. Just about every rental fleet in the US uses them as there base ski. yes its only a 700cc and its probley pushing 80-90hp BUT, fuel mileage is great, parts are easy to find, its the most reliable ski on the market.

Yamaha designed them specifically for the rental market, they are not much to look at, no fancy features etc..

And if u want to save big money go to the US to buy one, lots for sale in upstate new york or even detroit-st clair lake etc.. area, there is no RIV for jet skiis, only the trailer (if you need it).
 
What should the compression be at on a ski like a XL 700? I have read that both cylinders should be around 150psi for two strokes...
Cheers
 
twinn said:
Stay away from Sea doo's in general. A lot of problems and very expensive parts. back when I used to be into the jet ski thing, every time i put them in there was always a sea doo ont he dock with problems.

Ask about the CDI box, has it been replaced, if not, its going to be big money
How many hours? that model, if i remeber correctly does have an hour meter, anything at 150-200 is getting close to a rebuild.
Dont ever buy a jet ski/wave runner/sea doo etc... unless you have done a compression test, if you dont have the gauges, then buy a set, this will save you money in the long run
You must water test the ski, if u cant water test it, dont buy it
Make sure it has ownership, lots of skis out there do not have ownership.

Personally, i liked Kawi and Yamaha for jet skiis, not sure what you want it for but if its mostly for solo stuff, look at the stand up models, way more fun (like night and day) in bike world, its like comparing a GSXR 1000 (stand up) to a Honda Shadow 750(sit down)

As for models, if you want a cheap, reliable, easy to fix, plenty of parts available sit down ski, I would buy a Yamaha XL700, any year, its the most bullet proof ski ever built. Just about every rental fleet in the US uses them as there base ski. yes its only a 700cc and its probley pushing 80-90hp BUT, fuel mileage is great, parts are easy to find, its the most reliable ski on the market.

Yamaha designed them specifically for the rental market, they are not much to look at, no fancy features etc..

And if u want to save big money go to the US to buy one, lots for sale in upstate new york or even detroit-st clair lake etc.. area, there is no RIV for jet skiis, only the trailer (if you need it).
Click to expand...

Apprx how many mpg would the XL700 get if you ran it at an rpm range that was most efficient per time spent on the water? I assume that range would have it just a hair faster than being planed out? I'm guessing 15 to 20 mph? I suppose that 5 to 10 mph being just up off idle by a few hundred rpm would give the most mpg but progress would be a bit slow. I know that 2 strokes can really pull the fuel if you are running around in the upper percentile rpm range. That area is likely where 4 strokes really excel in comparison. Does Yamaha make a 4 stroke? Perhaps all the newer ones are all 4 stroke now..

Seadoo have been bragging up their reverse and better control features for docking. Makes sense, but they are getting very rich.

Reminds me of snowmobiling, only perhaps slightly longer season, better mpg and maybe they have fewer repairs needed for the same hours of use? That 100 to 200 hour rebuild number sounds very short. That is only 2 year's worth of May to Sept w/e use if you did 2.5 hours per day. I'll bet this is where a 4 stroke would excel also.
 
nesobriquet said:
Apprx how many mpg would the XL700 get if you ran it at an rpm range that was most efficient per time spent on the water? I assume that range would have it just a hair faster than being planed out? I'm guessing 15 to 20 mph? I suppose that 5 to 10 mph being just up off idle by a few hundred rpm would give the most mpg but progress would be a bit slow. I know that 2 strokes can really pull the fuel if you are running around in the upper percentile rpm range. That area is likely where 4 strokes really excel in comparison. Does Yamaha make a 4 stroke? Perhaps all the newer ones are all 4 stroke now..

Seadoo have been bragging up their reverse and better control features for docking. Makes sense, but they are getting very rich.

Reminds me of snowmobiling, only perhaps slightly longer season, better mpg and maybe they have fewer repairs needed for the same hours of use? That 100 to 200 hour rebuild number sounds very short. That is only 2 year's worth of May to Sept w/e use if you did 2.5 hours per day. I'll bet this is where a 4 stroke would excel also.
Click to expand...

The compression should be in 150 range, give or take a bit, I dont know the exact spec but that is a good guidline.

I have heard those XL700 go on more then 1000 hours without a rebuild. MPG, i dont know, but put it this way, you can take that ski out and hammer it- ride it full out and get in the ballpark of 3.0-3.5 hours of use, most newer 1200 cc skis go through a tank in 1-1.5 maybe 2 hours.

All the newer skiis are now 4 stroke, I think since something like 03-04 they all went that route. Most new ones have closed loop cooling systems as well.

150-200 hour rebuild is just the guideline, none on my skiis needed rebuilds tell approx the 400-500 range and even then they would have been fine for another season or so, i just did it too be safe.

There has been a debate in the jet ski circles about 2 vs 4 stroke for a while. If you dont mind wrenching a bit then 2 stroke is good, if you pay someone else to wrench for you, then buy a 4 stroke.


FYI to the OP, forgot to mention but also try to stay away from Polaris and Tiger shark (suzuki engine), they pulled out of the market in something like 02-03 so parts will be a probelm for those models, as they never were the most popular even back in the day.

OP, the market is really depressed for jet skiis right now, with the price of fuel etc.. either get a really good deal or expect to take a loss on it if you want to sell it. If the price of gas hits 1.50-1.75 sometime in the next 1-2-3 years, you wont be able to give those away for free.
 
I would say ball park of $3000 is fair

anything less then that and it will need some work like this one

http://buffalo.craigslist.org/boa/2465148267.html $1600 but one cylinder has low compression.

Keep in mind that those trailers, if there all aliminum, cost in the $500-700 range at least.


They can be had for as low as $800-1000 if they were former fleet rentals, but they will look like ****
if u dont mind wrenching i would get one that was a former fleet rental for cheap and just ride that, low downside as you can always sell it for the same thing and maybe even make a few bucks.

the farther south you go the cheaper they get
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