SeadooDavid
New Member
I’ll try to keep this short and to the point but I’m rather long winded so I’ll do my best to keep my questions on track.
I bought a 1996 Seadoo GTI from an older gentleman that had owned it since it was new. He said it didn’t get much use last year because of an injury but that it ran well before sitting in his garage this past winter with last year’s gas still in the tank. I assumed that it would need the fuel lines replaced and the carburetors cleaned but I only paid $1,200 and that included a trailer so I figured it was a good deal and would make for an interesting project.
When I took it out on the first test ride it was surging and bogging and wouldn’t go over 20mph. After the first ride the spark plugs were black and moist.
Here’s what I’ve done so far:
1. I replaced all the old grey fuel lines with new automotive lines.
2. I disassembled the carburetors enough to remove the internal filters and clean them. After some soap and water and half a box of Q-tips they look like new again.
3. I removed the fuel tank and flushed it out with fresh gas to remove a few flakes of “dirt” that were in the bottom of it. I filled it to the top to aid in tuning as per this forum’s advice.
4. I noticed that the gas tank was building up pressure and after closer inspection the one-way valve on the gas tank vent line that exits below the rub rail was clogged and I wasn’t able to unclog it. I removed it and have been running the ski without it for the moment. I’m planning to replace it with a new one. Will running the ski without it affect carburetor tuning?
5. I haven’t reinstalled the inline fuel filter yet after replacing all the fuel lines; will this affect the carburetor tuning? I’m planning to reinstall it I just haven’t done it yet.
6. I also haven’t recalibrated the oil pump cable since reinstalling the carburetors; will this affect carburetor tuning?
I believe I have the carburetors synced correctly.
Since doing all of the above I took it back to the river and took it for a ride. It went up to 30mph and was no longer bogging and surging but it wouldn’t go beyond 30mph. I still had roughly 40% of the throttle left though. Even when I would give it more throttle it wouldn’t even react, it would just keep cruising along at 30mph like I was holding the throttle steady at 60%. The sparkplugs were black and moist.
I turned the high speed adjusters out 1 turn each (from whatever it was set at when I bought it) and it would go up to 35mph at 70% throttle and then the same “no reaction” after applying more throttle. I checked the plugs and they were still black as before but they were no longer moist. They were also warm to the touch but not hot.
Another turn out on the high speed adjusters and it would reach 40mph at 80% throttle and then the same “no reaction” after applying more throttle. I pulled the plugs again and they are a nice chocolate brown but they are reasonably warm/hot to the touch.
Where do I go from here? Do I keep turning the high speed adjusters out? If I do that will it not start running lean on the top end? The manual says that the high speed adjusters shouldn’t be turned out more than a ¼ turn. I’m already two turns out from the previous settings. I need some advice. Thanks in advance and this forum is awesome! It has got me to this point and I’m sure it’ll see me through to the end.
I bought a 1996 Seadoo GTI from an older gentleman that had owned it since it was new. He said it didn’t get much use last year because of an injury but that it ran well before sitting in his garage this past winter with last year’s gas still in the tank. I assumed that it would need the fuel lines replaced and the carburetors cleaned but I only paid $1,200 and that included a trailer so I figured it was a good deal and would make for an interesting project.
When I took it out on the first test ride it was surging and bogging and wouldn’t go over 20mph. After the first ride the spark plugs were black and moist.
Here’s what I’ve done so far:
1. I replaced all the old grey fuel lines with new automotive lines.
2. I disassembled the carburetors enough to remove the internal filters and clean them. After some soap and water and half a box of Q-tips they look like new again.
3. I removed the fuel tank and flushed it out with fresh gas to remove a few flakes of “dirt” that were in the bottom of it. I filled it to the top to aid in tuning as per this forum’s advice.
4. I noticed that the gas tank was building up pressure and after closer inspection the one-way valve on the gas tank vent line that exits below the rub rail was clogged and I wasn’t able to unclog it. I removed it and have been running the ski without it for the moment. I’m planning to replace it with a new one. Will running the ski without it affect carburetor tuning?
5. I haven’t reinstalled the inline fuel filter yet after replacing all the fuel lines; will this affect the carburetor tuning? I’m planning to reinstall it I just haven’t done it yet.
6. I also haven’t recalibrated the oil pump cable since reinstalling the carburetors; will this affect carburetor tuning?
I believe I have the carburetors synced correctly.
Since doing all of the above I took it back to the river and took it for a ride. It went up to 30mph and was no longer bogging and surging but it wouldn’t go beyond 30mph. I still had roughly 40% of the throttle left though. Even when I would give it more throttle it wouldn’t even react, it would just keep cruising along at 30mph like I was holding the throttle steady at 60%. The sparkplugs were black and moist.
I turned the high speed adjusters out 1 turn each (from whatever it was set at when I bought it) and it would go up to 35mph at 70% throttle and then the same “no reaction” after applying more throttle. I checked the plugs and they were still black as before but they were no longer moist. They were also warm to the touch but not hot.
Another turn out on the high speed adjusters and it would reach 40mph at 80% throttle and then the same “no reaction” after applying more throttle. I pulled the plugs again and they are a nice chocolate brown but they are reasonably warm/hot to the touch.
Where do I go from here? Do I keep turning the high speed adjusters out? If I do that will it not start running lean on the top end? The manual says that the high speed adjusters shouldn’t be turned out more than a ¼ turn. I’m already two turns out from the previous settings. I need some advice. Thanks in advance and this forum is awesome! It has got me to this point and I’m sure it’ll see me through to the end.
