1996 XP idles but no top end speed

[ntmeangreen2003]

I am trying to help out a friend who is a very new Doo owner. He has a 1996 XP and we had it out this past weekend, initially ran great. Then his wife side swipped it with the Doo she was riding. I wasn't out with them when it happened so I have no idea how hard the impact was, but after that the problem started. It will start, run, idle even has a little power to it, but when you get on the throttle it revs up and tries to take off then it's almost like it shifts into neutral. The engine revs all the way up but it won't move at all, at least till you let it idle back down. From what they told me, it sounds like she knocked something loose when she hit it, maybe broke a spline on the impeller shaft. I wanted to check here before I pull the impeller and go through all that work when it might be something simpler. Ok, I'm hoping it's something simpler.

 

[seadoosnipe]

Shaft?

Since you didn't witness the impact, you will have to go over all the components in the propulsion area.
If the engine revs but no thrust, normally, we'd blame it on the wearing ring losing it's outer skin. But you will want to check your splines too.
Take off the shaft guard at the rear of the pto. Should be held on by 2 plastic wing nuts. Then, remove the spark plugs, so the shaft will be easier to turn. Grab the shaft and turn it (counterclockwise is normal rotation, but to test the splines, it shouldn't matter). If you feel the shaft giving way, then the splines in the pto hub are bad. If not, you'll need to access the impeller and then, try and turn it. If it spins without the motor turning over, then you have stripped the splines from the impeller.
If your having a problem detecting this, then leave the plugs in so you have resistance on the engine, this way, if you can turn the shaft without feeling any compression, then you'll know that way too..........
Don't dismiss the wearing ring either........Good luck!:cheers:

 

[ntmeangreen2003]

Thanks for the info, that sounds about like what I was looking for. I'll certainly give that a try.