1997 Challenger Cavitates Bad

[Jfsegar]

Just bought a 97 challenger single engine. A buddy and I took it out yesterday and it cavitated some and took probably 30 seconds or so to get on plane. It was hitting 6000 rpm. TAny suggestions? Check wear ring clearance? Any suggestions would be great. I did some searching but didn't see where people were never able to get on plane. Thanks!

 

[scski]

That many adults in a 14' boat and bad cavitation will keep you from getting up on plane.

Carbon seal or bellows, wear ring, or ride/plate shoe needing resealing can all be contributing. Most likely the carbon ring and/or boot, you can measure the pump wear ring clearance when you pull it. Once you get all this right, if it still cavitates, then I would suspect the ride plate/shoe needing resealing, but it's less common.

I would pull the pump and check everything out.

Change the pump oil and check the driveshaft to make sure it's straight and has both bumpers on it while you have it all apart.

 

[locobeach]

Just bought a 97 challenger single engine. A buddy and I took it out yesterday and it cavitated some and took probably 30 seconds or so to get on plane. It was hitting 6000 rpm. Today I had a total of four people on board and it never once got on plane. We were putting around at just a few mph and only hit 4500 rpm. Could this be the result of a bad wear ring? Carbon seal? I tried sliding the stainless steel ring forward but it had no additional room. I'm trying to attach a few pictures. Any suggestions? Check wear ring clearance? Any suggestions would be great. I did some searching but didn't see where people were never able to get on plane. Thanks!

Most likely the wear ring, I had a 97 twin engine and was having the same problem, when I replaced the wear rings the difference was astounding. Wear rings are not expensive, but you have to pull the pump and remove the impeller. Tip, freeze the new wear ring in the freezer before installation, gives you a little edge when pressing in...dry ice is even better...

 

[Jfsegar]

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When i put it in forward the cover lifts up. However I can manually move it up more with my hand. Is this normal? I also attached a picture of my carbon seal area. Does this looks correct? I tried adding a few zip ties and silicone sealant but it didn't help today. Thanks.

 

[scski]

ok that has the old style sealed bearing on it, somebody converted it, but left the stainless steel ring that is used with the carbon seal.

If that bearing/seal assembly is put on there correctly and in good shape, it shouldn't be a cavitation issue. However, that stainless ring shouldn't be there, but shouldn't cause an immediate problem.

Can't see much from your impeller photos, the problem is usually on the other side on the intake. You won't know about the wear ring until you can put a feeler on it unless there is a big chunk or more missing.

"When i put it in forward the cover lifts up. However I can manually move it up more with my hand. Is this normal?"

Which cover?

 

[Jfsegar]

Thanks for the replies guys. I included those shots to show the difference when I push the control lever all the way into "forward". It seemed like it needed to go further so I went down by the pump and manually pushed it up a little further. Which one of the pictures looks right? I'm wondering if the shift cable isn't letting me push it far enough to move the "cover" above the jet nozzle.

Sorry if I'm not using the correct terminology.

Thanks.

 

[scski]

Oh no problem, I was still thinking drive shaft when you first said cover. I think you're talking about the reverse gate, which drops in behind the nozzle to redirect water for N and R.

On my boat (96 single engine Challenger) there is a lock on the left that snaps the gate into F, all the way up. When you pull back to N, it gets unlatched to release the gate down. 97 may be the same.

If this is the case, it could be a big part of the problem. Linkage may need to be adjusted or the mechanism for the latch may need some work.

 

[Jfsegar]

I'm going to buy a feeler gauge set and see what the clearance is.

 

[sYnOnYx]

It would be a good idea to just rebuild the jet pump and anything in the driveline back to the motor. Will cost around $200 to do it right if your driveshafts are ok, but you have no idea how well the previous owner treated the boat.

I would say your linkage needs an adjustment when it comes to your jet gate.

 

[Jfsegar]

Bought afeeler guage and it looks like its around the the dreaded .04 mark. I took everything off and snapped A fewpictures of the wear ring. It looks to still be in great shape. There is more space between it and the impeller on certain parts and other areas are perfectly fine. I'm going to try the freezer method as I do not have the impeller removal tool. Already bought a new wear ring and pump oil

 

[Jfsegar]

Pics of the old wear ring. Bars on the pics would you think it needed replacing? I already bought one donuts getting replaced but at first glance it didn't look like it. The impeller doesnt have as much rust as the flash is portraying.

 

[Jfsegar]

Well the freezer method didn't work. I'm going to pick up the impeller removal tool today to cut out the wear ring. Has anyone had success using the freezer method to remove the old wear ring? That sucker is really tight in there.

 

[El Toro 33809]

I always remove the impellar and cut the old ring out.

 

[scski]

Yeah I tried the freezer method and no dice - I had to pull the impeller and cut it out.

If you have an old driveshaft you can make your own impeller tool or just use the driveshaft and pipe wrench.