2001 Challenger ( Solas Impellers )?

[ever323]

So I Have a 2001 Challenger with twin 717. It rides good and tops off at about 47 mph ( gps )
I had no problems with it ever and since It's normally just me and my girl.
This past weekend I had family from out of town visiting me, so we took the boat of to the lake, and I had
3 guys plus me and all of us 200lbs or really close to it. and the boat would not go!!! I had to let off the gas and start super slow. one we where moving it was ok.
I have read mix reviews on the Solas Impellers and I wounder if that would even help me in that cause anyhow?
plus I don't want to spend $500+ on something that is not going to give me that much more then what I have know.

Have anyone really use one and is more then happy that they did? any feed back is good.

 

[LouDoo]

I'm gonna move this to the 2-stroke boat section I think you'll get better results. Personally I wouldn't replace the impellers unless they are damaged, you're gonna get minimal gains.

Lou

 

[Guest_User]

You have to find the root cause of the issue first.
when was the wear ring to impeller clearance checked last regardless of if the boat planes out with minimal weight...

by loading the boat your not only causing more drag in the water it will be more difficult to plane out. You`ll have to try different approach with how you throttle to get up and go...

now with that said: I say this about every OEM impeller... MOST oem impellers are a good compromise of hook up and speed in the various water conditions. From what I hear the newer ski`s ie: Kawi 300 have nailed it with a very good impeller that requires just a slight repitch when modding. The Boats are different as the engines are loaded more than a ski...

IMHO > aftermarket impellers are FAR more efficient than OEM period. The aftermarket impellers work off their own designed root angles different from stock, even tho Skat-Trak might make OEM`s but to the manufacturers specs... From what I see SeaDoo`s boat impellers are a swirl design with a good amount of overlap...

back to impellers.> I`m currently running 2 solas 15\23`s and Love them, they work... I needed impellers after a few issues smoked one of them. Stock speeds with this pitch. So true no speed gain, but the boat does come on plain quickly with 2 adults gear and a dog... I do suspect I`ll throttle differently when the boat is loaded more. Just like a jetski with 2-3 people on it, it will respond and take a bit longer which is normal... maybe you`ve reached the limits of your boat for it`s age with the power it is producing or lacking.

IMHO, you can select a pitch to help plane out if your planning on adding passengers more frequently. or select a pitch to add a few MPH, but I will say it will load the engine more. so a healthy boat is imperative.

Now after you checked everything, impeller clearances, wear ring, pump seal, carbon seal and you verify you don`t have a cavitation issue, then you can correct this issues with an aftermarket impeller...

I suggest you call Dave over @ IMPRO`s and discuss what you need...

I would start with looking over the propulsion first to verify everything is in spec and GTG.

I have used Skat and Solas and have had multiple pump set ups, with a few impellers on the shelf at any given time for different applications, hook up and close quarters acceleration to open water top end speed...

Good luck!

 

[rjcress]

What PR says will take time and effort, but I agree completely that you are spinning your wheels if you start throwing parts at the problem before you know what the root cause is.
Personally, my Challenger had what appeared to be the stock impeller when I got it. However, the engine was locked up, jet pump bearings bad, wear ring chewed up, impeller leading edges dinged, etc. I happened to find a rebuilt jet pump on Fleabay with a 17/22 Skat Trak impeller already installed... and the total cost was LESS than if I bought jet pump bearings, wear ring, new impeller and installed them myself. So, I went that route and am happy. I've only had my Challenger out once since the rebuild, and it took longer to get on plane than I hoped, but still did pretty well with about 500Lb of people in it. However, I never did experience the boat with the stock impeller, so I can't speak to what difference the Skat made.
I mention this only to suggest that if you get to the point of wanting to try a different impeller, you might get the whole assembly like I did, which would make swapping between the two easy, and would give you a spare on-hand in case of issues.