2003 Plastic Pump..... You guys weren't' kidding :)

[68ragtop]

So, I have read threads in past years about the plastic impeller pump housings being cheap, flexible & complete garbage. I Have had two 2002's & I have had no issues with those pumps. They both have/had the partial metal housing inserted into plastic, & I guess I had thought that's what you were referring too over the years. At the time I thought some of the comments where maybe a bit harsh as I didn't think they were all that bad & no significant or abnormal wear ring issues that I saw.

But....... Now I have a 2003 SC project & Last night I removed the pump assembly. Holy crap, are you kidding me? the whole damn thing is plastic. NOW I know what you guys where talking about. I'm thinking a 720 XP might be able to flex one of these things. cheez, Its really laughable.

So that being said, what was the deal? 2002 first year of the big pump & they made them cheaper with molding a plastic housing around the metal bearing & vain section. Seemed to work pretty good, so in 2003 lets get really cheap & make it all out of plastic except the hub? Who approved that idea & does that person still have a job?

 

[nateccnn]

Other than it being plastic...what's the problem with the 16 year old pump? (probably same b oat you were in before where you thought people were being harsh for no reason ;o))

 

[68ragtop]

This is my latest project ski, never had it on the water.

The problem with it is the wear ring is worn nearly 3/32 deep in two areas & not at all in others. Not worn from debris getting between the impeller & the ring, but rather the impeller carving the thing up. I don't even need to water test this thing to see it won't work well. I pulled the pump to inspect it & was surprised. That's all

I guess my point was I couldn't & still can't believe they are made almost entirely of just flexible plastic. Now I realize all the criticism of the 03 pump housings & its well justified.

I'll post pictures when I get home tonight.

 

[kevinz]

I have a 2006 GTX 155 and its pump is all plastic as well. I replaced the wear ring and impeller using an SBT Delrin ring and refurb impeller, which had the correct factory code cast into it (verified with parts finder online). And I still cavitate quite a bit. Not much of a difference in the gap between the impeller and ring from the new OEM parts it had in it.

I plan on finding a used aluminum RXT pump this winter and rebuilding it, then swapping over my impeller. Hopefully that will tighten the gap and it won't cavitate. These plastic pumps supposedly warp and are just trash.

 

[ski-d00]

The plastic pumps work fine for the 155 and 130. If you have cavitation after new impeller and wear ring then you have another issue like a carbon seal, pump bearing, or bent driveshaft issue.

So, in 2003 BRP knew they had a big issue with the plastic pump on the 185hp but didn't have time to fix it properly. Their band aid solution was to add a metal bracket to the side of pump housing to try and keep it from flexing which did absolutely nothing. In 2004, they switched to the aluminum housing for all 185 and 215 models which was the proper solution. If your 2003 was still under warranty, they would upgrade to the aluminum pump at no charge if you complained enough.

 

[68ragtop]

The bracket is somewhat comical. When I look at the wear, it would seem the hub location shifts because of the flex in the plastic veins & then rubs on the ring off center. Not sure how the bracket could ever stop that from happening. No doubt there was a big cost savings (at first) for BRP, but thats one of those "oops" moments for sure.