2006 Seadoo Speedster 200 Portside Cavitation

[Ionhsmith]

Hello,

I have a 2006 Seadoo Speedster 200 430hp boat and I am getting major cavitation from the port side engine. I purchased the boat a couple months ago and it I noticed it slightly when pulling out of the hole at slow speeds. Eventually it got to where I couldn't get the boat to propel forward at all. I took it to a very reputable shop and had all of this replaced and both pumps rebuilt:

104 hours on the boat

2 new impellers
2 circlip
2 angle bearings
2 impeller shafts
6 O rings
4 seals
2 wear rings

After this repair I put it in the water today only to find that the cavitation is still there on the port side. It does it every time from the hole shot no matter if I go WOT or ease into it. Any suggestions would be much appreciated because this is very annoying.

 

[POPPS]

Could easily be the carbon ring if it has one,,,,when they leak,,,they also cavitate

 

[Ionhsmith]

Where are the carbon rings located? I want to say they replaced them also

 

[POPPS]

From your lengthy list what is missing are the 2 carbon rings/seals.,,,mabe i am confused,,,that you do not have a normal seadoo pump?

 

[ski-d00]

It's a normal seadoo pump. The carbon seal and collar are where the driveshaft go through the hull.

 

[MacSeaDoo]

Cavitation is simple. It is a disruption of the flow of water. You need to find out if they replaced the carbon seals because if they did not and you still have the problem, that may be the culprit.

Outside of that, I would start looking at the things they did not replace or touch, which would be the seal on the ride plate and intake grate. If you suspect the seal on either is an issue, seal them with duct tape and test. If the issue is gone, you know where the problem exists.

 

[Ionhsmith]

Ok I appreciate it. I will check those out

 

[TheDirtyBrit]

I had a cavitation issue on my challenger. I had the wear ring and impeller changed as they were not in the best shape but I noticed it still did it out of the hole. I came across a post (forgive me I don’t remember who) where someone said it could be the carbon seal and more specifically, the bellow that holds it in place weakening. They suggested a fat zip tie around one of the bellow valleys (narrow areas) to make it push out more. I was sceptical, but I tried it and it has made a big difference! I now have a project for the winter replacing it. I guess when you first give it the beans from a standstill or slow, there is such a suck from the front of the impeller, that air is forced through the carbon seal if it is not held tight against the metal flange. It’s worth giving it a try as it’s a cheap way of confirming the issue.

 

[TheDirtyBrit]

How did you get on with this problem?

 

[Ionhsmith]

Sadly I have no so far. Mechanics say I need to replace to carbon rings next and reposition the engines so they line up with the drive shafts properly. Just waiting on time and money to try that out