2022 RXT-X300 Slow Crank - No Start

[imafake702]

Ten minutes into riding and it stalls. Won't start again, pull the seats and smoke is coming from the rear of the vessel. It's not burnt oil, or electronics, but just smells like regular smoke. Get it home and a day later try and start it again, same problem. Extremely slow crank turns over once, maybe twice. Pull the plugs, turns over a bit faster, still not fast enough to start. Swapped the starter, starter cable, starter solenoid and relay from the other ski that starts fine, to this one, same problem. The other ski starts so all those parts weren't the issue. Batteries are new (bought in the last month), have swapped them from each ski, the one that runs fine starts with both. The problem ski has this issue with both batteries. One evening, with the plugs out, I wanted to record what I was experiencing and by sheer dumb luck, as soon as I was recording and went to hold the start button, it cranked normally for about two seconds. Tried again, back to the slow whirring weak crank - can be heard in this YouTube video:

Once I stopped recording, it cranked normally again after being slow, so I put the plugs back in and it started. I let it run for a few seconds and shut it off. Tried to start again, back to the slow cranking.

Aside from that issue, I pulled a hose from the supercharger and the walls of the supercharger have aluminum dust on them. I thought it might have failed to the point of being seized or partially seized, putting a drag on the motor but that's not the case, pulled the supercharger out and there is some play in the shaft, the nut on the end of the shaft is rounded down a bit. I can't see anything severe but i'm not an expert. The inside of the hose I pulled off smelled just like the smoke I smelled inside the hull.

Logic points to these issues being related but I just can't see how. I don't know if I have two different issues and by a huge stroke of luck an electrical issue stalled the engine before the supercharger issue got a lot worse.

Anybody have any ideas on the slow crank that can be heard in the video?

 

[ski-d00]

How does it crank with the sc off?

 

[imafake702]

How does it crank with the sc off?

Good question - I'll try that out when I stop at home for lunch. I had thought about it but was concerned with the small oil spraying jet making a mess with no supercharger.

The shaft of the supercharger spins freely - makes slight noise when spinning. The housing where the impeller is was scored up and the acorn nut holding it in place also had scoring which is another mystery - there is nothing there for it to rub against, there is just a hose that goes to the inter-cooler.

Forgot to mention when I was riding and it stalled, no alarms went off, no lights on dash. Ski had power, dash was lit up, music continued playing. Also, the amount of smoke was faint.

 

[ski-d00]

If there is any play at all in the sc shaft then it is toast. I've seen them spin fine in your hands but a bearing is out and won't run in the ski. If there was a touch off with the impeller into the housing to create aluminum dust then a bearing is out.

 

[imafake702]

If there is any play at all in the sc shaft then it is toast. I've seen them spin fine in your hands but a bearing is out and won't run in the ski. If there was a touch off with the impeller into the housing to create aluminum dust then a bearing is out.

Got videos for you here in just a minute - loading up in YT.

 

[imafake702]

Plugs out.

Plugs in.

Supercharger.

I appreciate your help... something tells me that oil coming out like that isn't normal. Certainly doesn't look like what would come out of the jet that feeds the SC shaft.

 

[ski-d00]

The oil coming out is normal. The sc is just above the oil level. I normally just put a rag in it for cranking but don't push it in too far.

It sounds like it is cranking fine without the sc.

 

[imafake702]

Agreed - definitely cranking way better. Beat my head against a wall trying to look for an electrical issue that was never there. I was even more convinced it was electrical since it somehow started once throughout many tries over the last week or so while the SC was still in it.

Replacement SC shipped this morning; endoscope will be here Thursday so I can get a look in there and see if anything else was damaged.

I'll admit I learned about letting off the throttle when airborne while wake jumping after I had engaged in that sort of activity quite a bit near the end of last year. I'm thinking that's the cause of my problem.

Thanks again.