Engine Oil Change Problem

[stevendandalides]

2006 Wake---in the process of changing the oil today I managed to break off a short (1 inch) piece of the plastic tubing for the fluid extractor--only to have it fall down into the oil dip stick tube. It was too far down to retrieve. I was able to use the remaining plastic tube to drain the oil via the dipstick tube--the broken-off piece apparently fell down all the way into the oil pan (reservoir)??

Any suggestions on what I need to do to get the plastic piece out of the ?? oil
reservoir (pan)? Is it likely to cause problems if I am unable to retrieve it?
Has anyone had a similar experience?

Any help would be most appreciated.

 

[seadoosnipe]

Welcome to the forum!...

Welcome to the forum Steven. I wish you were here just to chat but seems you've run into a quagmire...."catch 22"....
This does pose a threat to the performance of your engine. Any foreign object in your engine, no matter how small, can mean catastrophic consequences if not addressed. From what I can see, your oil dipstick comes into the engine block area between the balance shaft and the crank. I couldn't tell exactly where the point of entry was by the exploded view layout.
You'll have to decide what to do with it because of two reasons. The plastic tube can be lodged somewhere that doesn't interfere with the moving parts of the motor until one day when your out riding and hit a good wave that bounces the ski, then it could break free and tumble into an oil port that lubricates the bearings, or even get caught in a crank connecting rod or any number of moving parts. At 7000 rpm, that could spell disaster!
The other thing is, to replace that engine with another, just the price of an OEM rebuilt engine will run you $2200.00 and that's just the engine. No labor etc...
Is there any easy way to fix this? I don't think so. The engine doesn't appear to have an oil pan, just a split casing. But I've only got an exploded view to look at. My advice here is......get it to a shop. Get an expert's advice on this. The engine is to technically advanced and cost to much to take a chance with!
So sorry to hear of your misfortune. If you do find a way to get a inexpensive fix, please let the forum members know. They could learn from your experience. Thanks and I wish you well in finding a solution!........

 

[Dennis]

Oil Change

Hi Steven,
I work on a lot of SEADOO'S and I happen to have my first 4TEC engine apart.
It's out of a 2006 RXT (same engine). This engine is completely disassembled.
SEADOOSNIPE is correct. The bottom of the engine case is the oil "pan". I looked at the cases, both top and bottom as if they were assembled, and your piece of plastic is now under the counter balancer. The area of the balancer where the plastic piece is located is a smooth ( no gears or weights) rotating shaft. The piece of plastic cannot come in contact with the crankshaft or any oil passages due to the design of the cases even in the event of a roll over. There is a slight possibility the plastic could find it's way to the oil pump but there is a screen that would stop it from entering the pump. SEADOOSNIPE is correct when he says the only way to retrieve this plastic is to remove and disassemble this engine but I don't see any harm in leaving it there. If this were my ski I wouldn't worry about it and I'm very particular about my ski. DAWG

P.S. I would't make a habit of dropping things down in my engine! LOL

 

[seadoosnipe]

4-tec!

Now why didn't I think about referring my questions to you!......I knew you had the 4-TEC engine. Man, I got a short memory.
Good advice Dennis. I just didn't want to recommend that he continue to run, then something happen to it. If the tube did fall into the balance shaft area, it's not as bad as falling into the crank area. I guess it being a 4-TEC, it doesn't have the oil seal on the balance shaft that the standard 2 cycles do. The Rotax 2 cycles have an oil seal, about 3 inches out from the gear cog, that holds the 1 ounce of 30 wt oil from mixing into the crankshaft area. And of course, there isn't any oil pump to be concerned with.
Dennis, in the balance shaft area, are there any bearings or smaller clearances between the shaft and casing that would keep the tube from working it's way into the counter weights or gear cog area? On my balance shaft, there is an area where it travels the length of the casing, with a very small tolerance.

 

[Dennis]

Balance Shaft

Hi Louis,
I"m not sure what the question is. The crankshaft and balance shaft have bearings the same style as a V8 CHEVY (with 202 intake valves LOL). There is a bearing on either end of the balance shaft. There is nothing in between these bearings and that is where the piece of plastic tube had to end up. The plastic tube is laying on the bottom of the engine about 1 inch below the balance shaft with no place to go. There are no seals for this shaft( like the 787) and the cog and counter weight are on the other side of the bearings. I wonder if SeaDoo located the dipstick in this location just for that reason?
DAWG

 

[seadoosnipe]

good answer!

You answered my question. With no real good look at the balance shaft, I wondered if there were more bearings beside the ones on each end. I thought with it being 3 cylinder, it may have another set.
But you answered my question.
Then like you, I don't know if it would be worth all the stink to get to it.