Hi Guys, I have just bought a sea doo 4 tec 155 sportster 2003 and can only imagine that in the future ill be having a jekyll and hyde love affair with it, one minute ill be speeding along without a care in the world and then the next no doubt something will go wrong lol like with anything high tech !! After use in salt water whats the norm ?? Do you flush it with fresh water like a sea doo jet ski and run the engine etc ?? Filters to change ?? Is there an hour meter ?? Any advice from fellow owners on how to care for these boats and keep the downtime down is much apreciated !! Also is it possible to fit a supercharger to one of these and upgrade the horsepower ?? cheers ash
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Just purchased sea doo 4 tec 155 sportster 2003 .. would like some tips please
- Thread starter ashflash
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devonte007
Active Member
Hi Ash, welcome to the forum and congratulations on the new boat.
I have the same boat, 2004 model and if it was taken care of by the previous owner you should not have any problems with it as long as you perform proper maintenance. In fact, well cared for 4-tec engines have been known to run for over 1000 hrs without any problems. I'll try to answer your individual questions:
1: After salt water use - yes, you should flush the system with clean fresh water after use. These boats have 2 separate cooling systems, the engine has regular green coolant and a heat exchanger so it is sealed. The exhaust system uses an open water system, so that needs to be flushed after salt water use. Just hook up a hose and run it for a minute or two. Read the manual and follow instructions carefully. Start engine, turn on water, shut off water, turn off engine. Never let the water flow with the engine off b/c the engine could fill with water if you do and that would be very bad. Then you could also rinse the outside of the engine off, let it dry good and spray with WD40 as a protectant.
2: Maintenance - Again, read the owners manual and/or the shop repair manual. Basic maintenance is just like a modern car. Periodically replace engine oil and filter, change coolant, spark plugs, inspect the jet pump and make sure things are lubricated. Thats about it.
3: Hour meter - These boats do have an internal hour meter kept by the onboard computer. Unfortunately the only way to read the hours from the computer is to bring it to an authorized Seadoo dealer or buy yourself a diagnostic computer for about $400.
http://www.candoopro.com/
Starting about year 2007 they put in a digital gauge cluster that easily shows the engine hours and other entertainer information.
4: Supercharger - No, you cannot add a supercharger to this engine without a lot of work and expensive parts. The supercharged engines are set up different, different computers, injectors, etc. It is not impossible, but it would not be worth the effort. If you want supercharged then just buy a boat with a supercharged engine.
Other than that, I would recommend downloading the owners manual from BRP and download the shop manuals for your boat from this forum. Click the 'manuals' link at the top of this page. Spend some time reading and become familiar with your boat. If you have any additional detailed questions let us know. Hope this helps, and good luck!
--Deven
I have the same boat, 2004 model and if it was taken care of by the previous owner you should not have any problems with it as long as you perform proper maintenance. In fact, well cared for 4-tec engines have been known to run for over 1000 hrs without any problems. I'll try to answer your individual questions:
1: After salt water use - yes, you should flush the system with clean fresh water after use. These boats have 2 separate cooling systems, the engine has regular green coolant and a heat exchanger so it is sealed. The exhaust system uses an open water system, so that needs to be flushed after salt water use. Just hook up a hose and run it for a minute or two. Read the manual and follow instructions carefully. Start engine, turn on water, shut off water, turn off engine. Never let the water flow with the engine off b/c the engine could fill with water if you do and that would be very bad. Then you could also rinse the outside of the engine off, let it dry good and spray with WD40 as a protectant.
2: Maintenance - Again, read the owners manual and/or the shop repair manual. Basic maintenance is just like a modern car. Periodically replace engine oil and filter, change coolant, spark plugs, inspect the jet pump and make sure things are lubricated. Thats about it.
3: Hour meter - These boats do have an internal hour meter kept by the onboard computer. Unfortunately the only way to read the hours from the computer is to bring it to an authorized Seadoo dealer or buy yourself a diagnostic computer for about $400.
http://www.candoopro.com/
Starting about year 2007 they put in a digital gauge cluster that easily shows the engine hours and other entertainer information.
4: Supercharger - No, you cannot add a supercharger to this engine without a lot of work and expensive parts. The supercharged engines are set up different, different computers, injectors, etc. It is not impossible, but it would not be worth the effort. If you want supercharged then just buy a boat with a supercharged engine.
Other than that, I would recommend downloading the owners manual from BRP and download the shop manuals for your boat from this forum. Click the 'manuals' link at the top of this page. Spend some time reading and become familiar with your boat. If you have any additional detailed questions let us know. Hope this helps, and good luck!
--Deven
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dothadoo
Active Member
Devon pretty much covered everything, however, if you did want to add a little horsepower you could add an air intake. K&N makes one, i believe. Just Google it. There is also a Solas impeller that you can change out from the stock one. You will not gain much, but every little bit helps. You may gain 1-2mph on top end and a little better hole shot on the low end. To me the hole shot is the main drawback on the 155hp engine, as compared with the supercharged engine. Yes the SC engine has a faster top end, but we are only talking about 5-6 mph for the 215hp engine and how often do you go all out all the time? I rarely do and mainly use mine for tubing and wake boarding so it is the low end that is more important to me.
One other thing that was not mentioned was the oil. I always put Sea Doo oil in mine and it is a little more expensive, but at least I know that it is made for my machine. They make a semi synthetic mix and that is what I use as it is good for both the SC and non SC models. My local dealer just informed me that they sell a kit for when you change your oil, which comes with oil, filter, plugs, and the two oil filter gaskets. You end up saving about $20 or so doing it that way. Someone else may have a better, more economical source than your dealer for that kind of thing.
I had a 2003 Sportster 155 and it was a great boat for the 2.5 years that I owned it. Good luck with yours!
One other thing that was not mentioned was the oil. I always put Sea Doo oil in mine and it is a little more expensive, but at least I know that it is made for my machine. They make a semi synthetic mix and that is what I use as it is good for both the SC and non SC models. My local dealer just informed me that they sell a kit for when you change your oil, which comes with oil, filter, plugs, and the two oil filter gaskets. You end up saving about $20 or so doing it that way. Someone else may have a better, more economical source than your dealer for that kind of thing.
I had a 2003 Sportster 155 and it was a great boat for the 2.5 years that I owned it. Good luck with yours!
diggin4aliving
New Member
They are great boats. Just keep up with winterizing and regular maintenance and you'll have a great boat for a long time. Good luck and enjoy!!
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I replaced my impeller with a Skat Track as the original was damaged on the Speedster 155. I didn't experience any notable performance increase. Maybe the Solas is better, however according to reviews the Skat Tack is better for pick up...
I've said it before, in hindsight I would have gone for the 255hp, however I'd also be about about $3-4k poorer on purchase price and another $2-3k per year poorer on fuel and maintenance...
The 155hp gets me up on a single ski. It's a good entry level, low maintenance boat.
KevinLab010
New Member
Hi Guys- Just picked up a 2003/4 sportser 150 today. kept in amazing shape. It is good to hear that it is a good boat with decent speed. I hope it will have a low cost of ownership. My 1989 cruiser was a hole in my pocket and moved slow!
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