Spark Plugs

[SurfBeat]

Is there any reason to change spark plugs every year if the electrodes are not burnt and ceramic insulator is not broken? IMO, a good cleaning, checking the gap should suffice? Yes? No?

As most owners for Kawi 1100 STX's know, unless a primer is installed in place of the stock choke, it takes a lot of cranks to crank one over, so, having good plugs (and a good battery) is a must.

On a side note, after playing with my Kawi's this summer I decided to keep them and sell my 93 S/D GTX's because, IMO, the Kawi's provide a much better stable ride. When jumping waves, or simply hitting waves, in contrast to my S/D's, my huevos are not crushed.

That said, the S/D's are much easier to maneuver in contrast to the Kawi's.

Also, no more hassles about ash/ash-less oil; just pour in a good quality TWC blend, in my case, Penzoil.

 

[nevitt4]

i would say if the spark plugs look good leave it alone.. i was looking at buying a 1100 stx, sounds like u really like it.

 

[SurfBeat]

In 1992 I bought a couple Sea Doo GTX's that were real fun to ride, but hard on the nutz' when crossing waves. I surmise it was the early design of that hull which to my surprise Sea Doo kept until around 1999.

Then around mid summer of 2010 when the crankshaft went out on one of the GTX's and it took me 1/2 the summer to repair it, (with a ton of help from the good ole' boyz' on this site) while walking into a local dealership to get some parts to finish the task I saw two used green colored 1996 GTX's for sale. (exactly the same as yours and they looked bitchin.')

On an impulse, and partly because summer was half over and I was frustrated missing getting in the river for the summer, I began negotiations. I was a coins toss from buying when another interested guy started negotiating with another salesman. After haggling and getting the dealer down to about $7500, when the salesman told me I would have to raise my offer a few hundred bucks to match the other buyer, I abruptly split, went home, but still in a buying mood I went on Craigs List and found the same Doo's for two grand less.

Because I've heard a myriad of stories over the years that Sea Doo's were basically trailers for Kawi's and Yami's, and I always thought the Kawi's looked bitchin,' lo and behold while flipping the pages on CL I found two 1997 1100 STX's for sale for $5800 and got them for about $4600, maybe $4700. I know I paid about $400 too much, but, it was mid asummer

Except for not paying attention to the Zeiman trailer which one of the beams busted from rust accumulation while enroute to the river last year, the Kawi's ride is great. I did have to replace the start/stop switch ($50) and spend a couple hours patching some divits on the underside.

The only drawback is that my second reason for wanting to get a newer PWC was based upon the fact that my 93 GTX's only had a 8.7 gallon gas tank and the newer craft, including the Kawi's, (as well as the model you have) have almost twice that size (14gals). My thinking was that I could then travel almost twice as far with the larger gas tank? WRONG!!! The Kawi's have three carbs and I did not see improvement in distance traveled per tank. Looking at the Owners Manual, it appears your model does not fare well also; 92 GTX - 1.20 cruise time at WOT; Kawi 1.09 cruise time; 97 GTX 1.08 hr WOT. (Considering your tank is larger than the Kawi by one gallon, 15 gals, I guess the extra carb on my Kawi is not that mush of a drawback as I initially thought.

Enough rambling for a Wednesday morning. I probably rambled more than you wanted. I have the week off and all I have to do is get my surf band ready for a gig this weekend at the beach.

 

[nevitt4]

well i couldnt beat the price i got on mine. only paid 475.00 for jetski and trailer. but i have looking for another deal mabe one with a blown motor and my middle name is cheap. and there have been a kawi out there just not getting the price i want.

 

[SurfBeat]

$475 for two trailers was a great price. If I lived nearby I would take the green/white trailer off your hands. lol