Why did my motor lock up ???????????

[boyd]

1999 gs. 717 motor. Driving last week and it quit. Took it to the shop and they say the pump is fine. The motor is locked up. I have wiped it down after each use, never spent the night in water. Always winterized, change pump oil every year. The ski is immaculate. No oil leaks. Hull is clean. Needless to say I am pissed.
After I get over the $$ part I need to decide weather to sell ski as is to shop or put a new motor in it.
Is it common for this to happen. ?
Is 15 years about right for these motors?
I usually only run about 5 tanks of gas per year
Why would motor just lock up?
Mechanic says everything looks good oil wise.

Boyd

 

[boyd]

Mechanic said I could purchase a rebuilt motor from sbt for about 800 amd he would install for another 500.

 

[Sportster-2001-951C-Stock]

Congratulations, you just seized! I suspect poor maintenance.....

http://www.off-road.com/dirtbike/tech/dirt-bike-tech-twostroke-seizure-52428.html

Or, maybe your powerband finally broke?

 

[Jetskigoodies]

It is tough to say without seeing the cylinders/pistons. There are many reasons it could lock up. Lubrication issue, water in the motor, bolt or something got into the motor. Did you still have the original oil lines on it? Those tend to dry rot. 15 years is a good run on an original motor but some have seen more years and others have had them go much sooner than that.

You would probably get more money selling it yourself then selling it to the shop. If you lived by me I would charge you $200 to pull the motor and put the new one back in. Their price is not that bad though, I have none of the overhead they have. It is a decent size job, hours wise.

 

[manolocross]

What oil were you using????

 

[Dr Honda]

.........

Or, maybe your powerband finally broke?

Hu??

It is tough to say without seeing the cylinders/pistons. ..........

Yep... good place to start.

What oil were you using????

That's a great question.



Anyway... you can be pissed if you want... but these are high-output 2-stroke engines. The "Target" life, from Seadoo was 10 years, or around 400 Hr's. These aren't car engines that spend most of their life below 2000 RPM. They are run hard, and put away wet.


Without dissecting the engine... we have no idea why it failed. It could have been.....

1) Over heated

2) Lack of maintenance on the oil system. (There is a filter that could have plugged up. It needs changed every few years)

3) Wrong oil. (2-stroke oils are not all the same) Seadoo spec's API-TC.

4) Mixing oil. People get cheap/lazy, and will put in whatever they like. This can cause "Gel'ing" in the oil system.

5) Broken ring, or rusted bearings. (from not letting the engine dry out)

6) Leaking crank seals can cause a lean run.

7) Plugged carbs. (Causing a lean run)

8) Do you still have "Tempo" fuel lines. (They plug the carbs)

And finally....

9) just metal fatigue. After so many hours... the pistons just can't take it anymore, and they could have shattered.




As above... it could be a lack of maintenance. Just because it "Looks pretty" doesn't mean it's been maintained properly.

 

[boyd]

I have been using the API oil made by quick silver that is made for seadoo. It's the one with the pink ski on the front
The only Thing I haven't done is change the oil line filter. Tempo lines were changed a few years ago.
Now I don't know what to do. Is it worth putting 1300 dollars into? Or just sell it as is to a mechanic?
It is in great condition. Maybe get 600 for it. That is a 1900 difference in money.

 

[boyd]

I guess my dissapointment comes from..... My ski boat is a 92, my fishing boat is a 88. I felt like I did everything to the ski to make it last and it didn't I also did not realize the expectancy is 10 years. And "yes" I do realize just because it shines doesn't mean it's been properly maintained. However the two usually go hand in hand. I would bet most of the mechanics on this page also care about the appearance.
What do you think it's worth to a mechanic ?

Thank you guys for your opinions

Boyd

 

[dannyual767]

I'm sorry to hear that this happened to you. I just have to ask this question: are you sure that the motor is actually locked up? Just wanted you to make sure.

 

[boyd]

Took it to a local mechanic. He took off pump and checked it. Pump turned free. He couldn't get shaft to turn on motor
He didn't charge me anything to do that. I haven't had the ski since he told me. I'm going to get it Wednesday.
It's all I really know to do.
I am bringing it home and think about it. If I decide to replace motor it's probably best to do it during the winter. Mechanics are too busy right now. Plus summer is almost over here in Tennessee .

Thanks
Boyd

 

[Jetskigoodies]

Not to be harsh but a non running 717 that is locked up will bring maybe $500 tops. If you part it you will get more but that takes a while.

 

[boyd]

Danny. I see where u also have a 94 waveraider. I just sold my waveraider. I had 2 skis and sold that one. I only kept the seadoo because it was more buoyant with 2 people. Man I miss that waveraider. Nice ski.

 

[boyd]

500? With the trailer ?
Wow. I just put a new odyssey battery in it too and a rolling jack stand
Oh well ........

 

[summer]

Im sure its frustrating. Heck if it happened to me mine would just become a piece of lawn decoration. Anyway regardless of what happened and what you may or may not have done maint. wise, sometimes parts just fail. You can take every precaution in the world but things just break sometimes. Just ask anyone that races anything.

 

[AdamXP800]

Murphy Law

 

[antstoes]

If it is the engine, just order a rebuilt from SBT and change it yourself. I thought they looked complicated at first, but it is not that hard. Remove and replace parts.

 

[summer]

Just make sure you find out why yours failed. If it was anything other than just normal wear and tear you want to be sure you correct that as well.

 

[Dr Honda]

As above... $500 is about what it's worth. That ski, redy to run is worth $2k... maybe $2500 in the spring time, if it's really clean. If you have to take it to a mechanic to have it fixed... you are looking at $1500. So... there's where your $500 is coming from. But... Since it doesn't run... there's no real way for a potential buyer to know if there are other issues. (burnt up electrical, etc)

Also... as above... you can make good money parting it out, if it's clean. The trailer is $300 to $500, the MPEM is $100~$120, There is $300 in random electrical parts... seat, hood, pump... even the good engien parts will sell. (case, head, carbs)

If you do it right... there's $2k in parts. (Assuming super clean)



But... if it is as clean as you say... and you like the ski... then put an engine in it, and DO IT YOURSELF !!!!!!! This is why a lot of dealers don't take in older skis. They know that the labor winds up exceeding the value of the PWC.



As far as "My ski boat is a 92, my fishing boat is a 88.".....


Well... they didn't spend 90% of their life turning 7000 RPM, and jumping out of the water, bouncing off the rev-limiter. Not to mention... they aren't even close to the same power levels. (hp/cc) PWC engines are exceeding the hp/cc limits of even the best "Super cars" out there. Your 717 engine is at 119 hp/L !!!!!! I'm sure your other boats are around the 60~80 HP/L range. Just an FYI... Mercury takes 1500 cc's to make a 120hp engine. Then jumps up to 2500cc's to get the 175hp. Because of that... they can run with lower quality oil, and with loose tolerances. In turn... living a longer life.



I'm not trying to be harsh... but I get the feeling you are looking for a real answer, when the engine has just simply lived it's life.


Just one last thought.... This isn't common to just Seadoo. ALL, PWC engines are like this. AND, your 720 engine is one of the most robust. (Along with the Polaris 1200/900, Yamaha 701/650, and Kawi's 550) Some of the worst are Yamaha's 1200/1300/800 and seadoo's 951. (They only get 200 to 250 hrs, if well maintained)

 

[Coastiejoe]

Bottom line is, you need to decide if you want the ski bad enough for a motor or part it out..

Downfall with buying a used ski is the unknown. I sell nothing but things that are in excellent condition or with no secrets. But,,, many are not as polite and or truly do not know what they really have. So buying used you may be into an engine shortly there after. Or,,, you may get ten-years. If looking at a new ski test rides and compression reading are a must.

If the ski is super clean and you know all about it, it may be worth your time/money/effort to put a power plant into the hull. Will it financially be of value when you are done? Maybe not, but it will be a well known item.

As mentioned, parting it out you can do pretty well. It is a matter of time and your effort..

 

[Jetskigoodies]

If it is the engine, just order a rebuilt from SBT and change it yourself. I thought they looked complicated at first, but it is not that hard. Remove and replace parts.

It is not that difficult but you will need specific tools and manual. The alignment tool alone is $150.

 

[summer]

You can rent those expensive one time use tools.

 

[boyd]

Thank you guys for being so professional and answering accordingly. I appreciate it.
I think I'm going to park it in the garage and decide this winter.
Take care

 

[Jetskigoodies]

You can rent those expensive one time use tools.

Sure can. $75 to rent it and then you have to pay to ship it back. So you may as well just buy it.

 

[Sportster-2001-951C-Stock]

A Mercury outboard powerhead of the same HP will cost considerably more, although they do tend to last longer they're heavier.

 

[- BiRkS_]

A Mercury outboard powerhead of the same HP will cost considerably more, although they do tend to last longer they're heavier.

Hey sporster, ever had an oil pump fail on a 2007-2009 75-115 hp 4 stroke "verado"? Such a crappy design! I've got two before they scattered themselves. And you sure don't want to see the price on an e-tec longblock!