I have a choice between two Jet Skis.

[Count Monaco]

I'm looking for a Jet Ski that required minimum maintenance (since I know relatively nothing about them) I have the choice between an ugly Kawasaki ZXI 1100 and a pristine 96 Yamaha Waverunner III. I really want the Kawasaki because it's so much faster, but I read that high performance Jet Ski's need servacing more than WaveRunners. True?

 

[jkust]

I'm in the market at the moment as well but may not end up buying if I can't locate a good deal. You are looking at really old models that are to me too old to even consider. I'm not going older than 2009 or so in order to get, fuel injection (will never own anything without it again), 4 stroke because neighbors hate 2 strokes, and a supercharger so I don't outgrow it in a season plus they can all be maintenance headaches so want to stay newer. I see so many ads where it's only 5 years old and already has a new engine or some other large repair item done to it recently. My take is if we buy one, we are going to a whole other level of maintenance beyond what our boats require. I hope I'm wrong but is what I'm planning for so don't even consider maintenance when shopping. I didn't realize that there is some sort of understanding between PWC manufactures and the government that they won't surpass 65mph out of the box without modding them. The speedo's may say higher but gps is close to 65 on the top end. The difference then being will any particular PWC hit 65 and if it does how fast does it hit it. It sounds far fetched to me but I keep reading it in different reviews.

 

[Jeff Walkowiak]

The Coast Guard will pull their exemption if they go over 69 . the reason is at 69 or faster you can loose an arm , leg or break your neck literally if you hit the water the wrong way at that speed or faster. They know the manufacturers were all trying to compete for top speed and if it were not for the unwritten rule there would be total mayhem.
The only thing a supercharger does is get you to top speed faster eat a hell of a lot more fuel and usually requires premium fuel at that, the maintenance is a lot more, even the pumps take a beating, I have owned a few of the supercharged skies but I now know to stay away from them. If speed is your thing a motorcycle would probably be a better way to get your fix. I stay away from those also but that was not always the case.
For reliability the Yamaha 1800 engine is my choice I buy new skies, put a 5 year warranty on them and ride them hard. 2 or 3 days a week all year long.

 

[Count Monaco]

The only thing a supercharger does is get you to top speed faster eat a hell of a lot more fuel and usually requires premium fuel at that, the maintenance is a lot more, even the pumps take a beating, I have owned a few of the supercharged skies but I now know to stay away from them. If speed is your thing a motorcycle would probably be a better way to get your fix. I stay away from those also but that was not always the case.
For reliability the Yamaha 1800 engine is my choice I buy new skies, put a 5 year warranty on them and ride them hard. 2 or 3 days a week all year long.

I have 3 motorcycles and I'm trading 1 for to a guy who has two jet skis. Also, I live in Tampa and I don't know if you've ever been here, but we have the 3rd worst traffic in the US and the 1st worst drivers- People routinely blow through lights here 5 seconds after they've turned red. We have traffic signals here that last over 4 minutes long! The roads here are not fun to cruise, they're nothing short of a nightmare.

 

[Jeff Walkowiak]

Why I don't drive cycles any more I live in St Pete the densest populated county in Florida. I carried a badge and a gun for 23 years here so I believe I have seen it all.
Once you are on the water you can die just as easily though.
Boat operators hate skies I have had them run right up on me from behind and then pass so close they nearly knock me off the ski, laughing while they do it. I installed a video camera just to be able to file a complaint for reckless endangerment, and under bridges if you go through the fenders they will run you right into the rails or even pass you from behind when you have no place to go to get away from them. So believe me the water here in Tampa bay is just as dangerous as the streets.

 

[WaterDR]

Between those two kids I would pick neither. If you want a combination of giod speed and reliability at a reasonable cost, look for a used Kawasaki stx 15F. 60 MPH ski and very reliable. You can find new ones for 8k and used for less of course. They do hold their value very well.

 

[WaterDR]

Or an Ultra LX. Same ski but bigger hull. A little slower though. Avoid any supercharged model if you want to avoid maint.

Kawasaki makes the best bang for the buck skis....hands down.

 

[jkust]

The Coast Guard will pull their exemption if they go over 69 . the reason is at 69 or faster you can loose an arm , leg or break your neck literally if you hit the water the wrong way at that speed or faster. They know the manufacturers were all trying to compete for top speed and if it were not for the unwritten rule there would be total mayhem.
The only thing a supercharger does is get you to top speed faster eat a hell of a lot more fuel and usually requires premium fuel at that, the maintenance is a lot more, even the pumps take a beating, I have owned a few of the supercharged skies but I now know to stay away from them. If speed is your thing a motorcycle would probably be a better way to get your fix. I stay away from those also but that was not always the case.
For reliability the Yamaha 1800 engine is my choice I buy new skies, put a 5 year warranty on them and ride them hard. 2 or 3 days a week all year long.

As I'm getting into my search a bit deeper...I am reading about supercharger relate issues (read needlessly expensive repairs) constantly. Looks like the Yamaha 1800 naturally aspirated can still hit 65 and will hit 30 in 1.8ish in some applications.

 

[Brian 26]

I'm looking for a Jet Ski that required minimum maintenance (since I know relatively nothing about them) I have the choice between an ugly Kawasaki ZXI 1100 and a pristine 96 Yamaha Waverunner III. I really want the Kawasaki because it's so much faster, but I read that high performance Jet Ski's need servacing more than WaveRunners. True?

As mentioned older two strokes are not the greatest when it comes to reliablility, with that said Yamaha is the best of them from that era. Of your two choices I would go with the Waverunner.

 

[jkust]

As mentioned older two strokes are not the greatest when it comes to reliablility, with that said Yamaha is the best of them from that era. Of your two choices I would go with the Waverunner.

That is along the lines of what I've been reading. Kawasaki's seem to have the worst reputation and keep reading over and over Yamaha is preferred. I see several nice newer Kawasaki's 260's and even some nearly new 300's for cheap out there. I don't know how much is really internet bias though but have then read the professional reviews say the 260's don't turn as sharp as the others without a lot of help among other things. The 260's and the 250 even more so seem to also then have supercharger failures at really low hours. Again, internet bias or truth, I can't discern but smoke and fire.

 

[WaterDR]

Well, that depends. If you are talking about SC models, Kawasaki has been an issue. BUT, if you are talking about NA models, they are more bullet proof than any other.

I would frankly place Yamaha a close second. and Seadoo in third. But it is somewhat engine specific.

Yamaha has two motors. An 1100 and the 1600. Nearly all rental companies use the Yamaha 1100 for three reasons: fuel economy, not too high performance, and reliable. The 1800 is just too quick as is the Kawasaki 1600 motor. For someone who wants a reliable, efficient ski and does not care too much about performance, you can;t beat a Yamaha 1100 boat. But if 50 mph is not fast enough for you, you can jump up to the 1800 or go with a Kawasaki 1600 and be in the low 60's all NA....no supercharger.

The issue I enjoy with the Kawasaki models is the Kawasaki STX 15F is likely the biggest bang for the buck, most fun ride you can find for the price. The Ultra LX has the same power plant, but sits on a larger hull, has more space for storage and is a bit slower due to weight and displacement.

Its sometimes hard to line-up model to model by the different manufacturers.

Seadoo went through a couple of years with some major issues with SC models which appears to have been fixed and Kawasaki's latest models which are now 330 hp I think, have also addressed some significant issues too.

I know I am rambling, but we have a local dealer here (very large) who sells all three manufacturers. Every sales rep rides a Kawasaki whom I have asked, yet their Seadoo sales and Yamaha sales dwarf the Kawasaki models.

 

[jkust]

See that is not rambling but exactly the kind of feedback that is helpful. Pretty much all of the newer Kawasaki's I see that fit the age criteria being 2008 and newer are supercharged with low hours for low money. Low hours meaning under 50 hours. The Kawasaki's remind me of when I was shopping for very slightly used four wheelers (less than 2 years old), where Polaris was hands down in the first or second place slot for almost every metric from power to technology yet were always the cheapest in the used market even with very low hours. It was almost too good to be true but I bought one and they are just the best bang for the buck. The PWC's seem to either be in the low hours category from someone who had high hopes but never used it or used the heck out of it and it has high hours. I don't see a lot of in-between in my criteria.

 

[Jeff Walkowiak]

Yamaha has my vote the 4 stroke 1800 engines are indestructible my last supercharged s h o had over 650 hours on it in salt water only. my experience with a Kawasaki really sucked and I will never buy another nor would I ever recommend one if you ride in salt water, 350 hours and half of it's life in the shop. my Yamaha wen it once with 500 hours on it and the factory took care of the issue at no charge. I have now owned 3 new non supercharged 1800 engines and I can't say enough good things about YAMAHA skies, Owned a bunch of 4 stroke Doos and I don't care to go there again either I put hard hours and lots of them on my skies, I personally would just give up p w c s if it were not for the reliability of the last 4 new Yamaha skies I have owned

 

[WaterDR]

See that is not rambling but exactly the kind of feedback that is helpful. Pretty much all of the newer Kawasaki's I see that fit the age criteria being 2008 and newer are supercharged with low hours for low money. Low hours meaning under 50 hours. The Kawasaki's remind me of when I was shopping for very slightly used four wheelers (less than 2 years old), where Polaris was hands down in the first or second place slot for almost every metric from power to technology yet were always the cheapest in the used market even with very low hours. It was almost too good to be true but I bought one and they are just the best bang for the buck. The PWC's seem to either be in the low hours category from someone who had high hopes but never used it or used the heck out of it and it has high hours. I don't see a lot of in-between in my criteria.

ha ha, I think you pretty much nailed it. There are two types of buyers on these Kawasaki SC models....rich people with good intentions too busy to use them and dedicated owners who do nothing but ride them.

Kawasaki re-sale is better than Seadoo and Yamaha except for the SC models. You can but new discounted and they hold their value like silver bars.

Case in point....you can buy a brand new 2014 STX-15F for about $7500 or get a 5 year old model for $6,000. Its pretty nutty actually. Meanwhile, dealers have 2013 SC models sitting around for thousands under MSPR but then 5 years later they are only slightly more than an NA model.

SeaDoo does the best marketing, IMO. Also lots of bells and whistles.

I have a daughter leaving for college, otherwise I would have a pair of new Kawasaki (and STX and a 15F). That and the fact that my weekends are taken with girls softball.

 

[jkust]

ha ha, I think you pretty much nailed it. There are two types of buyers on these Kawasaki SC models....rich people with good intentions too busy to use them and dedicated owners who do nothing but ride them.

Kawasaki re-sale is better than Seadoo and Yamaha except for the SC models. You can but new discounted and they hold their value like silver bars.

SeaDoo does the best marketing, IMO. Also lots of bells and whistles.

I have a daughter leaving for college, otherwise I would have a pair of new Kawasaki (and STX and a 15F). That and the fact that my weekends are taken with girls softball.

The funny thing is that between two identical used PWC's one that has practically no hours and one with high hours, there is only maybe a $500 difference between the two at least for the asking price. I'd gladly pay an extra 500$ and get 200 less hours. As for Sea Doo...the BRP 4 wheelers are the same way...lots more bells and whistles than the next closest brand.
We spend all of our summer weekends and most weeks at our lake house in the summer and so that is the only reason I'm looking to buy a pwc or two. The kids decided to drop summer sports to be at the lake instead which is ok because we were all getting sick of baseball for so many years. I grew up going to my parents lake place every weekend and most weeks and honestly those are the very best memories of my childhood.

 

[WaterDR]

Dude, you just described my life....here goes.....two double-headers every week. Then tournaments on weekends. Last week of this month, daughter graduates on Sat and we have a softball tournament that entire weekends and the next four weekends. Then June 6th, Graduation party which my wife has gone completely overboard on (not to mention a tournament too). The ONLY open weekend I have until August my wife scheduled a trip to Makinac Island for four days. I told her last night "I am staying home". Enough is a dam enough. Did I mention that graduation is on the 30th? AND, she signed me up to chaparone the all-night party. Like it is some kind of duty I have. I will have family in town and have to coach games the next day. Unreal...I get no credit. Last night I got yelled out for leaving some food in the sink. Meanwhile today she cracked the car....and I have told that I "can't say anything about it" because she feels bad enough. Good God!

 

[jkust]

Dude, you just described my life....here goes.....two double-headers every week. Then tournaments on weekends. Last week of this month, daughter graduates on Sat and we have a softball tournament that entire weekends and the next four weekends. Then June 6th, Graduation party which my wife has gone completely overboard on (not to mention a tournament too). The ONLY open weekend I have until August my wife scheduled a trip to Makinac Island for four days. I told her last night "I am staying home". Enough is a dam enough. Did I mention that graduation is on the 30th? AND, she signed me up to chaparone the all-night party. Like it is some kind of duty I have. I will have family in town and have to coach games the next day. Unreal...I get no credit. Last night I got yelled out for leaving some food in the sink. Meanwhile today she cracked the car....and I have told that I "can't say anything about it" because she feels bad enough. Good God!

Married with kids...I hear ya. I gotta say that no summer baseball which started last summer has made summers enjoyable again. All we do now all summer is boat, fish, go 4 wheeling, long walks with the wife, cocktails at the restaurants on the lake, water ski and tube and just relax. I intend to add jet skiing to that list if all goes right. Summer sports were just killing our summers.

 

[WaterDR]

My daughter is 13 and the best pitcher in the city at her age group. Sports likely won't slow for us for a while but next year her traveling will extend more broadly but I wont be coaching anymore. That will help.