2005 Yamaha SX230......should I? Need help!

[Susquehanna Squid]

Is anyone out there familiar with these boats? I am a prop guy but want to move to a jet due to the river conditions up here! The boat itself is in great shape I just have reservations about going to the 2 Yamaha engines. How do they hold up? Do the jet drives need constant maintenance? Any help would be great. Thanks!

 

[Leardriver]

They are terrific reliable boats with typical Japanese build quality.

 

[oldjeep]

Jetski powered boats typically owned by people who have never owned boats before. Make sure you have someone go over the engines to make sure they are in good shape. Also make sure that you know what the cleanout plugs are and if they are seated properly.

 

[ZacUSNYR]

Engines are pricey - I have an 06 WaveRunner FX HO - I just put my 3rd engine in it, found a wrecked 05 FX HO and paid $2k for it at 200hours to harvest the engine. Which was a deal - these things don't let go nicely - they detonate and usually take the lower cases with it. Used engines are sky rocketing/remans are going up because the lack of cores are becoming common.

My 2nd engine was an SBT motor that let go (was in it when I bought the pwc in 2011, was told it was rolled over and the original engine was flooded/ruined) - so make sure it doesn't have remans in it and they are the originals. I keep telling myself the 2nd engine popped because it was a crap reman and that's believing the story the first engine was trashed after 60 hours because the original owner rolled it over the wrong way.

I've heard stories of these engines going 1000 hours in rental skis.

Issues you may run into - fuel injectors - they can become clogged and if you ignore them, you will lose an engine. They should be cleaned every few years.

Poor regulators / Stators - depending on the amount of hours - it's possibly you may need to invest in some charging system components in the not so distant future.

Also they're dry sump oil systems, oil level is either completely wrong or perfect. If you put oil in to the point of proper level when cold, you'll ruin your air filter. Do some studying if you get it.

Although pumps have the luxury of not hitting the prop when going shallow - the impeller and wear ring need very minimum clearance. Shallow water usage usually sucks sand/pebbles past the impeller which will degrade the performance of the pump. As far as maintenance goes - if you're not over zealous with the throttle in the shallows - they're pretty much maintenance free - there is a sand filter for the water inlet which can become clogged and need a cleaning.

Avoid usage where there is floating vegetation, otherwise you'll be swimming under the boat and clearing out your intake grate.

Honestly - if I was to do it again, i'd find myself an NA 1.8L Yamaha - the MR1s are decent but I don't think i'd buy another MR1 powered water craft. But I think that's my recent experiences souring me on them.

 

[jkust]

Having just bought a 24 foot boat to replace my previous 18 foot boat, I was actually tempted by all of the Jets on the market. I stuck with prop but my take was that while yamaha engines are rock solid, their interior design and quality just isn't up to par with some of the other brands out there. I also don't like that in that vingtage there is no true neutral. You are always slightly moving as the water is being divertet. The jet boats for their size are seemingly cheaper as well...presume because it is just a smaller group of buyers driving the price down. I have a Yamaha Fx SHO (supercharged 1.8 liter 4 cylinder marine engine) i bought last season and is maybe the funenst thing I own, so I like the Yamahas and the fact that they detune their 4 cylinder engines versus the Sea Doo engines that have one less cylinder and tune them up to perform. Ultimately I decided to just go with the 300HP v8 to get a bit of power and top end and just rely on the Waverunner for jet powered fun. Twin Jet engines will also force you to be constantly gassing up. In my life, I didn't think it was possible to use as much fuel as our single engine waverunner uses. Since we are on a lake, and I won't pay marina prices for gas, I am constantly standing in the water next to the waverunner on its lift refueling.
It is actually a bummer i think that Sea Doo stopped producing Jet Boats because their interiors and design I felt was more on par with some nicer prop boat manufacturers. Now of course even Chaparral are producing Sea Doo engine powered Jet boats so there are still options.

 

[roffey]

I bought my boat 2 years back and was on the fence as well. I went for a prop drive as I knew what they were like. I was reluctant to spend that kind of cash on a drive I had never really experienced. My choice turned out to be good as we did get a place on the water but the bay we are in is very weedy, so weedy I have to motor out and once I have cleared the weedy area I reverse it to clear the prop. I'm still interested in jet drive boats but just don't think they have the top end I was looking for. My boat is 20 feet and does just under 55 on the GPS. I don't use it often but when you want to go some where it comes in handy and puts a perma-grin on my face every time.

 

[jkust]

Jet's are often touted for shallow water but cannot run in shallow water.

 

[Susquehanna Squid]

Thank you all for the help! I cannot make up my mind!

 

[SeaDooSam]

Jet's are often touted for shallow water but cannot run in shallow water.

+1 on that

Jets show their advantage when there a big rocks that you have to worry about hitting with a prop with a lot of draft. But, a jet creates a ton of suction. When my relative was driving a jet ski in a couple feet of water he sucked up a rock and destroyed the impeller, crankshaft, etc. so, if the river bed is little rocks, I may stay clear. Where I boat, I am mainly worried about big rocks. I have a little seadoo jet boat and it is very fun. Mine is not a twin engine though. As people say two engines is double the trouble. More fuel, more winterizing, more maitenance, etc. My mechanic who is one of the best in the area speaks very highly of the Yamaha engines. He says they are very reliable and last for a long time. As far as top speed, yes you do need more power in a jet to go the same speed, but if you have enough power you can get it to go pretty fast. I have always wanted a sx230, but right now I have a stern drive

 

[jkust]

On that winterizing comment...Sea Doo's are closed cooling and the Yamahas are raw water cooled. Even on a Yamaha, the winterizing as far as flushing and removing the water for the winter storage is extremely simple....far simpler than a stern driver whereby even a single blue plug drain port MPI engine can still hold water in via rust blocking the water's passage out. Of course there is lubricating cables and jet nozzle adjustment verification and some other things that will need to occur but the process of removing the raw water is an easy one.

 

[SeaDooSam]

That is true, but two engines is STILL "double the trouble" in other areas. The great thing though, is that if one engine croaks, hopefully you will have one left to get you home.