Have you had a 1.8 timing chain failure, was it in warranty and how has Yamaha handled it?

jmargo · Apr 10, 2022

Yes these are interference engines. You may get lucky and only need head and valve work. Best bet is to put a scope down each spark plug hole and look for valve kisses on the piston tops.

Have you ever pulled the valve cover to inspect the chain links ? I include that in my pre season checks.

I_squared_r · Apr 10, 2022

BBottoms said:
Well, just lost my timing chain on my 2015 AR240. Actually the 2nd one for my boat, first was starboard engine at around 50 hours, before I bought it, and replaced under warranty. Today was port engine at around 332 hours. Took off out of a cove, was just getting up to speed, and port engine just quit. Limped back to the nearest marina on one motor. Port engine still turns over but obviously not turning the top end. Fortunately I was at my home lake, out for a quick run to flush out the salt as we spent last week on spring break in Florida with the boat on the Gulf. At least it didn't happen there. Planning a Bimini trip this summer too so it sucks, but not as much as it could have.

I'm well out of YES warranty and based on a few threads I've read it sounds pretty much no chance Yamaha will cover it anymore so I'll be looking for a used motor or other options.

Are these interference engines? Any chance of just replacing the chain and associated components or is there likely other damage? I can do pretty much any mechanical work myself.

Sorry about the chain. These are interference engines and you need to remove the cylinder head to see the damage. A few years ago a guy had some bent valves and no piston damage so he refurbished the cylinder head and put a new chain.

Yamaha sells a new cylinder head for $2000. I am thinking if it's possible to put the newer 16+ cylinder head and the 16+ timing chain and guides, and keep the OEM crankshaft with the narrower pulley.

Brian M · Apr 11, 2022

Yes it sucks but say 10 - 20 boats out of 6000 as documented is still super low for what we ask of these engines. Prepared yes but more worried about food ,beer and gas running out.

Prwilkins · Mar 27, 2024

robert843 said:
I still think a bigger deal is made about this then it really is. There has to be close to 1000 1.8l engines registered on the forum when you consider many boats have two of them. Right now I think I have seen 3-4 1.8l engines on here have the issue which makes it less then half a percent issue. Don't get me wrong for those it's happened to its terrible and I sure hope Yamaha took care of most if not all of them.

Yamaha won’t do a thing for us because we are out of warranty! Our 2013 192AR has 78 hours on it and the timing chain broke and it destroyed the engine. The repair is $23,000!!!! Our boat was serviced every year, stored indoors and averaged 35-40 mph…it was “babied”! We knew NOTHING about any timing chain issues and were never notified by Yamaha nor the dealer of any concerns!
CRIMINAL!!!

Scottintexas · Mar 27, 2024

Prwilkins said:
The repair is $23,000!!!!

That repair bill for a replacement engine is what is criminal,

What's the name of the dealer that is charging that much ?

Prwilkins · Mar 27, 2024

Did Yamaha

dougg said:
Just adding my boat (2014 212X) to the list of failed timing chains. We had just finished a day of surfing and beaching which has been the norm for us the past two summers. While on the ride back to the dock, with both engines running great, the starboard side quit. It took me a bit to figure it out and thanks to this thread I though to look at the timing chain. We're 4 hours from the dealer so I won't have it inspected until next week. I'll let you know what Yamaha says regarding warranty. Engine has 150 hours on it. Lots of surfing and general boat use. Well maintained and taken care of. We've had zero issues up to this point. We're going to miss not having a boat for September long. Looks like well be riding with friends, none of them jet boats though so I'll be taking a ribbing.

do anything for you??

I_squared_r · Mar 27, 2024

Prwilkins said:
Yamaha won’t do a thing for us because we are out of warranty! Our 2013 192AR has 78 hours on it and the timing chain broke and it destroyed the engine. The repair is $23,000!!!! Our boat was serviced every year, stored indoors and averaged 35-40 mph…it was “babied”! We knew NOTHING about any timing chain issues and were never notified by Yamaha nor the dealer of any concerns!
CRIMINAL!!!

Hey, sorry that happened to you. There are much cheaper solutions. Do some research, I'm sure that you can find someone local that can repair your engine. It really depends on the extent of the damage. Sometimes you can get away with refurbishing the cylinder head with replacement valves. They also can put the 2016+ timing chain, timing chain guide, and cam gears so you can avoid future problems.

Neutron · Mar 27, 2024

Prwilkins said:
Yamaha won’t do a thing for us because we are out of warranty! Our 2013 192AR has 78 hours on it and the timing chain broke and it destroyed the engine. The repair is $23,000!!!! Our boat was serviced every year, stored indoors and averaged 35-40 mph…it was “babied”! We knew NOTHING about any timing chain issues and were never notified by Yamaha nor the dealer of any concerns!
CRIMINAL!!!

The majority of the chain failures were 14 and 15 model years. While other years prior and after have had it happened its not as widespread as you think it was as far as percentages in total production of the 1.8l.
While unfortunate, your boat is 11 years old and to think any manufacturer will step up is a stretch.

23k is way too much for a boat that repair

Prwilkins · Mar 27, 2024

swatski said:
Yes, there is a number of reports of Yamaha replacing or fixing 1.8l engines out of warranty when destroyed due to TC failure.
Obviously I can't speak for them, but I am convinced they would replace the engine(s) if failed due to TC, with/out warranty, based on what I have heard.
I could be a fool...

Yamaha will do NOTHING because we are 6 years out of warranty. 78 hours on my 2013 AR192, maintained yearly and stored indoors. Never run wide open…generally 35-40 mph. This boat was babied. Cost to repair engine due to timing chain $23,000!
Have notified BBB and are retaining an attorney! Yamaha had a known issue with timing chains, chose not to issue a recall, issued a TSB but did not notify owners of potential for disaster!
That is criminal to me! We cannot afford to put $23,000 more dollars into this $35,000 boat

Prwilkins · Mar 27, 2024

I_squared_r said:
Hey, sorry that happened to you. There are much cheaper solutions. Do some research, I'm sure that you can find someone local that can repair your engine. It really depends on the extent of the damage. Sometimes you can get away with refurbishing the cylinder head with replacement valves. They also can put the 2016+ timing chain, timing chain guide, and cam gears so you can avoid future problems.

We are in Michigan. The engine was destroyed…cylinder head and culinder block are $15,000 alone!

I_squared_r · Mar 27, 2024

Prwilkins said:
We are in Michigan. The engine was destroyed…cylinder head and culinder block are $15,000 alone!

Please explain what is destroyed. The failure was catastrophic that did damage to the cylinder block and cylinder head? I am 100% positive the dealer is giving you a price based on if they bought new parts from Yamaha. They're giving you the "We don't want to fix it price, take it somewhere else"

Cambo · Mar 27, 2024

New acronym B.O.A.T post covid Brake Out Another Twenty K

Prwilkins · Mar 27, 2024

zwillz said:
Man sorry to hear that. When I first bought my 2014 212x about a yr ago I contacted Yamaha directly and brought it to their attention and have it all documented. Told them that it's a problem with these boats with certain years. They were aware of some, but not as many as there has been. But I just wanted it documented to cover my end. Not sure if itll help or not, but I have names, case #s, and a written letter from Yamaha. Obviously hoping it never happens, but just wanted a plan if it did. Again sorry man, I'd be an unhappy camper! Good luck!

Could u share names and letter from Yamaha? I’m fighting the battle for Yamaha to do the right thing as we speak. 2013 AR192 with 78 hours timing chain broke and repairs are almost $23,000!! They refuse to fo anything!!

Prwilkins · Mar 27, 2024

I_squared_r said:
Please explain what is destroyed. The failure was catastrophic that did damage to the cylinder block and cylinder head? I am 100% positive the dealer is giving you a price based on if they bought new parts from Yamaha. They're giving you the "We don't want to fix it price, take it somewhere else"

Yes, the cylinder head and cylinder block assembly total $15,000 for just those two parts. I have a whole page of additional parts that make up the balance if the $23,000

Ronnie · Mar 27, 2024

Prwilkins said:
Yamaha won’t do a thing for us because we are out of warranty! Our 2013 192AR has 78 hours on it and the timing chain broke and it destroyed the engine. The repair is $23,000!!!! Our boat was serviced every year, stored indoors and averaged 35-40 mph…it was “babied”! We knew NOTHING about any timing chain issues and were never notified by Yamaha nor the dealer of any concerns!
CRIMINAL!!!

That sounds more like an engine replacement quote.
One of the timing chains in my 2010 242 broke at 506 hours a little over a year ago. The quote I got from a shop which charges $170 per hour was about $2,500 including the chain, nine new valves and a gasket kit.

I had the chain on the other engine replaced, changed the oil and filter and took compression readings and video of it running before pulling it out of the boat and replacing both engines with those salvaged from a 2017. I’m selling the original engine (complete from the engine cover to the exhaust manifold) with the new timing chain for $2,500 but buyer must pick it up in Northern CA. This is a drop in ready/plug and play engine.

Start a convo with me if your interested.

Otherwise I recommend that you not waste your time trying to get yamaha to cover anything. Your warranty expired years not months ago, too long IMHO to expect Yamaha to do something/pay anything that they are not obligated to do/pay.

If you plan to keep the boat instead of sell it as is, try to find a good deal on a 2011 or newer Yamaha FX Waverunner or a GP 1800 (they have the same engines as your boat) to salvage from. Also don’t have the dealer do the work, if you are not going to do it yourself, take it to a local pwc shop with a good reputation/years of experience. My shop charges a lot less than the dealer does, I think most do.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

biffdotorg · Mar 28, 2024

Prwilkins said:
Yes, the cylinder head and cylinder block assembly total $15,000 for just those two parts. I have a whole page of additional parts that make up the balance if the $23,000

If that is actually a quote, then the writing is on the wall. Go elsewhere or replace the boat.

The last used AR192 I looked at with a buddy was 5 years ago was $18,000 for the complete boat and we walked away. So, ya start listening to some of the suggestions others are making here if you care to get it fixed, or just scrap it and buy a used 192 if you still love the boat. Nobody should be paying over $20K for a 192 when used market is tanking right now. Heck a waverunner with a SC 1.8ltr is 1/4 your quote. Get it for the engine.

Getting your post count up saying $23,000 over and over sounds a bit more like "the sky is falling" and will soon be ignored as just venting. I get it, it's catastrophic, but you can't expect a manufacturer to honor a warranty forever on an old boat.

David Martin · Mar 28, 2024

This is what you should look for drop in bolt in.............used but not too old.

2020 YAMAHA FX HO CRUISER 1.8L OEM ENGINE MOTOR LONG BLOCK 6CR-W009B-11-94 | eBay

Ronnie · Mar 28, 2024

David Martin said:
This is what you should look for drop in bolt in.............used but not too old.

2020 YAMAHA FX HO CRUISER 1.8L OEM ENGINE MOTOR LONG BLOCK 6CR-W009B-11-94 | eBay

I forgot that 192s are supercharged. That said, if you get an engine manufactured in 2016 or later it should have an upgraded/thicker timing chain so at least you should not have to worry about that being an issue in the future.

Neutron · Mar 28, 2024

Ronnie said:
I forgot that 192s are supercharged. That said, if you get an engine manufactured in 2016 or later it should have an upgraded/thicker timing chain so at least you should not have to worry about that being an issue in the future.

15 and newer are svho not sho so they are different engines as well

Ronnie · Mar 29, 2024

Another possible option which I’ve been hesitant to mention is buying a refurbished engine from small block technologies. Reviews are split on these engines but if you do consider them keep in mind that you have to give them your “working” core and you will not get the same core back. Also, buyer pays all shipping costs including for the core and any exchanges. Finally, they offer a one year warranty standard and a two year warranty for a few hundred more dollars. the two year warranty is worth the money IMHO.

Have you had a 1.8 timing chain failure, was it in warranty and how has Yamaha handled it?

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