2017 Yamaha SX190 issues with RPM

[mitchsee]

Hi all,

I'm new to this forum and also brand new to the boating and jet boat life. I just bought a used 2017 Yamaha SX190 and had no issues taking it out Wednesday and Thursday. I pulled some tubes behind and hit a good cruising speed of around 30 mph with 7000pm. Yesterday, I was coming back in from an evening ride and got an error message saying Low Oil Press. So I checked the oil and filled it to about the midway line of the two holes in the dipstick.

That seemed to work for a bit. The alarm went away and was able to get back to the 7000 rpm and 30 mph speeds I was getting. However, after cruising for about 15 minutes, the rpms dropped to 6000 at full throttle and speed dropped down to around 12-15 mph.

I cleared the jet board of any obstacles and rechecked the oil to make sure it was still at a good level.

I've also noticed that my rpms will drop down below 5000 rpm when making a sharp turn and speed will go down to around 10mph.

I opened the engine compartment and see a bunch of water spraying. I uploaded a video to imgur here: https:// imgur.com/a/yamaha-XIFNdUX

Any advice or feedback is certainly welcomed! Or, if you have a mechanic in central florida that you'd recommend, let me know!

 

[tdonoughue]

I believe the appropriate word is, 'suboptimal'. Obviously spraying water is bad. Can't really see from the video from where it is coming, but perhaps the back of the engine? Were you able to see from where it was spraying? Midline in the back may be the seal for the impeller, but I have not seen those spray up like that. Usually people have leaks there that dribble or run.

Was that at idle? Is the water hot or cold? Was there water in the bilge? Your dropping speeds could be because you were taking on water. Was the bilge going?

 

[mitchsee]

Hi all,

I'm new to this forum and also brand new to the boating and jet boat life. I just bought a used 2017 Yamaha SX190 and had no issues taking it out Wednesday and Thursday. I pulled some tubes behind and hit a good cruising speed of around 30 mph with 7000pm. Yesterday, I was coming back in from an evening ride and got an error message saying Low Oil Press. So I checked the oil and filled it to about the midway line of the two holes in the dipstick.

That seemed to work for a bit. The alarm went away and was able to get back to the 7000 rpm and 30 mph speeds I was getting. However, after cruising for about 15 minutes, the rpms dropped to 6000 at full throttle and speed dropped down to around 12-15 mph.

I cleared the jet board of any obstacles and rechecked the oil to make sure it was still at a good level.

I've also noticed that my rpms will drop down below 5000 rpm when making a sharp turn and speed will go down to around 10mph.

I opened the engine compartment and see a bunch of water spraying. I uploaded a video to imgur here:

https://imgur.com/a/yamaha

I believe the appropriate word is, 'suboptimal'. Obviously spraying water is bad. Can't really see from the video from where it is coming, but perhaps the back of the engine? Were you able to see from where it was spraying? Midline in the back may be the seal for the impeller, but I have not seen those spray up like that. Usually people have leaks there that dribble or run.

Was that at idle? Is the water hot or cold? Was there water in the bilge? Your dropping speeds could be because you were taking on water. Was the bilge going?

Thanks for the reply!

We were at idle during thag video. The bilge was on and had been on the whe time. Water level in the engine compartment was low so it doesn't seem like we were taking on water.

We found a plastic casing that seemed out of place and we were able to snap it back in and that seemed to block the spray from happening. However, we're still having problems with engine oil levels. We checked it this morning after adding oil yesterday and we had to add another quart.

Could the spraying water affect the engine oil level?

 

[2kwik4u]

If you're having to continue to add oil, there is a breach in the block somewhere. That's a bad sign. Need some answers on where that water is coming from, and if the water was warm or cold.

Oil cooler is on the starboard side toward the front of the block, so that doesn't seem to be the culprit. Broken oil cooler bolts were a thing for awhile.
I'm wondering if you have a broken water line from the jet pump there. That's the right spot, and right pressure to spray like that.

The losing oil thing is worrysome. Can you get some pictures of the back of the engine block?

 

[mitchsee]

If you're having to continue to add oil, there is a breach in the block somewhere. That's a bad sign. Need some answers on where that water is coming from, and if the water was warm or cold.

Oil cooler is on the starboard side toward the front of the block, so that doesn't seem to be the culprit. Broken oil cooler bolts were a thing for awhile.
I'm wondering if you have a broken water line from the jet pump there. That's the right spot, and right pressure to spray like that.

The losing oil thing is worrysome. Can you get some pictures of the back of the engine block?

Thanks again for the reply. With getting it out of the water for the first time yesterday and a tire blowing on the interstate on the way home, I just decided to take it into a mechanic and have them look at it. I'll update you with what they come back with!

 

[2kwik4u]

Thanks again for the reply. With getting it out of the water for the first time yesterday and a tire blowing on the interstate on the way home, I just decided to take it into a mechanic and have them look at it. I'll update you with what they come back with!

Totally understand that. I'll be on the lookout for an update.

As an FYI, and anecdotal data point, our '17 AR190 has been great for us. We're sneaking up on 400hrs now, and it's been pretty rock solid for us since new. 1/2 way through our 8th season with it, and aside from some general maintenance, the only thing we've had to do is replace a bilge pump.

Point being, don't get discouraged. They're good boats once you get them sorted.

 

[mitchsee]

Totally understand that. I'll be on the lookout for an update.

As an FYI, and anecdotal data point, our '17 AR190 has been great for us. We're sneaking up on 400hrs now, and it's been pretty rock solid for us since new. 1/2 way through our 8th season with it, and aside from some general maintenance, the only thing we've had to do is replace a bilge pump.

Point being, don't get discouraged. They're good boats once you get them sorted.

That is encouraging! However, bad news from the mechanic as it looks like the engine is going to have to be rebuilt.

Their notes:
no oil cap, started boat and heard knocking sound on back. side of engine engine not 100% in line. head has been removed recenty. took oil filter off and found metal. the metal is mostly aluminum with traces of brass. found water in cylinder 4, air filter also saturated. took pictures of each

 

[David Martin]

That Sucks...........Sorry to hear about your problem. Keep us updated.

 

[2kwik4u]

That is encouraging! However, bad news from the mechanic as it looks like the engine is going to have to be rebuilt.

Their notes:
no oil cap, started boat and heard knocking sound on back. side of engine engine not 100% in line. head has been removed recenty. took oil filter off and found metal. the metal is mostly aluminum with traces of brass. found water in cylinder 4, air filter also saturated. took pictures of each

I guess the moral of the story... get a survey done before any kind of purchase, even if the boat seems to run fine during a sea trial. I learned my lesson the hard way.

OOF, that's rough. Terribly sorry to hear that.

You can look around and find the 1.8L engine in some other vessels (GP1800R I think), and it will "mostly" bolt into the boat from what I remember. I've never done it, but I've followed along on some threads where others have. SBT gets a bad rap for their rebuilt engines, but I'm not exactly sure why. I've seen as many success stories as I've heard rumors of failures.

 

[tdonoughue]

Given that writeup from the mechanic, I would tend to replace, not rebuild...

Do keep us updated.

 

[mitchsee]

A few more additional notes from the mechanic during the tear down:
-the head bolts were not torqued to spec -copper spray on head gasket
-cam is scored up and head has hollowed out
-the coupler was not torqued to spec
-heavy soot on the pistons
-heavy pitting on cyinder walls
-clearance between wal and pistons bigger than spec
-rusted piston rings
-hole in lower casing is where the previous rod has come through and made contact with oil par
-damage to that piston
-damage to crank
-the previous mechanic did not repair the engine correctly, instead they replaced the rod and put engine back together poorly
-none of this engine is salvageable

It sounds like it will be a full replacement rather than rebuild. Anyone familiar with misrepresenting a vessel during a sale or purchasing something with a latent defect that wouldn't be seen during a regular inspection?

 

[2kwik4u]

A few more additional notes from the mechanic during the tear down:
-the head bolts were not torqued to spec -copper spray on head gasket
-cam is scored up and head has hollowed out
-the coupler was not torqued to spec
-heavy soot on the pistons
-heavy pitting on cyinder walls
-clearance between wal and pistons bigger than spec
-rusted piston rings
-hole in lower casing is where the previous rod has come through and made contact with oil par
-damage to that piston
-damage to crank
-the previous mechanic did not repair the engine correctly, instead they replaced the rod and put engine back together poorly
-none of this engine is salvageable

It sounds like it will be a full replacement rather than rebuild. Anyone familiar with misrepresenting a vessel during a sale or purchasing something with a latent defect that wouldn't be seen during a regular inspection?

Wow, that, well, it sucks. Sorry to hear that, I can't imagine the emotions.

First, on solutions; start looking for a replacement engine from a donor boat or ski. It has the opportunity to be the least expensive option to get you back on the water, but requires some legwork from both you and the mechanic. If not that, then look at SBT. They have replacement short and long blocks I think. Mixed reviews online. As best I can tell, it's a good chance you get a great engine first try, but there are reports of the failing very quickly, however I've read most have been covered under warranty.

Second, unfortunately, most sales of used equipment are "as is, where is" unless expressly written up that way in the purchase agreement. Private sales get messy, and your only likely recourse is small claims court, depending on claim size. This is one of those times its worth a couple hundred bucks to talk to a lawyer for an hour and get a good, local, legal take on the situation. I'm not a lawyer, so take this advice for what it is.

Good luck, and keep us updated as you move along.

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

Unfortunately it sounds like whoever sold you the boat sold you a clapped out piece of shit engine. Gotta love people who knowingly sell people damaged stuff. That motor had been apart and “whoever” took part in that didn’t want to fix it they just wanted to unload it on some unknowing person. Totally sucks, but I guarantee you karma will take care of them.

Sorry to hear about your woes I’ve been through it myself before.

You might try calling Michael Miller at Power Sports Brokers down in Florida. He may be able to set you up with a good engine out of a damaged ski or boat.

Motors Engines | Powersports Brokers

Keeping in mind that people usually don’t jump on the internet to say how great things are…. As far as SBT goes, I’ve seen way too many posts here about their rebuilt engines failing with very few hours. In fact there was a post just the other day where a member here was asking about fitting sizes so they could attach an oil pressure gauge to a failing SBT engine because SBT wanted to see the low oil pressure before they started a warranty return.