2021 Yamaha 275SD engine died - thoughts?

[tdonoughue]

My 2 pennies:

I don't think that the inspector needs to inspect to find something else that is wrong, necessarily. I think that Mama Yama wants the inspector to inspect to figure out why there was this very bad failure. It could be a problem with the part (poor casting, wrong material, etc.), but it also could be that something was out of alignment or that there is another part bad (like a motor mount or something). If they are selling 275's and shafts are sheering, I am betting they want to find out why.

My opinion: I would let them inspect. It's cold now--tell them to do it fast. No real downside for you (other than out a boat in the cold) and the potential upside is that they figure out why and make it so it doesn't do it again.

 

[BGN123]

Oh but due to covid I am currently full time in Florida so this is prime time! Sorry my northern brethren! I usually work in NY and come here on weekends but not I’m here full time!

 

[Ronnie]

Parts 11 and 13 are bearings on the shaft. Parts 14 and 15 are oil rings. Your dealer should have found and told you If your bearings are damaged.

The whirring sound you heard may have been the shaft spinning freely from the impeller.I still don’t understand why the engine died.It’s happened to me when a tow rope wrapped around the shaft and stopped the shaft from spinning but your situation is totally different.

Yamaha should be covering all the costs under warranty but if they don’t it’s about $300 for an impeller,$100 for the west ring and the shaft should bearound $500 (based on pricing I saw years ago for a 230 or 240).

I agree with @tdonoughue , that is let yamaha inspect it further in my region since I’m out of season anyway. If I’m standing in your shoes, I’m pissed and would seeking a loaner while they inspect and repair the boat. I may not get far but wouldn’t go (nowhere) quietly. $100k+ for a lawn ornament/trailer queen is a big pill to swallow.

 

[haknslash]

My guess is the whirring sound you heard was your shaft getting out of alignment and your motor died when it got into a bind in the pump. I agree I would have them report back on the condition of the bearing. If it were me I would let Yamaha inspect to see if there is indeed a factory defect going on and to determine the root cause. BBQ be damned I’d want peace of mind. Trust me I’d love to be on the water now too lol but maybe the dealer can give you a loaner.

 

[fatboyroy]

Yamaha probably have engine protection when it detects there is no load to avoid overrevving the engine. So it kills the motor to protect it.

 

[jmargo]

If Yamaha is sending inspectors to the dealer there is a reason. If the boat is financed through Yamaha you may at least get a payment refunded for lack of use as a courtesy.

 

[Redneck_4Play]

Here are photos not sure what they are of.

From looking at the picture I'd say a bad casting might be suspect.

 

[BGN123]

I like that “lawn ornament”. I just told the local place to fix it. Forget the “inspectors”. If it happens again maybe I will scuttle the boat whatever scuttle means! Thanks for all the comments.

 

[Ronnie]

As far as I know when a boat or ship is scuttled it is abandoned and sunk, the military does this to avoid the ship being captured. Don’t do it, put it up for sale here second (let me know if you are hell bent on scuttling it anyway), there are many members here that would love to have or buy your boat if at a very steep discount. ?

Lawn ornament applies more to road going vehicles, trailer queen describes some of the boats I’ve seen (always or almost always on a trailer and clean as can be).

 

[Beachbummer]

The bearings are pressed into the shaft and are not reusable. Because of the pump/spacer design the bearings cannot be pushed out without the potential for damage to the bearings (My theory, and my experience in rebuilding my pump. Shaft pushes out, then back bearing is pushed out towards the front pushing on the inner race, which pushes outer race on spacer, which pushes the front bearing out. When inserting them you get to push on both races, which maintains the stability and smoothness of the bearing assembly). bearings are marked as not reusable in the shop manual for my boat. They shouldn't really reuse the bearings, they ought to be replaced. Both have to be removed by putting pressure on only one of two "races" in order to re-assemble the pump and shaft.

Sorry, long ramble to say, Bearings on pump should NOT be reused.

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

Here are photos not sure what they are of.

You can see by these pictures that the shaft has been severely cracked for quite a while as evidenced by the little rust spots in the middle of the shaft, notice the clean sheared material on the outer edge? That’s the part that broke last. I believe you said in a subsequent post that you had heard some noise for a while while running it.

The fact that it broke between the impeller and the stator makes me wonder if A-the bearings went bad in the stator section, or B- the shaft was misaligned and or stator was misaligned in relationship to the shaft causing a bind in that section. The latter should be obvious when it is re assembled. Or it’s C and the shaft was bad.

I’d let the Yamaha folks inspect the unit. If not make sure you get it in writing that your warranty will still be in effect if you just have the dealer fix it and you take it without letting Yamaha corporate inspect it.

 

[Ronnie]

@FSH 210 Sport makes a good point. I had leaking oil coolers when I first got my boat. I took it to the dealer on a third party warranty claim. They told me it would take a month to get the parts and replace the parts. i could not use My boat in the interim, if I did they would not honor the warranty should something else fail because I used the boat knowing the oil coolers were bad.

FYI the stator is part 6 in the screenshot I posted earlier. It has immobile fins that are reversed compared to the impeller. My understanding is that it helps to counter the rotation of the water caused by the impeller so the water comes out of the nozzle without rotating or rotating less which helps the boat track/go straight more efficiently, similar to conventional propeller driven boats with counter rotating props but I admit I could be wrong about this As it’s just something I read on the web and don’t recall the source.

 

[anmut]

Okay. Service center called. They said they called Yamaha to check warranty and it is a warranty issue. But they said it’s also a safety issue and want to send inspectors from Yamaha to look at the boat to see if anything else wrong before fixing and getting back on the water. They said that at the speed everything spins “it” (not sure what “it” is...the impeller?) could punch through the hull. This is VERY disappointing because it means I’m off the water for at least a month I guess and that my boat is not trustworthy? A high speed metal part might punch through the hull? WTF? The service center said he can just fix it if I want but neither he nor Yamaha would recommend. Advice? Not excited about a month off the water.

"Yes, absolutely, send the guys from Yamaha. What boat will you be loaning me while this happens?"

 

[BGN123]

"Yes, absolutely, send the guys from Yamaha. What boat will you be loaning me while this happens?"

I’m having it fixed out of pocket. Not willing to wait. I can get it back by next weekend. And there are no boats around in Florida! Still a boat shortage.

 

[anmut]

I’m having it fixed out of pocket. Not willing to wait. I can get it back by next weekend. And there are no boats around in Florida! Still a boat shortage.

Damn, get them to reimburse it though!

 

[mrcleanr6]

Yes they will reimburse you. I had warranty work done on my boat where i took the lead on the repair and paid the guy that did the work out of pocket. I just gave the invoice to the dealer who submitted it and yamaha covered it no problem. Did that twice. Dealer sent me a check within just a few days

 

[BGN123]

Good idea will do. Looks like about 2k.

 

[Beachbummer]

Seems high, but I'm a cheap guy...what are they doing for $2K? Be sure to go over the impellers but in the pictures they look OK on the edges. With where the shaft broke, you should might be able to re-use the impeller ( depending on it's condition. And even if you get a new one, keep it because it may come in handy.

 

[buckbuck]

Insist that the broken parts belong to you. Take many pictures of them and document everything.

 

[BGN123]

Boat is fixed and back at the marina. Easy peasey. Now trying to submit repair bill and see what happens. Hopefully Yamaha covers if not I understand because Indidnt follow their advice but was not willing to kiss my boat goodbye for an indefinite period of time. But if they don’t it’s a good warning about this model boat right?