Independant Yamaha Mechanic/Shop - Florida

[ralphsmithiii]

Does anyone have a recommendation/contact for an independent Yamaha mechanic or shop anywhere in Florida that I can connect with? To summarize, my 2015 AR240 is down at Cycle Springs in Oldsmar to remove a broken spark plug, which they did, but are now telling me I have 2 cracks (1 in each block) under the intake manifold and that they don't repair them, they replace them (blocks that is). My initial instinct is while I want to get that resolved, they can't tell me if those cracks have been there for days, months, or years so I'm wondering how "severe" they are. I haven't seem them yet nor did they take any pictures but I should have a better idea when I pick the boat up this week.

I'm curious to know if I could JB Weld the cracks myself but would like to find a shop/mechanic who has done these types of repairs before to get a second opinion as I'm not going to replace both blocks at this moment. I'm located in the Tampa Bay area (Dunedin) but for the cost they want to charge for replacing both blocks, I'd happily trailer it anywhere in Florida or neighboring states

I also reached out to SBT this morning but the only service they could offer was to sell me a reman'd engine, which wont help at the moment as I have no way to pulling these motors myself to consider that an option. Note, the engines operate(ed) fine before having the last spark plug seize when I was doing the yearly maintenance on it.

 

[adrianp89]

http://www.thejetskirepairshop.com/

Great guy and great prices in Pasedena. I've had him repair the supercharger on my 195, as well as some impeller work. He mostly does Jet Skis but will do boats. Engines are the same.

I would def get a second opinion, I have zero faith in Cycle Springs.

 

[Cobra Jet Steering LLC]

Check with Tom email is dlctvs@verizon.net mobile mechanic will come to you.

 

[ralphsmithiii]

http://www.thejetskirepairshop.com/

Great guy and great prices in Pasedena. I've had him repair the supercharger on my 195, as well as some impeller work. He mostly does Jet Skis but will do boats. Engines are the same.

I would def get a second opinion, I have zero faith in Cycle Springs.

Awesome, I'll give him a call/email.

 

[ralphsmithiii]

Check with Tom email is dlctvs@verizon.net mobile mechanic will come to you.

Likewise, I'll send him an email as well.

 

[Cobra Jet Steering LLC]

Also go to O'rileys auto parts by the cash register on a display and get a package of spark plug never seize so you never have that issue again. "BREAKING A SPARK PLUG" I do that before I ever put an engine in the water and I put lots of hours on my engines all in salt water .

 

[BigBlueJeep]

I'm in Palm Harbor and have been taking my FSH for annual maintenance to Jet Trendz in Holiday/NPR. Brett is the owner, I recommend him and he definitely knows these engines. I've sent a few of my neighbors with skis and boats there and he's always been very helpful. It's not that far north and may be worth stopping by and talking to him. I actually got his contact from someone at Cycle Springs.

 

[ralphsmithiii]

http://www.thejetskirepairshop.com/

Great guy and great prices in Pasedena. I've had him repair the supercharger on my 195, as well as some impeller work. He mostly does Jet Skis but will do boats. Engines are the same.

I would def get a second opinion, I have zero faith in Cycle Springs.

Thanks Adrian,

This guy was super nice and helpful. As soon as I started telling him my problem he knew exactly what I was talking about and said he could help but he thinks it's most likely a minor issue in the grand scheme of things.

For anyone else who may be searching for a similar topic here are the details I have thus far:

The cracks in my block (still haven't seen them myself) are actually on/around the hole that holds the anode housing onto the block...

So, I'm being told its highly possible to JB Weld that depending on how bad it is, or ignore it and run the boat as it. If I'm not able put in new anodes then eventually more salt/sand/corrosion can occur within the block. Flushing (which I do every time) and possibly with Salt-Away and/or more longer times could possibly help keep that at bay for a longer period of time but only time will tell. Frances from TheJetSkiShop said they've fixed these many times, often cleaning up the anode port, putting in a new anode and off you go. If they can't because the block has cracked due to too much corrosion from the inside, then they just run them, flush often, and enjoy it until the cooling passages get so blocked up the engines overheat then you tear the block down and clean them/repair etc.

I still have yet to have TheJetSkiShop look at it but that's the plan. Problem is, I picked up my boat my Cycle Springs on Friday after they put the head back on from the broken spark plug (new head gasket and plug, of course) and told me they tested everything. When I asked them if they tested it on a hose to make sure all was well, I was told by the service writer that they didn't need it, they just fire it up for a few seconds and as long as it fires and runs then it should be good. I'm not boat expert, but I've messed around with a few combustion engines in a previous life and I'm not quite sure how they can pull the head, put a new gasket on, put the head back on, crank the motor for a few seconds for it to fire then claim its in working order.

I put the boat the water this morning to run it up to temps, then go wide open for 5 minutes to generate some heat per Frances direction to ensure it wasn't overheating, then I'd detail it and take it to them to look at the cracks. Welp, I fired up the starboard motor and while it fired up, about 2-3 seconds later if that the check engine line came up and the motor shuts off immediately. I figured it may from sitting for a week or 2 and or it needed to get some fuel into it but Cycle Springs assured me they tested everything (off the hose..) but here we are.

So, it's back at Cycle Springs for them to diagnose on Tuesday, currently at no charge to me. The service writer tried to give me the lesson on how the crack in my block would cause it to overheat which would cause it to go into limp mode and possibly shut down. While I may/would agree with that, it can't possibly overheat if it can't stay running for more than 2-3 seconds at a time...

I'll report back on what they discover. I wont even get into the mess they left my boat in unless anyone is interested in hearing but will be having a face to face conversation with their service manager, who I've met when I bought the boat. Super nice guy so I'm hoping he has an open mind because the way they gave it back to me is unacceptable by anybody's standards and now with the check engine light, I'm wondering what else could be messed up...

 

[Thermobrett]

Thanks Adrian,

This guy was super nice and helpful. As soon as I started telling him my problem he knew exactly what I was talking about and said he could help but he thinks it's most likely a minor issue in the grand scheme of things.

For anyone else who may be searching for a similar topic here are the details I have thus far:

The cracks in my block (still haven't seen them myself) are actually on/around the hole that holds the anode housing onto the block...

So, I'm being told its highly possible to JB Weld that depending on how bad it is, or ignore it and run the boat as it. If I'm not able put in new anodes then eventually more salt/sand/corrosion can occur within the block. Flushing (which I do every time) and possibly with Salt-Away and/or more longer times could possibly help keep that at bay for a longer period of time but only time will tell. Frances from TheJetSkiShop said they've fixed these many times, often cleaning up the anode port, putting in a new anode and off you go. If they can't because the block has cracked due to too much corrosion from the inside, then they just run them, flush often, and enjoy it until the cooling passages get so blocked up the engines overheat then you tear the block down and clean them/repair etc.

I still have yet to have TheJetSkiShop look at it but that's the plan. Problem is, I picked up my boat my Cycle Springs on Friday after they put the head back on from the broken spark plug (new head gasket and plug, of course) and told me they tested everything. When I asked them if they tested it on a hose to make sure all was well, I was told by the service writer that they didn't need it, they just fire it up for a few seconds and as long as it fires and runs then it should be good. I'm not boat expert, but I've messed around with a few combustion engines in a previous life and I'm not quite sure how they can pull the head, put a new gasket on, put the head back on, crank the motor for a few seconds for it to fire then claim its in working order.

I put the boat the water this morning to run it up to temps, then go wide open for 5 minutes to generate some heat per Frances direction to ensure it wasn't overheating, then I'd detail it and take it to them to look at the cracks. Welp, I fired up the starboard motor and while it fired up, about 2-3 seconds later if that the check engine line came up and the motor shuts off immediately. I figured it may from sitting for a week or 2 and or it needed to get some fuel into it but Cycle Springs assured me they tested everything (off the hose..) but here we are.

So, it's back at Cycle Springs for them to diagnose on Tuesday, currently at no charge to me. The service writer tried to give me the lesson on how the crack in my block would cause it to overheat which would cause it to go into limp mode and possibly shut down. While I may/would agree with that, it can't possibly overheat if it can't stay running for more than 2-3 seconds at a time...

I'll report back on what they discover. I wont even get into the mess they left my boat in unless anyone is interested in hearing but will be having a face to face conversation with their service manager, who I've met when I bought the boat. Super nice guy so I'm hoping he has an open mind because the way they gave it back to me is unacceptable by anybody's standards and now with the check engine light, I'm wondering what else could be messed up...

Keep us informed. Sucks you are having this issue, and especially with the dealership. For us, we either have Cycle Springs or Barney’s, and I will NEVER take my boat back to Barney’s, even warranty work. Had a bad experience with lies and when I challenged it after calling Yamaha directly, their tune instantly changed. I wish I could lend some info, but I’m not mechanic.

 

[ralphsmithiii]

Will do. I believe the Barney's family just sold their dealership to a larger family owned one and now has a new name. I may consider them in the future, but I'm hopeful that if Cycle Springs doesn't get their act together, that the smaller independant shop TheJetSkiRepairShop can get me sorted. I'll report back once I get an update next week.

 

[Thermobrett]

Wow, didn’t know Barney’s sold out. Just read it’s now Rockstar Powersports. Glad my Yamaha cover isn’t dealership branded ?