Intake Grate

[primedoc]

So last Fall I got a tow rope caught up in the port side jet pump and wrapped around the intake grate so tightly that it broke / cracked the cast intake grate. I go (100 mile round trip to the dealer) and order a new port intake grate. I go back a couple of weeks later to pick it up and take it back home (another 100 mile round trip) and discover that they ordered the starboard grate. So I say "screw it, I've been running a month with a broken / cracked grate without incident so I'll wait until Spring to fix it. Spring comes around and I take the boat to the dealer to fix minor wear and tear issues, oil change, spark plugs and get the port intake grate replaced. All work is done and I pick the boat up and head to the lake. Two weekends later the family and I are running 50mph down the lake (luckily within site of our camp ground and camper) and I hear huge vibrations, huge power loss, metal clanging, and immediate spontaneous shut down of the port engine. I think that it's catastrophic and that the port engine has blown. We limp back to the dock on the starboard engine, take the boat out of the water and what do you know - the middle part of the port intake grate is broken completely the f*ck off in the middle section and that portion has been sucked into the jet pump. I didn't (and have never) hit any debris much less logs or objects in the water and we hadn't sucked any ropes up since last year. My suspicion is that the mechanic over-tightened the grate when he replaced it, broke it and that this led to my problem. Long story short, Yamaha covered everything, replaced the grate again as well as the jet pump, pump housing and labor under warranty and everything is like new again. I just wonder if this has been an issue for anyone else or if I'm just the luck one?

 

[Bruce]

Wow, quite a story!

 

[Trevor Shipman]

Kudos to Yamaha! I hate taking my stuff to a dealership be it car or boat. Fact is, they don't care about your possessions. Everyone thinks bc it's a dealership they will take extra care of your boat/car. They are all about the bottom line, that's all. I always try to fix anything and everything on my own. I just went through a nightmare with my 14' Grand Cherokee, don't get me going!!!!

 

[Julian]

@primedoc that is the first I've heard of such a thing...but plausible. Glad the dealer stood behind their work.

 

[TN888]

Damn boats will keep a guy busy even when you're not floating.

Glad it worked out in the end.

 

[txav8r]

What an ordeal! Never have heard of a grate going thru the pump! Glad your back in business!

 

[Murf'n'surf]

Whoa...you are very lucky.

I wouldn't doubt that you hit a submerged object at speed and broke the grate. Strange coincidence !!

 

[Scottintexas]

glad to hear they took care of you if you need parts in the future, yamahasportsplaza is a good place,

 

[Glassman]

Thank you for posting that.


Now, is there a way I can un-read that?

Just the image in my mind is enough to make my skin crawl!!

Think I'm sleeping well tonight?

Think again.


Oohhheww...shivers up my spine I tel ya.....


But, glad it worked out for you.


Soooo, just between you and me......nightmares?