New to forums, have some questions on Scarab 165 HO Impulse

[stevenk2]

Hi everyone - just discovered this forum in searching for some info on my Scarab 165 HO Impulse. Looks like you've got a great community here, looking forward to visiting and hearing from everyone!

I had a few questions about my 165, some have been (mostly) answered on the forum already, but hoping for some clarification on them:

1. How do you get the Bluetooth to connect to devices with the Infinity stereo?
2. Where can I order the snap-in carpet set for my 165, and about how much $$$ is it? Are there any aftermarket alternatives at all?
3. Has anyone done the 100 hour supercharger service yet? If so, have you taken it to the dealer to do it, or have you sent the supercharger unit in to have it done?

I have a few other ones to ask, but I haven't gone through a lot of the posts on the forum yet, so I have a feeling those may be answered as I work through those. Overall, I'm really happy with my 165, haven't had any major issues as of yet, but I'm definitely going to be checking those hose fittings before going out this season!

 

[Betik]

welcome on board. I have no idea on how to answer your questions, but I think @ScarabMike @Scarabpaul @Rick215HO might have an input

 

[Luc Lafreniere]

I own a 2015 165 (but base model, so I can't answer 1 and 3). But for 2, you can order on the Scarab website. Go here: http://www.scarabjetboats.com/us then scroll to the bottom of the page, find the link "PARTS CATALOG", choose a model year in the pull down menu, select the link with your specific model. From there, you can navigate all the parts available where I assume those carpets will be available. With that being said, I opted to go for another option. SeaDek flooring purchased through JetBoatPilot.com. It's cheaper (especially when you buy it as part of the fall discount they offer, 30%off) and super easy to install and looks great! All pre-cut for your model and you can choose your style/colour. But they are permanent. Here are my pictures after I did my install. You can see the before and after in there. https://photos.app.goo.gl/Q6UcxhCrNwUfSatt2

 

[Rick215HO]

Hi everyone - just discovered this forum in searching for some info on my Scarab 165 HO Impulse. Looks like you've got a great community here, looking forward to visiting and hearing from everyone!

I had a few questions about my 165, some have been (mostly) answered on the forum already, but hoping for some clarification on them:

1. How do you get the Bluetooth to connect to devices with the Infinity stereo?
2. Where can I order the snap-in carpet set for my 165, and about how much $$$ is it? Are there any aftermarket alternatives at all?
3. Has anyone done the 100 hour supercharger service yet? If so, have you taken it to the dealer to do it, or have you sent the supercharger unit in to have it done?

I have a few other ones to ask, but I haven't gone through a lot of the posts on the forum yet, so I have a feeling those may be answered as I work through those. Overall, I'm really happy with my 165, haven't had any major issues as of yet, but I'm definitely going to be checking those hose fittings before going out this season!

Greetings!
1.-Sorry I don't have that one.
2.-If its the Scarab carpet, only through dealer as far as I know. Probably aftermarket is better if you can find it. You can find the parts catalog at the Scarab website but whenever I try to order something they redirect me to a dealer.
3.-Did you mean the 200 hours Supercharger overhaul (I'm not aware of anything at 100)? I have not done it but I suggest to make sure wherever you send it they have done it before, some dealers can barely change the oil. If I had to take it in, probably best to go to a reputable Seadoo shop that has done it many times.

 

[stevenk2]

Thanks for all of the replies on my questions - I appreciate it!!

As far as my 2nd question about the carpet, I did see some of the kits that are being sold that are the same type of material as is on the boarding platform on the back. They look nice, but my concern after having had my Scarab down to Havasu in late April is that the surface of the OEM mat material gets really hot in the sun. Is that the case with the aftermarket ones as well? On the other hand, I do have concerns about the durability of any carpet, plus I'd imagine that to attach those via snaps requires drilling of some sort, and I'm really hesitant to put holes in my deck.

On question #3 regarding the supercharger overhaul, I was told 100 hours - it would be a huge relief if that service interval was more like 200 hours, but I don't want to risk damage and/or getting stranded out in the middle of the lake with a busted motor. Not sure if anyone's ever heard of these folks, but they seem to be reputable and know what they're doing:

https://www.pwcmuscle.com/sea-doo-supercharger-rebuild-service.html

Sounds like removing the unit to send in is fairly straightforward, so when it comes time, I'll likely do it this way in lieu of spending an arm and a leg to have the dealer do it (which I'm sure would be in excess of $1k given the hourly labor charges involved).

One new question that I thought of was regarding doing any potential upgrades to the OEM Infinity sound system and/or adding LED lights. What I'd imagined doing at some point was adding a speaker bar and LED light combo to the OEM wakeboard tower, but didn't know firstly if the stock amp would be able to drive additional speakers, and secondly if the stock charging/battery system would be able to handle it. I'd seen a thread on the forum where someone had upgraded to a dual battery system, but it was on a 195 or 215 (I think). Not sure if my little 165 is upgradable like that or not - seems like there would be space in the engine bay for a 2nd battery, but since the project documentation only detailed the install on a larger Scarab, I didn't know if would apply similarly to my 165. Any thoughts or advice on this?

 

[stevenk2]

I own a 2015 165 (but base model, so I can't answer 1 and 3). But for 2, you can order on the Scarab website. Go here: http://www.scarabjetboats.com/us then scroll to the bottom of the page, find the link "PARTS CATALOG", choose a model year in the pull down menu, select the link with your specific model. From there, you can navigate all the parts available where I assume those carpets will be available. With that being said, I opted to go for another option. SeaDek flooring purchased through JetBoatPilot.com. It's cheaper (especially when you buy it as part of the fall discount they offer, 30%off) and super easy to install and looks great! All pre-cut for your model and you can choose your style/colour. But they are permanent. Here are my pictures after I did my install. You can see the before and after in there. https://photos.app.goo.gl/Q6UcxhCrNwUfSatt2

That looks really nice! And it pretty well matches the OEM mat on the swim platform in back too. How hot does that SeaDek flooring get in the sun?

 

[Luc Lafreniere]

So in regards to the SeaDek... I can't confirm because I got mine in the fall and I live in Canada. Although we see temperatures of 35C (95F) commonly in the summer, I haven't had the pleasure this past summer since it was a lot cooler + I didn't have the SeaDek then. But from reading reviews and selecting SeaDek, it's not a problem as long as you don't select dark colours. Certain colours are avoided in fact because apparently it can cause some sort of amplification effect in corners where it will "burn" the foam. JetBoatPilot was pretty good about advising which colour combos don't work. I selected a grey colour which shouldn't be prone to super hot surfaces. I don't see how this will be super hot in my opinion. And yes, for the carpets you need snaps installed which means drilling holes. Not a fan of that option at all. The SeaDek has no such risk. You can also remove it and replace it when the time comes (hopefully in 10 years lol).

For the battery question, yes, you can definitely fit two batteries in there without an issue. I haven't done it on mine since running music is something I seldom do, but it wouldn't be a problem to add a battery. Often too, from what I read, the second battery is a different type that is designed to be fully discharged frequently. This also means they are of a different size (usually smaller I believe) than the standard 12V battery. But I am no expert on this, so feel free to correct me on this if I'm wrong.

Although I don't own the version with the super charger, I do have the maintenance manual for all the models. I got it through the Beneteau Group contact directly. It's attached. I suggest you keep a copy and use it to guide your maintenance. FYI, the super charger is 200 hours or 2 years. Whichever comes first. You're welcome!

 

[Luc Lafreniere]

FYI, I've been pretty frustrated with the lack of independent "reviews" on the 165. All the pictures seem to be marketing ones, lack of info in general, etc. I'm actually thinking of making a more "in depth" review of some sort for YouTube this summer. All the things I wish somebody had told me before buying. lol Maybe if I feel motivated.... we'll see.

 

[stevenk2]

Thank you!! I'll look through that guide, should be very helpful. I'm pretty sure I'll end up doing the SeaDek mat, likely in grey as you did to hopefully avoid the heating issues.

I'm not 100% decided on the speaker/LED lighting addition, but if I do end up going that route, I have a feeling that I'll likely need to upgrade both the battery/charging system as well as the amp. And since I'm doing all of that, I may just as well go ahead and upgrade the head unit as well. We'll see if time allows this season or not - I've already got another trip down to Havasu planned this April again, and time is getting short.

I too have been frustrated with the general lack of info on the 165, and my dealer hasn't been super helpful with any of that either. Regardless, I still think it's a great little boat, and it suits my needs just fine. Fortunately, I haven't experienced any of the major frustrations that other folks have, just minor things (that were covered under warranty) shortly after I first purchased it. I'm really looking forward to getting back out on the water again when the weather warms up this spring! And for Havasu, of course.

 

[Luc Lafreniere]

They have various choices for that grey like the border and the pattern... so even with that grey, you'll have other choices! Which is great!

Yeah, I have a bunch of stuff in my basement ready to install this spring. lol A little excited for summer as you can tell. I decided to upgrade the crappy sound system currently installed (bought the boat used, somebody had a crappy one installed, not from Scarab). But I'm not going crazy, just something better. Currently have 4 speakers at 100 watts RMS, 200W peak along with a neat amp that ONLY works with bluetooth (so no radio, CD, etc.). That's all I wanted. But this amp is "only" able to output 500W total (4 speakers + sub which I currently don't have). So I think you're looking for bigger But yeah, I'll be installing this stuff this spring along with a bunch of other stuff like a sonar, USB port, etc. I've also got trailer guide posts, spare tire/mount, boat buckles, etc.

I agree with the overall view of the boat. Although it does have its failings, I'm very, very happy with it overall! I also haven't had any major issues in my 40 hours of usage. It worked flawlessly and like you, I operate on very small lakes 90% of the time with very shallow portions. It's the perfect boat for my waterways. No boat is perfect but it is good to be armed with knowledge of the failings when using a boat.

 

[stevenk2]

How hard is it to work on the stereo? Sounds like you don't have the OEM setup, so your experience may not apply to my 165, but I'm hoping that the upgrades needed to add the tower speakers could be done by myself with just basic tools at home. I'm not sure if those could just be somehow patched into the stock wiring, or if I really need to plan on just redoing the entire system.

 

[Luc Lafreniere]

I assume yours is still very similar to mine. So my current plan is to do like this guy:

You'll see my comment below. But yeah, obviously the two speakers between the seats aren't a problem. The wires are right behind the black storage bag. In my case, the wires seem to go towards starboard (driver side) and snake along the side wall up to the console and in my case, connect directly to the stereo (no amp). My plan is to replace those two speakers with the new ones I purchased, replace the wiring with the right gauge and snake those wires to where the battery is located instead of the console. My amp will be installed by the battery. Then, the two other speakers will need new holes cut on either side just like the video. I'll be confirming there's nothing behind like the guy recommended, then cut two holes with a jigsaw and following recommended procedures (tape, fine tooth blade, etc.). Then I'll snake the wires from the amp to either side of the boat along previous wiring with zip ties. Finally, in my case, this amp comes with a 20ft cable that connects to a remote for play/pause/volume/skip/etc. This will be mounted on the dash and the cable will be snaked from the battery all the way to the console. From what I can tell, all of this doesn't look too difficult (you can all laugh at me in the spring when I report back as to my success/failure). My current head unit is currently setup above the mesh storage on the side of the console. Since it will leave a hole there, I purchased a new hatch that I will be installing there. This is similar to the new models of the boat where they currently have a hatch. Allows you to have quick access to the storage in that location without having to stop the boat to open the console up.

The only thing is I have to make sure the bluetooth connection is solid before I do all of this by testing it in the battery area with hatch closed, etc. But I don't see why the bluetooth signal wouldn't work across fiber glass only about 5ft across. Otherwise, backup plan is to setup the amp inside the dash out of sigh and only 1ft away from the phone mount I have. Of course, all the wiring in that case is routed to the dash.

 

[stevenk2]

That looks awesome!! It keeps everything stock-looking with a nice clean install, but gets you a huge improvement in sound. Plus, the way you're going to do it, it gets the amp and everything back by the stern with the other electrical connections, so the only thing up front in the helm is the head unit. Are you planning on doing any upgrades to the battery/charging system to accommodate the new amp, or do you figure the stock system will be enough? My only concern would be if the additional draw on the battery would eventually drain it over time, even with the engine's charging loop working while underway. Of course, I'd imagine blasting that new setup with the engine not running would likely kill the battery in short order, especially with a more powerful amp.

Seems like I'd heard about similar concerns when running high-powered audio gear in cars, and they have various ways of fixing that, everything from running higher-capacity alternators to things like 1-farad capacitors and such. Don't know if stuff like this is a similar concern with boats, what's necessary in this case, and what's even possible with the 165 and its' charging loop. I just know that I don't want to wind up in the middle of the lake with a dead battery someday.

 

[Luc Lafreniere]

So I haven't done the calculation, but my gut feeling (and after running it in the house with no charger) is that the stock setup will work just fine. BUT, what I did was purchase a USB port that I'm installing on the dash (careful, Canadian link: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B01M4OKBSB/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1 ). It reads the current battery voltage even when the cap is closed. So my first few test runs this spring will be to monitor the battery voltage and see what happens. IF it does become a problem, my plan was to purchase a second battery and setup a battery isolator switch to avoid all of this. But I don't think it's going to be an issue. Further more, I purchased a battery booster pack (https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B01MRWU39S/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1) which will allow me to boost the battery in an emergency (also because last fall I got stuck towing a stupid boat for 2 freaking hours at 9 mph to the nearest marina with a ramp. The boat appeared to have a dead battery. I would have loved to have tried boosting it and avoiding a 20 km trip and then having to cross a lake at night in unfamiliar waters. The Navionics app REALLY came in handy that day).

Anyways, my plan is to take pictures and report back all of my installs early this spring (like May for us here). So hopefully some can learn from it and choose what/if they want to do. The only potential change to my plan is to add a subwoofer where the current models have it... but I want to see how it sounds first before cutting another hole. Also, my setup is a 5 channel amp, 4 speakers + sub. So I can't put speakers on the swim deck with this current plan. But I'm not doing that because I don't think we'll use those speakers much at all if I had them. Also, that's where I put my boat name

 

[Luc Lafreniere]

Hmmm interesting. So I found this PDF http://seadoomanuals.net/download/pdf/service/manuals/2005/2005-seadoo-rotax-1503-4-tech-shop-manual.pdf which seems to have the engine specs towards the end. It claims 360W charging at 6000RPM. This could be a problem.... lol With four speakers running, that's about 400W. I suspect you would have to have it running for a reasonably long time before the battery drops enough to not start the boat anymore... but now I have to look more into this. lol Probably should have done that first...

 

[stevenk2]

emergency (also because last fall I got stuck towing a stupid boat for 2 freaking hours at 9 mph to the nearest marina with a ramp. The boat appeared to have a dead battery. I would have loved to have tried boosting it and avoiding a 20 km trip and then having to cross a lake at night in unfamiliar waters. The Navionics app REALLY came in handy that day).

That's crazy........but good on you for helping out a fellow boater in trouble.

I'll be very interested to hear about how your install goes, especially after that last bit of info you found out about the Rotax charging capacity. I would like to think that they designed the system in our 165's with some spare capacity, but somehow I think that there may not be a lot of extra to go around. I may have to do some studying up on how to properly augment the system to ensure the battery (or batteries) don't die along the way. I know some of the tricks they use in automotive audio applications, but for marine stuff, and especially for these Rotax engines, I would have to rely on others expertise so that I'm not frying electronics and/or killing my battery.

 

[Luc Lafreniere]

So I've been doing some research. Hard to get a straight answer (probably because it depends on a lot of factors). But the general rule of thumb I keep finding is take 10 x battery capacity in amp-hours and divide that by the load in watts. That gives you an approximate run time on the battery. So in my case, I have a 44 Ah battery. The load for the stereo in my case is a peak of 15 A (and after doing some research, it seems it will operate at around 10A (and 12V) because of the length of wires and such and not having it at max volume all the time). Assuming I also plug in my phone to charge, that outputs a further 2.4A (and 5V in this case). I have no idea how much amperage my dash takes, but if I had to guess, not that much so let's say 1A (and 6V? why not). That's a total load of about 10A*12V + 2.4A*5V + 1A*6V = 138W on average. So doing that math, 10x44 = 440 / 138 = 3.1 hours

Of course, there's no way in hell I'm running my battery to the ground... so it's probably a decent amout less than that. I'm guessing about 1.5 h (half) maybe 2 if I'm lucky.

All of this is with the engine off.

If I then charge stuff, then we have to figure out how much amperage is coming out of the alternator. I couldn't find that info anywhere. All I have is the 360W at 6000RPM from BRP. From what I know, you need to have somewhere in the range of 13 to 15 V output to charge a 12V battery. So using the worst case scenario (15V), that gives me a current output of 24A at optimal RPM. Total current draw is 10+2.4+1 = 13.4A and that includes my phone plugged in. So I have an extra ~10A available to charge the battery even while using the audio system/phone. It will definitely charge slower, but it will charge.

So yeah. Am I right? I'm guessing not at all. lol I work with actual electronic technicians and electrical engineers at work. I'll discuss with them tomorrow to see if this makes sense. But if it does, then based on this, as long as I don't run the music for more than 1.5 hours without the engine running, I should be good. Of course, if I did this a lot, I'd definitely buy a second battery appropriate for this purpose. But I really don't do this much at all.

 

[stevenk2]

You're way ahead of me at this point......plus, I'm no electrician by any stretch, so if you verify the numbers tomorrow at work, I'll go with what you find out.

FYI, from what I'm seeing online, it looks as though the audio is powered by either a Kicker 100.2 or 200.1 amp (25Wx2 channels or 200Wx1 channel, respectively), or possibly both (one for the two-ways and one for the sub). I haven't actually looked in mine to see which amp(s) it has in it (mine is the HO Impulse, btw), but I suspect there is one of each.

My goal is to leave things as stock looking as possible, but that doesn't necessarily preclude replacing speakers, grilles, amps and the head unit. All of which may or may not create increased draw than the stock stereo on the charging system. Your figures look promising, and if they do pan out, the stock battery setup may be sufficient. However, I'm thinking that if I add tower speakers and upgraded speakers throughout the rest of the boat, I'll need to upgrade the amp, and that may well push me over the limits of the existing charging system. The other thing I'm thinking about in the back of my mind is how much all of this is going to cost. There are some clamp-on combo bars that have the speakers and LED lights built in like this one:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Reborn-Wakeboard-Tower-4-Speakers-and-3-LED-Lights-Combo-Black-Wires-Installed/231926651772?epid=1254088644&hash=item35ffe7db7c:g:8PIAAOSw-tNXIWJm

I'm just in the initial stages of researching all of this, so I have no idea if something like that would work, but getting back to the question of cost, that's $429 for the speaker/LED bar, then add in a set of quality speakers and subs (something like Wet Sounds) plus new amps, and you start getting into thousands of dollars for the project. And that's not including adding a dual battery setup (if needed). I suppose you could cut some corners and get lower cost speakers/subs, but if I'm going to do this, I want to do it right so that I'm happy with the end result.

 

[Luc Lafreniere]

OK, so spoke to a "guy" here who is very familiar with all of this. I'm not far off and my general assessment is correct making some of the probably correct assumptions I made. We think it should be able to run 1 to 1.5 hours based on my numbers above and still have a decent amount of juice to start the motor. But of course, I'll be monitoring the real world voltage when I do this to confirm. So for light audio use, the current setup for myself should be reasonably fine. Also, even while running all of my current draw while the engine is running, the alternator will be able to keep charging the battery, but at a slower rate of course, but I won't be depleting the battery while under way.

The only complaint he had was that "rule of thumb" of 10 x Ah divide by load in watts formula. Generally, you just take the Ah (44) and divide by the number of A draw to get how many hours (theoretical hours only!!!). So that comes to 44/14 = 3.1h. Which matches identically to the number above I used lol So obviously that formula over complicates things when you're looking for a theoretical run time. He mentioned of course that you have to take into account that the battery isn't new, led acid vs AGM, etc. So hence why we both think you wouldn't want to run this for more than 1 to 1.5h. And if you run audio with no engine a lot, then it's not a good idea to keep depleting the battery like that, you should get another battery designed for that purpose in that case.

Once I do all of this, I'll monitor and report back sometime in the spring so others can learn from this.

But yeah, if your amp(s) use more than this average of 10A on this specific combo, I think you're pushing it. lol

 

[stevenk2]

That's awesome - sounds like our stock charging system should be able to handle a moderate upgrade in the audio without blowing things up or killing the battery, so long as we're not blasting tunes for hours on end while at anchor.

I did find this other thread regarding upgrading the stock audio:

https://jetboaters.net/threads/scarab-audio.6713/

The Braille battery they reference in the thread looks really cool.......expensive, but cool. It would be a good fit in our 165, I think. I'll be keeping a close eye on your experiences as you start on the upgrade project - let me know how things go and/or what sorts of issues you run into as you proceed.