I just took my boat to the shop yesterday that works on it, they were very concerned over my issue. I got the impression I'm the first guy to come in with a problem like this. They took my whole statement and have been in contact with Rec Boat Holdings and BRP. I haven't received the official diagnosis, I'm just guessing it's a carbon seal based on what I've learned here. I'll let you know what transpires.
There was a post on here about the ethics of selling this boat with a known major issue, such as the carbon seal problem. I was game for repairing the minor bugs in the boat and eventually getting it dialed in, but the issues that are surfacing now are basically unforgivable and potentially deadly. Let's say there is an issue with the design or manufacturing causing a seal failure? Now let's say that the company knows about it and is choosing to ignore it. I can't fault the distributors and dealers for wanting nothing to do with it (although they should fix problems), but I can fault Scarab's parent company for not recalling and addressing the issue. If there are special requirements for maintenance, then is there documentation being sent to dealers to be given to the techs? Is my tech going to turn my boat on and let it run during a oil change or winterization because that's common standard with other boats, and because no one officially trained him to deal with a Scarab (babying the carbon seal). These guys deal with multiple boats at once, if the Scarab requires special instruction these guys need to know, otherwise it's their own best judgment, and why would it be different from any other boat.
I'm wondering if Scarab's owners don't want to deal with it because recalling the boats to deal with an issue of this magnitude would end the line? It may also require BRP and Scarab to work together on a fix, if it's an engineering, measurement, mold issue? Or could we be doing something to damage the seal, such as pulling a ski rope out of the intake?
I'll admit my understanding of the seal is limited, but they've got to be able to address why the boat can be bone dry one minute and be full of water the next. I could understand maybe a bit of leaking to warn us that there is an issue, or some sort of built in indicator to let us know prior to it sinking. Maybe with the existing Scarabs they need to change out the seals, I don't know.
I do know that if the diagnosis comes back as the seal then I'm probably done with the boat. I'll try to work with them to get it off my hands and get me into something new (do we know anything about the quality of the 2018 Scarab lines yet?), and if not then a consumer protection lawyer is the next step, I'm already talking to one to get a better understanding of the issue from a legal standpoint. hopefully I don't have to use them.