***WARNING*** 2015-18 YAMAHA “AR” BOAT OWNERS WITH FORWARD SWEPT WAKEBOARD TOWERS

[Beachbummer]

Glad you made it, and glad the execution of the design, in your boat, allowed it to save you with one bolt!

 

[swatski]

The second is that the structure of a the threaded connection is absolutely not a concern. A 60 mile road trip with a single bolt out produced plenty of opportunity for the last remaining bolt to fail. It did not.

Well - That settles it. (you win)
Come to think of it, for Yamaha to even install those threaded locks on both sides is almost like over-engineering it.

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[Beachbummer]

Maybe not stated so tactfully... But the experience of not having had an issue yet is not proof that the design is good in all cases. So it reads as a denial of an issue being possible.

@swatski has done all he could to warn. May not happen to all, but diminishing the potential by focusing on a single positive experience... can provide the idea that the issue does not exist at all.(Which we know now is not true)

So, some will never experience the problem. Beware it could happen.

 

[2kwik4u]

May not happen to all, but diminishing the potential by focusing on a single positive experience... can provide the idea that the issue does not exist at all.(Which we know now is not true)

Such is exacerbating the issue with a single failure. We are at an impasse and the tone is spiraling downward quickly.

I'm out.

 

[Neutron]

I noticed that Glastron is using what appears to be the same design tower as the 15 and up AR tower.
Has anyone heard if they have issues with loose or falling out bolts?
Would be curious if they are experiencing it as well

 

[Beachbummer]

Such is exacerbating the issue with a single failure. We are at an impasse and the tone is spiraling downward quickly.

I'm out.

Point taken. Since we have some testimony of bolts bring found loose and retightened, I think overall it's a good thing this is known.

So far it's the one known total failure in the wild, but with the consequences being that if it happens the tower falls on your head.... I guess I find over caution beats being hit for not checking it.

I don't have a tower, so this is not my fight at all, but I am curious on the topic.

Best of luck!

 

[swatski]

Such is exacerbating the issue with a single failure.

"Single failure"? There are several in this thread alone and that is not even the only one on this topic...
Are you just dismissing the reports? or you calling those what... "non-failure"?

@swatski even with the smooth crossing today about 12 miles outside bimini @Ramblin Wreck wife said she heard a funny noise coming from the tower no BS my passenger side tower bolt backed completely out during the crossing. We screwed it back in but that was crazy for a smooth crossing.

I personally know of nine (9) reported here. And judged by a number of responses in various "polls" in this forum, the sampling/reporting size here is maybe a couple percent of total market, if that... How many bolts do you need to back out to stop calling this "chicken little"?

We are at an impasse and the tone is spiraling downward quickly.

No, we are not at an impasse. You just might have painted yourself into a corner - pushing quasi-engineering arguments for why these bolts wouldn't back out. Well, in reality - they do.

The AR240 tower bolts are not safe, fortunately people are checking on those, in part due to reading this thread. And that's a good thing.
(please note I do not make any claims about 190s, or glastrons)


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[Weeb]

Had to snug mine again today, I snugged them 2 weeks ago.

 

[Stevenpigsooie]

3 days on choppy water this weekend and today got a small snug on port side and 1/8 turn on starboard. Didn’t get a chance to add the locktite but will soon. I torqued these by hand with pretty much max grip before the weekend started. Then before each launch just a quick attempt to make sure they didn’t feel loose.

I feel confident the locktite will fix my issue but if not I’ll be talking to my dealer.

 

[4x15mph]

Title reads "2015-2018" but the 1st post reads "2015-17 YAMAHA “AR” BOAT OWNERS WITH FORWARD SWEPT WAKEBOARD TOWERS"

@swatski - do you know if this is an issue that includes model year 2018 AR210?

 

[jocolo21]

On our July 2019 xSsing, my buds 2018 242se the aluminum slug where the tower pivots forward started coming loose he kept hammering it it for a whole week while doing Mia to exhumation and back, upon returning to Orlando drove it to the dealer, the boat has been in the Tennessee factory ever since. They wanted to take a closer look at the aluminum pins. So keep an eye on those pins.

 

[swatski]

Title reads "2015-2018" but the 1st post reads "2015-17 YAMAHA “AR” BOAT OWNERS WITH FORWARD SWEPT WAKEBOARD TOWERS"

@swatski - do you know if this is an issue that includes model year 2018 AR210?

I do not know.
In the 2015+ AR240s there has been over a dozen verifiable reports of unintentional locking bolts pullout.
Most likely due to too short of the thread of the factory hand-wheel locking bolts leading to loosening up/wiggling out of the locking bolts under way.

Constant attention/ frequent checks are required to prevent a complete pull out (and a potential catastrophic tower collapse) and/or modification of the hand-wheel bolts (that I posted) - which appears to work well into the third season of operation.

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[swatski]

On our July 2019 xSsing, my buds 2018 242se the aluminum slug where the tower pivots forward started coming loose he kept hammering it it for a whole week while doing Mia to exhumation and back, upon returning to Orlando drove it to the dealer, the boat has been in the Tennessee factory ever since. They wanted to take a closer look at the aluminum pins. So keep an eye on those pins.

I'm glad they are taking it seriously this time!!


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[tabbibus]

Some people have had a loose 242 bimini frame, but mine has been tight

 

[2kwik4u]

I'm glad they are taking it seriously this time!!
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Agreed.

Regardless of our viewpoints, Yamaha taking it seriously is a major step forward IMO.

 

[Coryd]

Title reads "2015-2018" but the 1st post reads "2015-17 YAMAHA “AR” BOAT OWNERS WITH FORWARD SWEPT WAKEBOARD TOWERS"

@swatski - do you know if this is an issue that includes model year 2018 AR210?

I have a 2018 AR210 and have had to add checking those bolts to my pre-trip checklist. About a month ago, I was cleaning the boat after an outing and while wiping down the tower speakers, I noticed the tower had a lot of movement. Sure enough, the starboard side bolt had completely backed out. It tightened back up fine, didn't feel cross-threaded or stripped at all. I had checked them periodically (maybe monthly at the most) prior to that and never had to snug them more than a turn or so but this time, that bolt was all the way out. We take the boat out almost every weekend (148 hrs since taking delivery 9/1/18) and nothing out of the ordinary (i.e. excessive vibration, rougher waters, tons of towing, etc.) happened recently that would've contributed to it backing out. The tower is always up too, only been down once to install tower speakers (back in March).

So I would say add this check to your list, better to be safe than sorry.

 

[swatski]

I have a 2018 AR210 and have had to add checking those bolts to my pre-trip checklist. About a month ago, I was cleaning the boat after an outing and while wiping down the tower speakers, I noticed the tower had a lot of movement. Sure enough, the starboard side bolt had completely backed out. It tightened back up fine, didn't feel cross-threaded or stripped at all. I had checked them periodically (maybe monthly at the most) prior to that and never had to snug them more than a turn or so but this time, that bolt was all the way out. We take the boat out almost every weekend (148 hrs since taking delivery 9/1/18) and nothing out of the ordinary (i.e. excessive vibration, rougher waters, tons of towing, etc.) happened recently that would've contributed to it backing out. The tower is always up too, only been down once to install tower speakers (back in March).

So I would say add this check to your list, better to be safe than sorry.

Frankly find it mind-boggling Yamaha wouldn’t be fixing this problem.

The problem is even bigger with the 240 towers which are heavier and slanted more/forward.


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[Coryd]

Frankly find it mind-boggling Yamaha wouldn’t be fixing this problem.

The problem is even bigger with the 240 towers which are heavier and slanted more/forward.


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Couldn't agree more. Seems like it should be very obvious to Yamaha that this isn't an issue that should be ignored from a manufacturer's standpoint, especially with the high risk of potential injury associated with a failure.

 

[Brad460]

First I’ve seen this thread and I was just thinking our last time out how bad it would be if the tower fell down (we had to lower it to get under a bridge)..

A quick solution for Yamaha would be to add a safety pin to one side of the tower.

Our 2019 AR210 has never come loose and the bolts are hard to turn out the first 4-5 rotations. I can’t see them coming loose while boating- and they don’t. To be honest the first few turns of the bolts are very hard! Now way they are coming loose unless I were to not tighten them at all..

 

[BigAbe75]

First I’ve seen this thread and I was just thinking our last time out how bad it would be if the tower fell down (we had to lower it to get under a bridge)..

A quick solution for Yamaha would be to add a safety pin to one side of the tower.

Our 2019 AR210 has never come loose and the bolts are hard to turn out the first 4-5 rotations. I can’t see them coming loose while boating- and they don’t. To be honest the first few turns of the bolts are very hard! Now way they are coming loose unless I were to not tighten them at all..

@wallacerb has a video where he did just that (added a pin through the side).

Rob’s DIY Yamaha Maintenance channel