Bad fuel possibly? 1994 Seadoo SPI

[dlogvine]

I bought a 1994 Seadoo SPi. It was starting and running when I was testing it and afterwards every time I started it in the storage. Inside of th he engine compartment fuel smelled old, but I thought it wont be much of a problem since I was going to mix it with the high octane new fuel and use fuel enzyme. Took it to the lake today first time, started running it, but after about a minute it choked and since then I was not able to restart it. Checked for the spark, present and strong. Took of flame arrest and used carb cleaner, still no luck. Starting fluid, same result. I'm thinking old gas clogged the carburetor and now I need to rebuild it. So my questions are,
1. How could i check if it is a carb problem, before i rebuild it?
2. Is there any way to restore the fuel, if it is old?
3. I noticed there was no fuel filteron the line, should I put one in?
Thank you

[SpitAndDirt]

Re: Bad fuel possibly? 1994 Seadoo SPI

DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE MANUAL AT THE TOP OF THIS FORUM.

In order to be absolutely sure, I would dispose of all old fuel, clean the fuel system and make necessary upgrades/repairs and then try troubleshooting. Fuel enzyme? That should only be for diesel fuel so that micro-organisms don't grow. Gasoline just loses octane over time due to oxidation of the fuel components. To my knowledge, there isn't a product that rejuvenates old fuel. Ill have to Google it...

1. All fuel hoses absolutely should be upgraded/replaced with Ethanol resistant hose preferably Gates Barricade branded line. Your ski was manufactured before ethanol was in widespread use. You will also want to pull the fuel selector valve and clean it in addition to removing, inspecting, and cleaning the fuel pick up assembly in the tank. Depending on the cleanliness of the tank, it is advised to pull the engine and fuel tank to make sure it's absolutely clean.

2. While the fuel hoses are disconnected, pull the carburetor and clean it thoroughly. I would recommend using carb cleaner and compressed air(rubber tip nozzle) to blast out all the passageways. There is a very tiny filter inside the carburetor which gets clogged up with fuel hose material.

DO NOT NEGLECT HAVING A CLEAN FUEL DELIVERY SYSTEM.

You don't check for a clogged carb on a unknown ski this old, you just assume that it is and rebuild it so you know that it's clean.

3. The voltage regulator is very likely needing replacement. Sometimes they fail just due to old age. A faulty Voltage Regulator can cause erratic engine running because the computer (MPEM) is not receiving clean, regulated 14volt DC power. A simple test just to get the ski started is to disconnect the red wire exiting from the voltage regulator in the grey electrical box.

4. Perform a compression test as per the manual.

5. Inspect/Replace the oil feed hoses from the oil pump to the feed nipples. These hoses get brittle and crack allowing oil to escape into the hull.



I would NOT use starter fluid to start this ski. A two second blast of carb cleaner down the throat of the carburetor while holding the throttle wide open should at least get the engine to fire off momentarily. That is just meant to check that the ignition and compression are good enough to ignite the mixture.


Depending on if this ski has seen salt water will dictate what other areas might need evaluating.

Hopefully this gets you started in the right direction. Btw, pics are worth 1000 words.

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk

[Keno]

Re: Bad fuel possibly? 1994 Seadoo SPI

The fuel enzyme is probably StarTron. Usually sold for boat fuels.
Otherwise, yeah follow the above.

[dlogvine]

Re: Bad fuel possibly? 1994 Seadoo SPI

Thank you guys. Now i know where to start.