6 replies to this topic

[97 speedstermax]

I have a '97 Speedster that runs great, but if it even sniffs a weed, it gets bogged down. I can stop and use the weedless lever to get it going again, but that is annoying (I had to do it 4 times last Saturday). Is there a grate or a screen that I can place over the intake to keep the weeks out or divert them?

[Bob86ZZ4]

I wonder if your impellers are in bad shape? And what about the wear rings. These need to fit pretty close all around the impellers to make a good seal. If you get some weeds in that would agravate a near cavitation situation into a full blown one I would think. I think good tight wear rings would help the impellers cut through the weeds that make it in too. I know recently my boat wouldn't have any power and felt like weeds were the problem but it turned out to be the impellers and wear rings. Good luck.

[tiggerman]

I'm with you Bob. My 97 was like a salad shooter if we ever got in weeds. Never a problem.
Unfortunately, I haven't seen anything for the older ROTAX powered craft as far as aftermarket grates for the intakes.

[foundation]

I'm with you Bob. My 97 was like a salad shooter if we ever got in weeds. Never a problem.
Unfortunately, I haven't seen anything for the older ROTAX powered craft as far as aftermarket grates for the intakes.

Hello Triggerman,
Thanks for your input about the weeds and impeller.
I just bought a used 1997 Sea-Doo speedster. I am still waiting on the title transfer but dreaming about using it soon.
My question is the impeller. Is it a good idea to put new 'high performance' impellers.
How fast do you think your boat does 'wide open'. Have you used it on the ocean (as opposed to a smooth lake). My regular email address is classic@aloha.net.
Thank you very much for your time and attention to this email.
Bob

[tiggerman]

Hi Bob,
I never got to experience the stock impellers on my ex-97. When I bought it it already had Skat Trak 14.5/22 impellers on it, and that seems to be the pitch everyone likes on the 97. I don't recall the stock pitch (it is probably posted here somewhere), but the Skats are the poop. With a tightly sealed driveline and those impellers, the 14.5 foot Speedster leaps out of the hole.
Wide open on a fairly smooth lake, my boat would hit 50mph (GPS) easily. 50 in a boat that small is plenty. We never used it on the ocean, simply because we didn't live close enough for me to pull it all the way there. It really isn't large enough to use comfortably in heavy chop- it porpoises badly and will beat your eyes out on a rough lake.

[stevenh]

I got a max top speed of 52 (GPS) on my ex-97 with the stock impellers. I you see weeds coming, and you can nail it, do so. I always have better luck with weeds when on a plane and moving fast. Most of the time when I had weed problems it was after being at idle for a while (they build up). That being said, sometimes they just can't be avoided. Three times in five years of boating I have had to pull my boat out to clean out the inlet/outlet of the jet (swimming did not do the trick). It's just a part of jet boating.

At least with the '97 you have two indepenant jet intakes so one will usually remain clear (gets you back to shore faster than idle with a stuck pump!).

I used my '97 (and my other two boats) quite a bit on the ocean, never more than a mile off-shore, and the '97 is probably not the best ocean boat. It loves to jump waves, even little ones, and getting it to stick to the water in chop is a challenge. It is also easy to take on water in waves, but it drains fast on a plane (scupper). It is a blast, but not easy on the body (lot's of hard landings). My Speedster 200 does much better (heavier, deeper hull) and my Sportster 4-tec also did well on ocean waters as compared to the '97 (noware near the power on the sportster though).

Steve

[foundation]

Hi Bob,
I never got to experience the stock impellers on my ex-97. When I bought it it already had Skat Trak 14.5/22 impellers on it, and that seems to be the pitch everyone likes on the 97. I don't recall the stock pitch (it is probably posted here somewhere), but the Skats are the poop. With a tightly sealed driveline and those impellers, the 14.5 foot Speedster leaps out of the hole.
Wide open on a fairly smooth lake, my boat would hit 50mph (GPS) easily. 50 in a boat that small is plenty. We never used it on the ocean, simply because we didn't live close enough for me to pull it all the way there. It really isn't large enough to use comfortably in heavy chop- it porpoises badly and will beat your eyes out on a rough lake.

Hello,
Thank you very much for the feedback.
I have taken the '97 speedster 3 times on our river (Wailua River) since the last communication.
It did get vegetation stuck three times. The last two times we moved the shift lever forward and backward while reving the engine and got the obstruction out of the impellers.
I do not know if this is the recommended way the factory suggests but it worked.
Of course, if this technique harms the engine I will not do it again. Any comments?
By the way, I 'needed' to see how fast the speedster will go on our smooth river and it registered 55 mph on the speedometer. The true speed is probably different but we sure had fun going at top speed.
Again, thanks to all of the members that offered their suggestions.
Bob (on Kauai)