I'm in the market for a brand new waverunner. I have never owned one and the only kind of I have ever ridden are the ones you can rent at the beach so what ever they have available is it. My first instinct was to go with a Yamaha and I checked out the Cruiser model amongst other ones. What brand and models have you guys experienced? Comfort, power, capacities (pulling tubes, etc.) have you encountered? I'm all ears and I've got the itch bad so I'm just getting some feedback before I start shopping around this weekend.

 

I have owned several Yamahas ,the wave blaster and the pro vxrs I enjoyed them along with the supporttha was roughly ten years ago when i bought them and five years ago when i sold them.I know with all the innovations out there you can not go wrong.Keep in mind service is part of the deal of ownership.I am sure you will find what you like also some dealers offer try b 4 U buy so you nwill have anice comparison depending on what you want to do

 

I own two Yamaha three seaters, my wife and I really liked to ride them. The only problem I had was a cracked battery from jumping waves, and a piece of plastic from the fuel tank got sucked into the fuel switch and no one could figure out what it was. There are a couple of things to be aware of. First find out where you can ride and don't let the dealer tell you anywhere boats are allowed, some states are very restrictive. You can't be out an hour before sunset or an hour after sunrise or at night. Get a buddy to ride with!!! In some states you can't take camping gear and camp over night on a beach with skis. People hate them, I had a boat try and run me down, after I sucked up a sixpack stringer, the only thing that saved me was shallow water. Check you insurance rates. Get a C.G. approved neo vest, rather than a cloth covered vest, also neo shorts are great, and rash guards to protect you from the sun. You'll need a battery tender too, and always fuel and oil them at the end of an outing to prevent condensate.

 

There's a bayou about 5 minutes from my house where people ride their waverunners all the time. How fast do these things go? I looked at the Crusier by Yamaha but I was wondering if it was really more comfortable than other models and say Yamaha versus Sea Doo. Are there any other brands? I've always wanted one and not that my fence is finally up I can get one. Is there a lot of maintenance behind these waverunners? How much does a middle of the pack waverunner cost on average? Where do you buy waverunners? Around here I only see boat shops. Thanks for all your input.

 

After riding I would gas them up. At home I'd top the oil off. Hook a hose to the engine and flush the engine out at hi-idle. (Use a golf tee in the throttle) I put a "T" in the hose, so I could wash the Waverunner while it was running. After that I'd tip them up and flush the insides out. The vest and shorts would get soaked in soapy water, rinsed, and hung up to dry. About 40 minutes for this, and I was picky on the cleaning. A battery tender was used during storage, also keep an eye on the battery fluid. Depending on how many hours they were run I used carbon remover in the gas tank, about three times a year for me. If they aren't going to be run four weeks or longer you need to fog the carb. and add fuel saver to the tank, it needs to be run into the carb. For winter, I added fuel saver and topped the tanks off. fogged carburator, replaced plugs, and fogged cylinders. Lubed main bearing before the last trip out. Waxed ski, used 303 on the vinyl, put seats in the house, removed battery, and wrapped hoses and wire in foil or copper screen. keeps critters from chewing them Shrink wrap is good if you can't keep them inside. You can store then in the garage on a couple of old tires or get a stand to save space. (I understand the 4 strokes have less maintenance)

 

Owned both Yamaha and Sea Doo. Both were stolen 2 years ago. I am also in the market.

Based on past experience I'm leaning toward Sea Doo. The Yamaha had a few very minor issues.........the Sea Doo NONE.

Of course, it's a whole new world with supercharged 4 stroke 3 seaters that go nearly 70 MPH!!!

 

A buddy of mine has a Polaris SL-1050. Its a two seater that is capable of 65-70 mph across calm water. Very fast, manueverable. They are fun, but need to be respected. A lot of people don't know this but this gets a lot of peole in trouble. The fact when you let off the throttle, you have no steering. You need water going though the jet to be able to steer. They are easy to get thrown off of. Like I said they are fun, just be careful and mindful of other people in the water.

 

I have 2 Seadoo's, a 01 RX and a 02 XP. Both have been basically trouble free.

I would lean more towards Seadoo, but Yamahas are decent also. The main thing is whatever you get just mainttain it well. With ours we only use the Seadoo oil, change plugs regularly and have never had any engine problems yet, knock on wood, and these have a fair amount of hours on them, 240 on one and 140 on the other

Don't know if you are looking for new or used, but if you look for used try to take it out first to see how it runs, and look for a fuel injected model, will help lots with gas useage.

 

I have 2 seadoo's and have nothing but praise for them. I was raised riding seadoo's and I won't buy anything else. I was actually looking at a seadoo sportster boat today at the dealership. I have an itch for one. Anybody have any experience with them?

 

seadoo's and waverunners are the scum of the earth when i am wakeboarding here in so call they almost hit me all the time and one even got close enough to suck up our tow rope while i was down dont get one go get a boat and learn about the boating safty rules if you do get one there is a reason that we hate all of the waverunners the people on them are usualy jerks and dont know what they are doing.

 

before you go and buy.. check out your states laws on operation. many now req. that you most take a boating safty course. have a state card saying you have done so. or even a boat operators license.
start off by taking the safty course from the coast guard auxilary or power
squadorn near you.
the rules of the road on water are way different then on land and when not under stood have way worst things that can happen. your in la. there are special coast guard rules for the big missisip. other then the inland or internanational waters rules. learn the difference.
having a waverunner jet ski can be a lot of fun. but at the same time as with any thing specail laws pertain to them. they are by law a power boat and every law a boater has to obay they are also to. they can not be operated at night or times of limited visabilty. some thing a normal boater can as they have no running lights. life jackets or better known your pfd most be of the jet ski type and having the highest speed rating marked on them is a major safty in your saving your life. hitting the water at any speed is like hitting a cement floor. the speed rating is your safty factor on keeping or loosing your breath.
the safty course is worth in most cases a 10% discount on your insurance bill also. besides helping you understand boating laws.
enjoy the fun but do it safly the members of the coast guard and coast guard auxilary do not like searching for dead bodys or responding to boating wreaks from people who have no idea how dangerous boating really is. this i know first hand. i've been there on the pick up end to many times.

 

Even though Polaris doesnt make PWCs anymore, that would be what Id buy.
Sea-Doo, Yamaha, Kawi, its all second-rate compared to a Polaris.
Check this out: http://watercraft.polarisindustries....5-C07534B83970
Gotta love that 150 hp 4-stroke turbo!
Polaris got out of the PWC business because its a dying market, not because their products werent selling. I know that you would be able to get one heck of a deal. You will be able to get parts for at least 10 more years (not that repairs are a major concern on a Polaris).
Octane

 

its a dying market?

 

Absolutely! The PWC market peaked in '97 and has been in decline ever since.
A lot of people here in Wisconsin hate PWCs and on many lakes the operation of them is severly limited or even banned. They are viewed as an annoyance and people have been trying for years to get the government to reclassify PWCs in their own group. Currently they are classified as Class 1 boats (the same as small fishing boats) in an attempt to even furthur limit their use.
Also, a lot of people have made the switch to ATVs because of their practicality.
In the late '90s, Polaris was a real player in the PWC market, but sales had been in decline for quite a few years. It reached the point where that market became so small that it wasnt profitable for Polaris to make PWCs and sportboats anymore, so they stopped production.
Its a real shame too. My brother owned several Polaris watercraft, and they were a lot of fun. My personal favorite was the Polaris Hurricane. It had a unique hull design that forced you to lean the craft on it's side while cornering, just like a crotchrocket. It took a little practice to learn, but you could carve corners with that thing like none other.
I still wouldnt go with a Sea-Doo. They used to have a lot of engine problems on the XP and I seriously doubt that BRP has fixed any of their problems because I know for a FACT that they still have problems on their SDI snowmobile engines, so why would you think that the PWC engines would be any different?
As far as Yamaha, if I had to choose from the manufacturers who are still making PWCs, Yamaha would be my choice. Yamaha has great quality and their engines run forever, but their dealer network sucks. I used to own a Yamaha snowmobile, and let me tell you, I wasnt impressed and it wasnt long before I was back on a Polaris.
Octane

 

On the decline; Hmmm, must be why "Honda Motors" jumped into the market for PWCs.