650/X-2 No power??

[jjk8]

I'm trying to help my brother in law with a problem he's having. He picked up an 89 650SX. The compression was checked and it's good in both cylinders. He said that on the head pipe it looked as though a bolt had possibly been striped and then used a different bolt or screw with some epoxy of some sort (could be an issue). He was able to ride but it seemed to lack power, he said not fat or lean (plugs are brown), seemed like maybe the pipe was getting hot and there was no water coming out of the pisser. Any ideas? Should we check the reeds? Does anything look amiss in the pictures??




Thanks.....

 

[Wilke]

Water lines are wrong on the pipe for starters, thats why there is no water pissing and why the pipe is too hot. The rear fitting goes to the stinger with a "T" that goes to the pisser. I assume whoever hooked the pipe up hooked the rear fitting to the drain pipe, hook it up correctly and plug the drain fitting at the bulkhead, its for the stock pipe only and isn't needed.


And if the epoxied bolt on the head pipe isn't tightened down an exhaust leak can choke the engine an cause power loss.

 

[Wilke]

You also should get block-off plates for the crankcase drain and oil injection and run premix. Eliminating two known failure points.

 

[moose]

Wilke,

I am the brother-in-law...thanks so much for the reply and information! I willmake the changes as you show above (i found a similar hookup on an image ofanother Team Butch pipe). I just wanted to list the other issues that we had onthe water yesterday and in the garage today, because it sounds like they mightall be related?

1. The ski had a major lack of power, both low-end and high-end, but it seemsto run and idle fairly well. It never died and it always starts right up.
2. While we were looking under the hood in the water, it was slowly taking onwater, but does not appear to have any leaks in the hull
3. When the ski was back on the trailer and out of the water (on level ground)there was a lot of water draining out of the ski somewhere above the ride plate(motor was off).
4. Today in the garage, I filled the hullup with a few inches of water and nothing is draining out of the back, whichmakes me think that the water draining out yesterday, after having rode theski, was coming through the exhaust water system?
5. I also discovered a fitting at theimpeller wall (above the ride plate) that does not have a hose coming off of it– see picture.

Sorry for the long list, but any thoughtswould be much appreciated! Let me knowif you need more information.

 

[Vumad]

Is that water line by the pump blocked off or have something hooked to it?
Check your bearing housing, it could be letting water in and out, it might leak more when it's hot.
Finding water coming from the pipe is easy. Run the ski on the hose and look for leaks.
A water leak from the exhaust means gases are leaking too. Motors can't run on dirty air.

 

[Vumad]

Look around the prop, you should be able to see no or very little water around the edges b/t the prop and the pump.

 

[madscientist]

That fitting is the water dump of the OEM exhaust. I use it for dual cooling inlet to the bilge

 

[runrider]

I have an idea of what to check. You said you are getting no cooling water pissing, and your leaking water into the hull. Plus your cooling lines are all screwed up. I bet your lines arent hooked up in the back properly either. Sounds like someone just stuck them on whatever they reached.

Stock exhaust uses the "unused" fitting as an extra water return. It spits water out of that fitting. Modified exhausts often do not use this line at all, and you may find that someone blocked it off on the inside, possibly by putting a bolt in the hose. There is another cooling line that comes in right next to it, and that should be hooked to your exhaust manifold, just beyond where exhaust exits from the cylinders.

If somehow someone switched the two ports on the inside - easy to do - you may have the lines hooked up to the wrong fittings on the inside of the hull. Your engine would not be getting any cooling water, which would make it get hot really really fast. DO NOT run your engine for more than a few seconds until you have your pisser working. You may have already done permanent damage.

Check to make sure that each of these fittings on the inside of the hull is connected to something. If a line was loose, water can come in, and go out. Make sure that the hoses are hooked up to the right fittings. On the inside of the hull, you should have one line that goes into a dohickey (check valve) and then down to a little plastic box with a bunch of holes in it. That is the stock bilge. It only works when your motor is pushing. On the outside, this line will run at an acute angle to your pump. You will have another line tapped into the side of your pump at a right angle. This one provides cooling water to the motor. Blow through it and make sure its clear. Also, make sure you know which fitting/hose it goes to on the inside of the hull. That line is the one that goes into the exhaust manifold, right where it bolts on to the cylinders. Cooling water from this line goes through a water jacket in the manifold, and into the cylinder block, right around the actual cylinder sleeves. Then it goes up into the head and out that u shaped hose, back into the other part of the exhaust mani. It runs through a water jacket to the other end of that manifold, where it sprays into the part of the exhaust that has the hot gasses. It also comes off from this point to your "stinger" and your pisser, as illustrated by wilke.

The stock system has one more fitting that comes off and goes out the back, but that usually is not used in aftermarket systems.