hey everyone,
I've got 3 kawasaki stand ups and they are getting old. I am thinking about updating the fleet while they are still running and am looking at seadoo 3d's. I'm not trying to start anything here, I just want feedback if there are 3d owners here. Seems like a decent 3d can be had for $3-4k, but I am unfamiliar with Seadoo's and would like some information. As a kawasaki stand up owner, I realize that a Seadoo 3d is not a true stand up so please be easy on me if this forum hates these machines.
My buddy just bought one...
He got a 2006 787 fuel injected 3d for $1700. It was clean and included the pole shock and the cart seat.
The motor runs amazing. It has smooth delivery of power. The fuel injection system is obvious from the easy starting. The powervalves make the motor transition smoothly from bottom to top. The dry pipe system and powervalves make a lot of power from na smaller stock motor. The fuel injection resolves any tuning issues. Very quite for it's power.
The ski is overly complicated. Look at the parts diagram of the exhaust and you will see what I mean. The pipe is a dry pipe with small water injection at the end, which is good for performance but bad for reliability. These holes should be c leaned every 1-2 seasons, because when (not if) they clog, they will wipe out the entire exhaust system behind the pipe, which is a lot of stuff. Every model but the last one had too much plastic in the exhaust, which resulted in a high rate of failures. They only used metal at the couplers the last year. It's quiet because it has 2 waterboxes and a ton of other
. Ryan's over heated when he got it (those clogged holes I mentioned). We opened the back and thought "Holy crap there's a lot of
back here" only to find out, half of the
had already been removed. It's an overly complicated machine that is great when new, but timely and expensive to maintain in the long run. It only has 3 motor mounts, and when one breaks (which will happen if you jump it too much), the damage is catostrophic.
The 3D is a seadoo XP (The newer version with the shock seat) bottom deck with a different top deck. It rides like the seadoo 3D. In stand up mode, if feels heavy and the pole is awkward. The shock that holds the pole in place is pretty awesome, and I have to honestly admit that I wish I could get one for my superjet with a set of riserbars, much better than a fixed steer hood. This basically turns the 3D into a flat deck XP. The MX seat is very awkward to ride on, the seat itself being slick with nothing to grab your legs on like a dirt bike, it's very uncomfortable to ride on the course, and is just a novelty that you have to get from point A to point B. Lastly, the cart seat is a lot of fun. The only interest I have in riding the 3D is in cart mode. It reminds me of being 12 riding carts with my dad. The ski handles well, puts you low to the water, and sprays like crazy. It's really fun to ride, but it lacks challenge, so unless you are actually racing, it doesn't stay interesting very long.
Overall, while the 3D has some positive aspects, it's really just a novelty. Compared to the Superjet or SXR, It does not have the power or handling to justify it's 600 lbs weight rating. It's mechanically overly complicated and not worth the effort to maintain. It does not feel like any stand up you have ridden. It is more challenging than a sit down, but it in no way outperforms a superjet or SXR.
It's important to understand why Ryan bought a 3D, because it's good for him, but probably bad for you. Ryan had a B1 several years ago (sold when I went to college) and sold his B2 for the 3D. The B2 lacked any kind of challenge and got boring quickly, he wanted something more sporty. At 45, a recent wrist Fx and problems with his shoulder, he didn't want to side mount a B1 anymore. He wanted a X2 but doesn't want the problems associated with their maintenance. He is not overly fond of my superjet (even though I know if he owned one he would get pretty good at riding it). I know undoubtly that he wanted a SXR, but with most of the going for $4500+ in my area, neither of us have the budget for one right now. He did enjoy the Xp when he had it, so he went with the 3D, but I anticipate w/in the next 2 years, he will replace it with a B1 or 750SX.
You have a budget of $4k. Do yourself a favor and buy a SXR, or a B1 if you want something more couchish. The 3D is right for very few. Maybe if you ride a SXR and you want something for your lady friend or something... but if you have the budget for a SXR, buy a SXR.
