Drive shaft boot continues to fail..

[dunkman210]

I have replaced 3 drive shaft boots.. they seem to last about hours.. when they fail it takes on massive amounts of water.. any ideas what causes the failure..
ps my son rides wide open.. gtx-rfi.. 2002 monde I have had it 4 years..

[David_HX]

How does it "Fail" ? The Boot itself cracks in the Accordion Pleats or the Carbon Seal end piece cracks and falls out ?

1) You need to be sure the Engine and Drive Shaft are properly aligned to the Jet Pump ( get a manual to explain this )
2) The Accordion Seal needs "pre-load" to push the Carbon Seal up against the Stainless Steel Floating Seal --- sometimes washers / spacers need to be added to do this
3) N-E-V-E-R lubricate the Carbon Seal -- it will overheat and crack
4) Don't run the engine out of the water without spraying the Carbon seal area with WATER ONLY to keep it cool while running an engine "on the hose" for flushing

DxS

[dunkman210]

Thank you for the information here is addition input to see if it gives added insight.. failure is the rubber accordion.. it ruptures.. in various locations bottom, bottom and side..appears to be almost like a cut in appearance.. carbon seal is in great condition and appears properly loaded.
I have watched shaft during take off an there is no lose of contact to the stainless plate it seats on and no apparent shaft vibration.. on the first replacement I replace boot, o ring, new bumpers on each end of shaft and carbon seal.
I can not imagine.. the cause.. I referenced my son in the original post.. because the failure has never occurred with my daughter riding it.. I can not image that his aggressive riding puts enough water pressure on.. the boot to expand it the point of rupture... Wow just had a thought.. is it possible there is enough press to push the seal to the point it sticks.. to the stainless and torque rips it...
thoughts on this and a solution...
added note the engine was rebuilt 2 years ago.. the speed is now up to 60 again not sure this matters just try to provide as much info as possible..

Any ideas are welcomed..

[GP@PPG]

Nope, some push over 500HP through the sealing arrangement!! We have found MANY of the newer models to have a poor engine alignment that will lead to failures, but that '02 model is a solid unit. Is the thru-hull that provides the clamping surface with regards to the hulls part in the equation. NO, it should not do this, no he can't run it hard enough to the "cause" of failure. This isn't a guess. WE service more sea-doo's than most shops worldwide, I have to agree with David, alignment, and/or the engine mounts are broken and you may not know it. Grab the exhaust header pipe and pull it to the side, left or right, and see if the engine "lifts", if so, you just found the problem. This one is a prime candidate for broken engine mounts, let us know what you find! It'll help many more people whom maybe dealing with the same issue. Hope this helps you, GP@PPG

[dunkman210]

I am out of town but will check when I return on Friday and let you know. Really appreciate the guidance and input.

[dunkman210]

Applied as much force left and right... no noticeable movement, very firm, and i can see only slight compression of the rear mounts. no sign of separation and the bolts that secure the engine are tight. I am trying to find someone local with alignment tool who can check the engine alignment(not sure how it would have gotten out of wack) . the two closed dealers have left the fold and say they can not help.

[BUDDAH@PPG]

Is that tear on the carbon ring or the thru hull fitting side of the boot when removed?

Is it always torn in the same place?

That assembly should not spin with the drive shaft, however you will visibly see a little vibration from the boot when the unit is running.

Are the clamps OEM original clamps or do they have a long tail (that may be rubbing through the boot) when they are securely tightened?

This is a very strange problem you are experiencing.

[dunkman210]

The one pictured the tear is closest to the carbon ring and on the bottom. the one previous was on the middle and on top. the first one to fail was between the first and middle rib on the bottom.
at idle almost no movement high rev.. you see some vibration between carbon ring and the stainless ring.
the clamps are OEM original.. pressure or torsion tear.. seems strange to me as well.

[BUDDAH@PPG]

Are these OEM replacement bellows you are using in your repair?

Have you changed anything in the pump area recently?
prop/wear ring/bearings and seals?

Is the intake grate still in place on this machine?

Just throughing some things out i would be looking at.

The construction of the hull/intake and pump tunnel has not changed (unless there was some body work done we don't know about) so there must be another variable. Something else has to be different.

[dunkman210]

2 oem. 1 aftermarket.
no changes in pump.
grate inplace.
no changes..

only change in variables referenced above is son.. prior to this year was driven by daughter or him.. with his mother.. this year he is licensed and wide open..
GP above referenced Alignment so will be checking to find someone who can check.. as the gig/ tool is around 150 bucks to buy..

[BUDDAH@PPG]

GP is the top tech I know so you are right on for looking into the alignment.

good luck. Let us know what you find.

I am for sure curious.

[BUDDAH@PPG]

Oh.... Just a thought here.

Does he like to do spins where the pump comes unhooked from the water but doesn't let off the throttle before the pump re-enters the water causing an INSANE amopunt of pressure very rapidly with the intale area??

This would be the only thing I can think of that he could possibly do to create such a viscious tear in such a stout piece of rubber.

[dunkman210]

spins, yes. . . but have not noticed that he is maintaining full throttle. AKA no audible evidence of peak RPM's with pump disengaged from water.

[BUDDAH@PPG]

Then I am for sure stumped.

[GP@PPG]

Engine alignment is critical, I can't tell you how many of these we have re-aligned finding them WAY off, and I don't know why they are so poorly aligned from the factory. GTR's were the worst, and there was about 5-6 of those we corrected. WE have a tool loaner program if you'd like to inspect it yourself! It is easy to use and aligns it PERFECTLY, then you'll have a more powerful, smoother riding machine that also will last A lot LONGER lasting engine, due to a "happy" alignment! Hope this helps. GP@PPG