Seadoo wont start no beep

Chris Beheler

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Aug 3, 1997, 12:00:00 AM8/3/97

to

I have a 1996 SeaDoo GSX with about 35 hours on it. I rode my jetski right
before dusk then I came in and retired for the night. I woke up the next
morning, jumped on it, plugged my key in and there was no beep, so I hit
the start button, still nothing happens. I've switched batteries with my
GTS so I know thats not the problem and I have checked the fuses in the
gray box in front and the fuses in the black box in the back, but none of
them are blowed out. Can some one please give me some advice on what I
could check or what the problem is?

Thank you,

Chris
96 GSX

Craig785

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Aug 4, 1997, 12:00:00 AM8/4/97

to

I think that a guy a week or so ago had the same symptoms with his '96
SPX. The dealer told him that he fried his computer. But it seems that
if it was running fine then all of a sudden it didn't, there is a good
chance that the computer isn't the problem.

=='96 XP==
'88 K-5 Blazer for sale. E-mail for more info.

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Aug 4, 1997, 12:00:00 AM8/4/97

to Craig785

The symptoms you described with your 800-powered Sea-Doo sounds like
what you get when you forget to reconnect the 4-position cable to the
magneto housing. Make sure you have a good connection there.

I have also seen a couple of "electrical logic" problems resolved simply
by entering the DESS' "Diagnostic Mode".

To do this remove your DESS lanyard from the machine (assuming engine is
not able to start). Press the "start/stop" button 5 times and you will
hear a quick, unusual chirp. Connect the DESS Lanyard and see if your
machine starts, or else gives a series of beeps which is a diagnostic
code.

Simply entering "diagnostic mode" has allowed my XP800 to start after it
refused to on the first couple of tries. I would not recommend trying
this if your machine will crank the starter. In that situation, I
believe it's unlikely you have a "logic" problem and are experiencing
more of a mechanical/fuel problem.

1. 05-21-2017, 02:40 PM #1

   
   

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   No power no beep no hot wire

   Got a 96 GTX with nothing. No power no beeps no lights on the dash. Here is what I do know.

   Battery good
   Fuses all good
   Tried to hot wire it and all it does is click in the front box. It will not turn over or activate the starter.
   Different key does not get one beep.
   Dash does not electrify.

   I would think that if it was some sort of mpem issue that it would still turn over when I hot wire it.

   Thanks in advance.

   ---




2. 05-23-2017, 08:14 PM #2

   
   

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   Update:
   Changed out the starter. Bench tested starter. Bad starter. Installed good starter, and replaced the negative wire to the battery.
   Still does not hotwire but will click.
   Hooked up to candoo pro. Candoo will not recognise the vehicle. Cannot find vehicle.
   I wonder if I have a bad dess post?

   ---

3. 05-24-2017, 08:01 AM #3

   
   

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   The start button with no key installed should light up the gauges. Do the gauges light up when you press the start button? A bad dess is possible, test it, the manual outlines the test procedure, just takes a key and a multimeter.

   Have you turned the engine by hand with the plugs out to make sure its free?
   By 'hot wire' do you mean you are energizing the solenoid? Or arcing across it? If you are energizing it there is a chance that it's bad and isn't making contact inside.
   Not a good sign that the candoo doesn't read it... have you peaked up under the bars inside to make sure the wires are all connected?

   It sounds to me like you have a ski that started with a simple problem, then someone tried starting it until they fried a starter, and jump started it along the way, and generally about messed the whole thing up... Don't be surprised if the MPEM, Gauges, and more are bad from jump starting. The root of the problem that started this spiral could be a coil, fuel problems, or anything... and it's probably going to take lots of electrical diagnosis to get it all sorted out. I had a guy bring me a pair of 97 GTXs just like that, he bought them at an auto auction and each week when they ran them through they jump started them to demonstrate that they ran... they did that until they no longer ran and then this guy bought them. They were a nightmare. I diagnosed them, gave him a quote, and he took them back and sold them at the auto auction... If this ski was closer to me i would swear that you got one of the ones that i diagnosed.

   ---

4. 05-24-2017, 04:30 PM #4

   

   This is how I run a jetski shop in the desert

   

   ---

   on aftermarket mpems, candoo can't talk to them, they are numbed down versions of the oem.

   without a stator plug connection, the electrical system will appear dead. Check that ground wire at the plug and eyeball the end mounted in the stator..sometimes the pin is about gone.

   and I'm fond of saying "its never just the starter".. and you pretty much hit it on the head. the thing has been jumped started to death perhaps ( it's pretty hard to fry a starter unless your of the spin it enough and it will run school of thought.)

   ---

5. 05-24-2017, 06:14 PM #5

   
   

   ---

   Thanks for the input guys!
   No gauges when you hit the power button. Engine does turn over. Gauge looks pretty rough. Kind of like it has been damaged from the sun real bad.
   By hot wire I mean I am connecting the one side of the starter relay to the other to get the engine to turn over. That is the real confusing part. I had this starter on the bench and with power hooked to it it worked. This leads me to believe that I have a stator issue. Possible short to the whole engine? I am going to pull the mag cover and have a look. Its all original. Same owner 21 years. Symptoms were it just quit running.

   More updates:
   Swapped out dess post, no power.
   Swapped out the mpem and dess post, no power.
   Each time they will not connect to Candoo.

   Last edited by diamondwatercraft; 05-24-2017 at 06:36 PM.

   ---

6. 05-25-2017, 09:43 AM #6

   
   

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   Perhaps a bad power wire running to the starter? Those have a habit of breaking under the insulation and making just enough connection to make things frustrating...
   Also... make sure that in the messing with the solenoid that the hot wire that is supposed to connect to the battery side of the solenoid didn't get swapped to the starter side of the solenoid... no gauge or mpem power if that happens...

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7. 05-25-2017, 07:55 PM #7

   
   

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   Funny you should mention that. About the power wire being hooked to the wrong side of the starter relay. It in fact was. Owner tried to diagnosis his bad starter by swapping out a relay from his other GTX. When he did that he put the power wire to the starter side of the relay. WOW was this frustrating! I never noticed it when I opened the black box.

   So problem solved. Bad starter and wired incorrectly.

   Thanks for all that helped!

   ---

8. 05-26-2017, 11:13 AM #8

   
   

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   I've seen this one a few times... very frustrating to diagnose... lol. Glad you got it sorted out.

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9. 05-26-2017, 11:57 AM #9

   
   

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   Been there once too. If the owners would just be upfront about what they tried to do. It would make it easier to hunt down the multiple issues that they made themselves by trying to fix it.

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