Anyone not happy with their AR192?

[skbishop90]

I have had numerous people message me asking about how I like my boat. I do like my boat but I dont LOVE it like I should. I shouldve bought the bigger 212X that was next to mine at the boat show. The salesman assured me that the 192 would be plenty powerful enough for what I do (Tube, wakeboard, etc.). I even was able to test drive it.

Heres my problem. With the test drive, it was awesome. Handled well and had plenty of power with just three people in there. BUT...I obviously wasnt able to pull anyone behind the boat and see how it handled the weight of a tube or skier. I also wasnt able to pack the boat down with gear and people and see how much power is lost due to the weight and the dreaded HEAT SOAK!

As I told someone who messaged me earlier about it, with $2000 I would be able to improve the power and probably fix the heat soak issue with an intercooler. But my big question is, will the added money improve it enough for me to want to keep it? Has anyone done the ribbon delete and intercooler and seen a drastic enough different to want to keep it over spending the extra $10ish grand more for the 212X?Im worried that I do this and it still wont be enough. I wish I could trade mine for an inboard style wakeboard boat. Big hull, V8, plenty of weight for surfing, endless torque. But also $25-30k for a 12 year old boat... Ugh...lol

 

[haknslash]

The only thing I don't like about my boat is the heat soak and inconsistent RPM/performance. Everything else I love about it. Well except for the damn radio in the glove box or the IR remote (should be RF instead). I mean who decided having an IR remote would be good if you plan to put a radio in a concealed compartment?! But that's a minor inconvenience in the grand scheme of things to me so it's not a deal breaker.

Like you, I really wanted the 212X (I hate the tower on them though) as it had the dual engines but knowing the 21's were more than likely being completely redone for 2016 there was no way I was going to buy a 2015 or older. It would eat me up. I also would have had to come up with a down payment and I also wouldn't have been able to store it in my garage like I can do with my 192. Being able to have my boat safe and sound inside my house was a HUGE determining factor in either buying a used 21-24' boat or buying a new 19' boat. For us and my small family of a wife and 6 year old daughter the boat works great with plenty of room. Largest screw I've had on my boat was 4 adults, plus gear and 2 coolers in very windy conditions at PCB and it did great...for a 19' boat that is since you can't ask the world from it . Obviously with bigger boats brings better handling in rough water, more space to move around on, more power, etc but also at more costs, harder to store at home if not impossible for many, not to mention maintenance is 2x for anything engine related.

What kind of issues are you experiencing when pulling a tube or skier? Is your boat being pulled as well? I see you have thrust vectors so I assume they fold up at speed so perhaps some Cobras would help you more if that is an issue for you. BoatTest.com video for the 2016 had them pulling a wake boarder without issue so perhaps the rudder helps. I know I can tell a difference in the way my 2016 handles compared to the 2015 I test rode in that had TV's. My boat tracks straight and feels more planted in turns so I don't know if I would feel a tube or skier as much as an older 192.

Dedicated wake boats are nice and throw a monster wake but damn they are pricey!!!! I know they can come off the MSRP a lot more but still they are pricey! I don't like the idea of a prop hanging down that low nor do I care for the horrible docking performance they seem to have as an inherit trait of the IB.

As far as the ribbon delete and intercooler mods vs real world performance, I too want to hear from people. I'd love to see some verified GPS logs or something but if you read on green hulk people swear by upgrading these mods even though their PWC are more powerful versions the same principle applies. I know on my turbo car upgrading the intercooler and piping made a big difference in my charge temps thus allowing for more power to be built but I don't know squat about S/C boats. It's a motor all the same so I assume you would see a difference. My main goal isn't to rip up around the lake at over 50+ MPH WOT all the time. I just want consistent RPM and relatively close the same MPH ever time I hammer it down all things being given with outside factors such as wind, water temp, etc. I'll be awaiting to see how yours turns out should you upgrade your parts. You're not alone wondering if or how big the impact is and does it really cure the heat soak for good. Where do you boat? I'm on Mitchell so if you boat there perhaps we can do some back to back testing with your boat and mine before and after you or I install the mods? It would be pretty cool to see how big of a result there is before and after heat soak has set in.

 

[swatski]

I have had numerous people message me asking about how I like my boat. I do like my boat but I dont LOVE it like I should. I shouldve bought the bigger 212X that was next to mine at the boat show. The salesman assured me that the 192 would be plenty powerful enough for what I do (Tube, wakeboard, etc.). I even was able to test drive it.

Heres my problem. With the test drive, it was awesome. Handled well and had plenty of power with just three people in there. BUT...I obviously wasnt able to pull anyone behind the boat and see how it handled the weight of a tube or skier. I also wasnt able to pack the boat down with gear and people and see how much power is lost due to the weight and the dreaded HEAT SOAK!

As I told someone who messaged me earlier about it, with $2000 I would be able to improve the power and probably fix the heat soak issue with an intercooler. But my big question is, will the added money improve it enough for me to want to keep it? Has anyone done the ribbon delete and intercooler and seen a drastic enough different to want to keep it over spending the extra $10ish grand more for the 212X?Im worried that I do this and it still wont be enough. I wish I could trade mine for an inboard style wakeboard boat. Big hull, V8, plenty of weight for surfing, endless torque. But also $25-30k for a 12 year old boat... Ugh...lol

Intercooler upgrade is not 2k...
But anyhow, I think this is a good post addressing these issues (from https://jetboaters.net/threads/sx192-rpm-opinion.10744/#post-186436)

You guys are having the same issue we all have run into. Heat soaking is the problem and the only resolution is a larger intercooler as you probably have read on our other posts. Running with or without the air filter makes little to no difference, possibly helps on excelleration a little bit but hard to say, the boat will run properly and have enough torque to keep you and the entire family with coolers and other crap loaded on board at minimum of 47 mph all day long. You will hit and maintain roughly 50 mph with 2 adults and a cooler (boat loaded lightly) no problem all day.

Before I completed the mods on my 192 I went to the Keys with my wife and 8 yr old son to do some diving, a full cooler, 2 steal 95 cubic ft dive tanks and our gear, full tank of fuel and a few other misc item and the best the 192 would run was 37 mph wide open, this is what made my mind up on changing out the intercooler and a few other items. The boat now runs at least 47 mph with more gear in it. My Son and my self with a full tank of fuel and loaded cooler can hit 50, sometimes 51 mph and maintain this speed in the 96 degree temps and water temp of 90 any time now. Hope this helps, there is hope for your boats 7600 + should be your max expected rpms.

 

[skbishop90]

Is there a complete "KIT" ready to buy for these boats, as far as the intercooler?

 

[skbishop90]

The only thing I don't like about my boat is the heat soak and inconsistent RPM/performance. Everything else I love about it. Well except for the damn radio in the glove box or the IR remote (should be RF instead). I mean who decided having an IR remote would be good if you plan to put a radio in a concealed compartment?! But that's a minor inconvenience in the grand scheme of things to me so it's not a deal breaker.

Like you, I really wanted the 212X (I hate the tower on them though) as it had the dual engines but knowing the 21's were more than likely being completely redone for 2016 there was no way I was going to buy a 2015 or older. It would eat me up. I also would have had to come up with a down payment and I also wouldn't have been able to store it in my garage like I can do with my 192. Being able to have my boat safe and sound inside my house was a HUGE determining factor in either buying a used 21-24' boat or buying a new 19' boat. For us and my small family of a wife and 6 year old daughter the boat works great with plenty of room. Largest screw I've had on my boat was 4 adults, plus gear and 2 coolers in very windy conditions at PCB and it did great...for a 19' boat that is since you can't ask the world from it . Obviously with bigger boats brings better handling in rough water, more space to move around on, more power, etc but also at more costs, harder to store at home if not impossible for many, not to mention maintenance is 2x for anything engine related.

What kind of issues are you experiencing when pulling a tube or skier? Is your boat being pulled as well? I see you have thrust vectors so I assume they fold up at speed so perhaps some Cobras would help you more if that is an issue for you. BoatTest.com video for the 2016 had them pulling a wake boarder without issue so perhaps the rudder helps. I know I can tell a difference in the way my 2016 handles compared to the 2015 I test rode in that had TV's. My boat tracks straight and feels more planted in turns so I don't know if I would feel a tube or skier as much as an older 192.

Dedicated wake boats are nice and throw a monster wake but damn they are pricey!!!! I know they can come off the MSRP a lot more but still they are pricey! I don't like the idea of a prop hanging down that low nor do I care for the horrible docking performance they seem to have as an inherit trait of the IB.

As far as the ribbon delete and intercooler mods vs real world performance, I too want to hear from people. I'd love to see some verified GPS logs or something but if you read on green hulk people swear by upgrading these mods even though their PWC are more powerful versions the same principle applies. I know on my turbo car upgrading the intercooler and piping made a big difference in my charge temps thus allowing for more power to be built but I don't know squat about S/C boats. It's a motor all the same so I assume you would see a difference. My main goal isn't to rip up around the lake at over 50+ MPH WOT all the time. I just want consistent RPM and relatively close the same MPH ever time I hammer it down all things being given with outside factors such as wind, water temp, etc. I'll be awaiting to see how yours turns out should you upgrade your parts. You're not alone wondering if or how big the impact is and does it really cure the heat soak for good. Where do you boat? I'm on Mitchell so if you boat there perhaps we can do some back to back testing with your boat and mine before and after you or I install the mods? It would be pretty cool to see how big of a result there is before and after heat soak has set in.

I mainly lake on Lay, so Im just up from you. We have a place on the lake so thats easier.

The main issued Im having while pulling a tube is that I lack the power throughout the turns to really snatch people around. My crew of people dont like to just get tossed around and hang on. They want the really be thrown around hard and possibly skimming across the water a$$ and elbows flying. I cant do this in my boat. I may start a turn at say 35ish MPH. Before I am half way around the turn, the boat will drop to about 15 MPH. And then take 30-40 seconds to get back to 30-35. So theres no flying off the tube. Pulling a wakeboard, thats a different story. Unless my boat is loaded down to the gills, itll pull the person right up. No real issues there other than the small wake but thats expected when these boats weigh roughly half of what a comparable I/B boat weights.

I know doing the ribbon delete and Intercooler wont completely fix the issue but may curb my desire to get rid of the boat and take a loss, just to find a decent used I/B. The prop hanging down doesnt bother me since 99% of the wakeboard boats have a swim platform well behind it. The only thing that would bother me is the ease of this boat in salt water. Although we dont take it to the beach a lot, its very easy to flush and wash out and light enough to tow it down there with my wife's Jeep JKU.

At the end of the day, there are pros and cons to both boats and I just need to weight them all and find what type of boat suites my wants best.

 

[haknslash]

In regards to the prop thing, it's not just the protection from swimmers but about what's under the water! i would hate to give up the freedom I have of being able to have a shallow draft and ride on little water once on plane. The deep-V wake boats don't have that luxury and seeing the logs under the water at places I boat I'd be a constant nervous wreck trashing my $80k wake boat!

I say try the mods and see what's up. I mean it's sure to help and going by what was quoted above it seems like a legit upgrade. I know it made a difference on my turbo car so surely the same formula of cooler/denser charge = mo' better applies here. I don't think it would cost you near as much as you might think. I know I've looked at some of the Frozen IC kits but those that cost big money have aftermarket BOV's (blowoff valves) on them which adds considerably to the cost. You don't need aftermarklet BOV as we have engine covers with insulation so I doubt you'd even hear the damn thing and I haven't heard much of an issue with pressure surge on these superchargers to even require a upgraded BOV. Basically only get one if you want to say you have one and want to hear it. I can see the PWC guys getting one because they sit on top of the motor and want all the loudest noise their ski can make.

I don't intend to whip my wife and daughter around ass and elbows flying on the tube hehe. We are more of a chill on the lake type with cruising and some light tubing. Now going to try wake surfing on the 192. But I wonder if a Cobra fang or similar setup would benefit you there. I didn't get a chance to take a real hard turn in the 2015 AR192 I rode in at Wedowee but I cranked it over with @DBamaC and his wife in my 2016 AR to let them feel how mine hooks and he can tell you of the difference. I think I remember him saying his would spin out where mine would just hold it harder and I have no doubt that is directly related to the rudder on the 2016's. He has TV's as well but they come up at speed so they aren't going to do you much good for stability when carving compared to having a skeg, keel, fin or rudder.

 

[skbishop90]

Empty or not towing anything, the boat corners like its on rails. With a full sized adult or two on the tube, you can kind of feel the stern coming around on a hard turn but not enough to hinder anything so thats not a worry of mine. Its mainly the sustained power through the turn. TORQUE is what its lacking and what I want. Which is also a weakness of jet boats. You need massive power to ensure this, or two engines haha.

 

[haknslash]

Ah torque. The soul of every man. We all want more. I've had tons of vtwins, big thumber singles, you name it so I know what you mean .

But seriously though I think there is power there to be untapped. I would at least try out the mods and see how it goes. I mean if you find it improves your boat heat soak but you still want mo' power to rip your friends' bodies all over the lake tubing, then I'll just buy the mods off you before you sell your boat and save you shipping costs

 

[swatski]

Empty or not towing anything, the boat corners like its on rails. With a full sized adult or two on the tube, you can kind of feel the stern coming around on a hard turn but not enough to hinder anything so thats not a worry of mine. Its mainly the sustained power through the turn. TORQUE is what its lacking and what I want. Which is also a weakness of jet boats. You need massive power to ensure this, or two engines haha.

You need V-Tech Maptuner X and Lucky 13 anti-cavitation cone. A tuned 192 would be a beast, and with the cone you can dial it in to have no cavitation on hole shot (or pulling through turns).

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[mraz72]

I am guessing most want a bigger boat, meaning if you bought the 21, you would want the 24.

With that being said, I do agree with a lot of your points, I had 6 adults and 3 small kids in the boat this weekend and it was tough to get the boat up to speed. I am guessing I would not be able to pull a ski with 1100lbs of people on the boat. I could pull a tube, but the boat was struggling.

I am upgrading for a variety of reasons
1. More space
2. potential head compartment
3. pull ski with more people that I currently can
4. seats tops on hinges
5. Wind block under the middle window, not sure why all of our boats don't have that. I boat into october and it gets chilly.

Things I REALLY want but can't have in a yamaha
1. windlass anchor (I am tired of pulling these things up, ugh)
2. head with a sink and mirror

 

[haknslash]

Forgot to suggest that cone. I remember reading your @swatski thread and the results from it. If I get so much ballast that I run into a lot of cavitation i'm going to upgrade mine to the L13 cone.

@Michael Rasmussen 6 adults plus kids is a lot to ask for a single jet ski engine bolted into a boats hull! I wouldn't expect the boat to perform that great either even if it had 10-15 more hp. At some point twin engines is just a must if you plan to have that many people onboard 90% of the time. There is only so much you could sink into a single to keep up with that kind of demand all the time and be comfortable with everyone.

I can't agree more with you though on the hinges seats. That is one of my biggest gripes not with just the 19' boats but all Yamaha boats besides the 24' lineup. Something tells me this year we might see all Yamaha's finally have hinged seats. One can only dream. As you said even if you had a 21 you'd be wanting a 24. If you have a 24 one day you're going to want that 30 footer and beyond.

I would love to see Yamaha come out with a cabin cruiser or weekend get-away type boat that has all the amenities you'd ever need to "camp" on the water. Enclosed sleeping quarters, head with shower, small dinette with foldaway sink, etc. If you look at some of the designs and thoughts of the details on the big money cabin cruisers you will find they have all sorts of clever ways of coming up with space to not only use these features but to also sotre them when not in use so you can maximize space at all times. Maybe one day Yamaha will make a jet-powered Chaparral Sunesta clone . I imagine the market is a bit niche for that but one can dream.

 

[swatski]

Forgot to suggest that cone. I remember reading your @swatski thread and the results from it. If I get so much ballast that I run into a lot of cavitation i'm going to upgrade mine to the L13 cone.

I think you would be surprised.
And I think I am beginning to understand why those haven't gotten much attention here: most run the twins, and the twins (at least the new models) hardly need improvement in the hole shot department.

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[Scottintexas]

didn't have time to read in detail on this thread but have you seen this intercooler upgrade from our FAQ
http://jetboaters.net/threads/sx-192-mods.6550/

 

[Rob9550]

I loved my AR192 but I had the same issues. I sold it privately and got a 24ft. I love it, the wife loves it and the kids think I am insane when they are on big mable. You only live once...

 

[Jetswu87]

Do the intercooler, cheap drastic change. Here's my review from this past weekend after the swap. The only thing I don't like about my boat is it's rough in chop so it limits where I can go on windy days in my area. Oh and it's hard on gas, but I knew that going into it. It holds 6 adults very comfortably and well for me trying to coordinate 4 people on a single day is hard enough. However I do like the idea of a twin engine for just in case reasons (motor issues on the water etc). However the price difference is substantial between the next class of boats.

"Figured I'd post a follow up after my first run with the SVHO intercooler installed.

Took 30min or so to swap it out. I would rate my mechanics skill as "knowledgeable" but your every day guy could easily do this. I Tee'd the lines for a single exit, I would've prefered to Y them but a T is what I had. I also purchased a molded heater hose from autozone that had two 90 degree bends in it to cut to not worry about kinking any hoses. I love that this is easily reversible as I would swap it back for any warranty work.

I had a chance to get the boat in fresh water and carry the biggest load of people I ever had this weekend, I doubled the hours on the boat in two days.

6 adults on the boat, two in the bow (one 120, one 250) and over 1/2 tank of fuel the boat still managed to get to over 40mph wide open which I was thrilled with. We went on a roughly 1.5 hr cruise in water temps in the 88-90 range. When I got back two the dock two of the kids wanted to go for a quick spin, 2 adults(190, 175) 2 small kids(85 and 110?) (no one in bow)...boat still did 47-48mph after that cruise, no cool down. Mind you the water wasn't glass by any means.

I had no issue getting the boat to at least 40mph even with a big load of people and the top up, I also had never pulled a tuber before this weekend and no issue on power. From what I've ready people in the bow hurt the top end, but in a 19ft boat I don't ask people to all squish in the back. It's only fuel

Saturday going back to the boat ramp I was by myself with 1/2 tank of fuel and got it to 51mph (slight head wind and very little chop), boat felt like a rocket out of the hole. I played for 15-20min, with another 20min of idle time waiting for some swimmer race. After that I punched it again and the boat easily got to 48mph before I let off getting close to a no wake zone.

Anyway, I got this used intercooler for $125, I can't recommend it enough. All speeds GPS verified I have a Lowarance elite 5 on board. Amazingly enough the stock speedo on my boat is pretty accurate, it's very slow to respond to speed changes but accurate once it settles."

 

[SamCF]

Just want to add my thoughts to this thread. I don't want people to get discouraged with their boats or decide not to buy one. My wife and I are 100% happy with our SX192. Every time we are on the water we talk about how perfect the boat is for us and how happy we are with it. We run with 2 adults and 3 small kids 90% of the time.

When we first bought the boat, I was instantly disappointed. Just like everyone else, I saw 50mph on the reviews, and that's what I expected. It would do 50mph, but only with a COLD engine in COOL water and COOL morning air. It was pretty obvious what the problem was.

As the summer got hotter, I couldn't deal with it anymore. One afternoon I couldn't get over 44mph with a Cold engine. Water temp was 92 and air temp was 95.

I pulled the flame arrestor, and it helped a little, but still had heat issues.

Long story short, I installed a "Type 14" intercooler with a dedicated water line and now the boat runs as it should.

HOT engine, HOT water, and HOT air, the boat will still run 50mph.

I have seen 52mph gps, but that is with low fuel and just me and a cooler in the boat.

With that said, I wouldn't recommend this boat for more than 4 adults. With 2 adults and 3 or 4 kids, it's perfect, but slows down quick with extra weight.

 

[haknslash]

Hey @SamCF in your tutorial, I may have missed it, but what thru hull fitting did you use for the dedicated water line from the tapped strainer?

 

[SamCF]

I don't remember what I used. It's above the water line, so it's not a sink or swim deal.

Something like this would work. https://www.blowsion.com/worx-through-hull-fitting-3-8-inch

You can tap the strainer plate yourself very easy, but if you want to save the stock one, you can buy a tapped strainer plate on GreenHulk.

 

[haknslash]

Yea I want to keep my stock one for warranty or resell purposes and will either buy a tapped strainer on greenhulk or buy the RIVA kit which seems a bit overpriced for what it is, anodized or not.

 

[SamCF]

One more thing. If you want to keep it looking stock. Buy the tapped strainer plate, and put the thru hull fitting in the hole that is currently used for the clean out hatch drain. If the hatch gets water in it, just pull the clean out plug to drain.

The stock SVO intercooler seems to work good on these boats, so I would look into that. A lot less custom work to install, and looks stock. Much easier to put back to stock than the "Type 14".