Service Issues

[Hilldale]

Has anyone used Highway Marine in Quakertown, PA for service? Been having some issues with service and want to understand if it is me or is it the service group. Is it typical to return a boat to a customer after winterization service and leave out the Clean out plugs and the Fuel compartment plug? I had asked them if there is anything that needs to be done before the boat goes in the water ( I am the novice ) and they said - just charge the batteries - never said to put in the clean out plugs and Fuel compartment plug. I can not image getting my car back from service and having to look to see what the Service technician did not do to get me on the road.
This is in addition to buying the boat new and taking it home to find that the lug nuts on the Trailer were loose as well as rusted.
Also, does anyone have a suggestion for who to use for service on a Yamaha Jet Boat at Lake Wallenpaupack in Pennsylvania? There are no Yamaha Jet Boat dealers nearby. I have not yet warmed up to taking the boat to just any prop shop. There are shops there who service Yamaha Jet skis - same type of engine - maybe they get it???

 

[Gym]

Hi @Hilldale and welcome to the forum. I'm not from your area so I can't speak to local service providers. With regard to the clean out plugs being out of their tubes...That should be done after each use to prevent them from swelling and getting stuck. The fuel compartment plug...there has been some debate on compartment plugs. Some say in the water all compartment plugs in. Others, like myself, leave all compartment plugs out all the time. My theory is it allows water to flow back toward the engine compartment where the bilge pump is. I would be concerned about the trailer lug nuts. There is no excuse for that. I hope they didn't charge you a dealer prep.

 

[Hilldale]

Thanks for the reply. With the Fuel compartment plug out, water was coming into the engine compartment. Not sure why water was coming into the Fuel compartment? Good thing the Bilge pump was working. I guess I am wondering why they would have serviced the boat and left the clean out plugs and Fuel compartment plug out when I got the boat back?

 

[Gym]

You want the clean out plugs OUT when the boat is out of the water so they don't swell and get stuck. Had the fuel compartment plugs been left in the water in that compartment would not have made it to the bilge pump to be pumped out. The only issue I see is the loose trailer lug nuts. That was inexcusable.

 

[haknslash]

Welcome to the forum!

Some people on here prefer to leave their drain plugs out of the storage compartments. The drain plug system goes like this ski locker->fuel tank drain->engine<-bilge/transom drain.

In you owner's manual it covers how to operate your new boat. To be honest it sounds like you haven't read it to get familiar with your new boat. I'm not trying to be a smart ass or rude but you should really read it and even watch the DVD that should have come with your boat. A lot of it is basic common sense but some of it is important to know about your boat and not to rely on the dealer to train you on it as not all of them will and they'll assume you will read the manual. A boat is not something to take for granted, safety is involved and IMO it's your responsibility as a captain to know and understand your craft before it ever goes in the water especially if you have guest onboard.

Before you launch your boat you should be checking for drain plugs IN, cleanout plugs IN, bilge ON, blower ON, test crank engines on dry land for a second to make sure they crank before putting the boat in, etc. These should be done every single time you take the boat out. That's on you and not necessarily on the dealer. However they should have at least gone over the basic operation with you and if they didn't then that's a shame as there are some things you need to know about these boats, how they operate and how to operate/maintain the cleanout plugs.

The cleanout plugs should be removed after every outing. Otherwise they will swell and get stuck becoming useless if you suck something up out on the water. The drain plugs I leave in, all of them. It would rather contain a flood in compartment and rely on the scupper than rely on the bilge pump. Water coming in your fuel tank compartment could be coming from your anchor locker (known issue) or from water sitting in the ski locker. Did they wash your boat or did it rain in it while it was there? They probably remove the drain plug so any water that was in the compartments would go into the engine bay which is where the bilge pumps are. Basically they did you a service. Now if you have constant water coming in while on the lake then you have another issue entirely.

I would chalk this up as a lesson learned what happens if your cleanout plugs aren't in and continue with happy boating ever after. This forum is s great resource and hope you can pick up a thing or two about these boats while you own it.

 

[Hilldale]

The point on the Dealer service is that I asked the question when I picked up the Boat. What needs to be done before I put it in the water. I would have expected that they would have said to put the clean out plugs in and the Fuel compartment plug in or they should have put them back in when I was given the boat back. Just makes no sense to not say something.

 

[Gym]

The point on the Dealer service is that I asked the question when I picked up the Boat. What needs to be done before I put it in the water. I would have expected that they would have said to put the clean out plugs in and the Fuel compartment plug in or they should have put them back in when I was given the boat back. Just makes no sense to not say something.

I see your point. I've heard that some dealers take their customers out for a ride to familiarize them with the boat and systems. Unable to do that they should have simulated that process with you while on the trailer. You will get much more useful advice on this forum than from your dealer.

 

[Hilldale]

This site is great. I have learned 50 times more about my JetBoat from this site than from the Dealer and the manual. Lots of good guys/gals who share the experience.

 

[Neutron]

My dealer, Performance East was ready to guide me over everything on the boat. They brought out a tech who was very informed on the Yamahas.
But I told my salesman no need because from years of working on jetboats and skis i was very familiar. All he showed me was about the Connext.


Now if you are a novice and this is your very first possession of the boat after purchase and they stored it for you i would expect some sort of run though.

If you just dropped off your boat for winter storage then they are assuming you already are familiar with the boat and have read the owners manual.

Every time you launch a boat you should have already done "checks" on everything and every system as well as the trailer.
Never ever assume someone else did.
Its your family, friends as well as your own life at risk.
If you keep it in the water you should have another series of "checks" before leaving the dock. Dont assume everything is as it was your last time out

 

[Beachbummer]

One of the early stages of understanding on a new skill is

You don't know what you don't know.

You were aware, and asked. But you did not count on the dealer not helping you to the level required at the time as this is totally new to you. Shame on them, but now you know. Don't let their crappy/incomplete answer sour your future experience. It's on them. Don't give then any more power.

Good news is, you are here where all the info can be found. Ask away.

 

[Jameson Clark]

I have been confused about all the different compartment drain plugs myself and just found two more doing the oil changes last night. Due to weather at the time I picked up the boat and my time constraints , I did not get any lessons on the boat. Overall, I didn't really want to go through the "let me teach you how to boat" demo since I didn't need it. And, from my experience in the auto dealership world, sales people generally have very limited in depth knowledge anyway. So, I have been reading up on here and asking when I needed and have been making my way through the manual when I have time. Overall, everything has been great, just learning the differences between this boat and my old stern drives is all I really have needed to work on.

PS - Still trying to figure out all the different compartment drains as well as the open anchor locker drain!

 

[mraz72]

I would disagree with some of the folks above blaming the owner and not the dealer, in my mind it is both of their faults. The dealer knows you are a novice as I am sure you made that clear, they should have told you to become familiar with various aspects of the boat (blower, drain plugs, cleanout plugs etc) and at least briefly gone over them with you. When you asked if there is anything that needed to be done, they said just charge the batteries? That is obviously incorrect. I bet they didn't realize the plugs were out as the mechanic left them out for whatever reason and the person who rang up the service charge didn't know about it, sounds like a lack of communication on their part.

I do agree with others, get a check list and do this stuff yourself since you obviously can't rely on the dealer. Read the manual and make sure you are boating safely, don't just guess.

For what it's worth, my Yamaha dealer never leaves the clean out plugs out after servicing, and I would also disagree that these plugs need to be out 100% of the time when the boat is not in use, I wouldn't tow the boat with them out! If you tow the boat and store in your driveway, sure, take the plugs out.

Personally, I find taking the plugs out every trip to be a pain, I wetslip and leave them in, as do about 20 other yamahas at my marina. If there comes a point that they swell (years from now), I'll replace them. To me it's worth the money down the road to not deal with them every trip. I do lube them yearly.

I also leave all drain plugs in the boat open so water flows to the bilge.

 

[haknslash]

I wasn't necessarily placing blame. Just saying that when it's you or your family on the water, you are responsible knowing the craft for everyone on board. Leaving that kind of responsibility up to a boat salesman is taking a BIG assumption they even know what they are talking about other the sales brochure mumbo jumbo. Just look at all the posts from people of their dealer "advice" on these boats and usually it's laughably wrong. As mentioned I would treat them as the same knowledge of car salesman which is often very little about the details of the product they are selling when it comes to questions beyond a sales brochure spec sheet. BTW I tow with my cleanout plug out. Just my .02

 

[Sbrown]

I have to step in and defend Highway Marine a bit as our experience with them has been opposite the OP's experience. The sales staff stayed until after 10pm on the Friday before 4th of July weekend just to give us the chance to look the boats over really well (we hadn't even decided we were going to buy yet; although we did sign the paperwork that night) and they had the boat cleaned, serviced and ready to pick up by noon the following day. Then they spent another couple of hours with us going over anything we had a question about down to how to take the cover off and put it back on which we did. I also took the boat there at the end of last season to have some warranty work done and have it shrink wrapped and stored for the winter. We picked the boat up back in March; everything we needed done was taken care of. They also did the 10 hour service for us. I've been in there kicking tires for 20 years and this is the first boat new or used that I bought from them and they never treated me like I wasn't a valued customer. I have nothing but positive experiences with Highway Marine and I'm a tough customer to impress.