Jet boat owers question

[karatejoe]

Is a 1998 Regal rush jet boat a good purchase?
Someone has one w/ trailer for sale. It doesnt run. They replaced the battery and that didnt fix it. Mechanically they were kind of clueless so all I got was it wont do anything even with the new battery. I know this could be anything from a simple wire to a locked up motor.
Are regal jet boats reliable and a good boat? They want $2000 for a boat that doesnt run. I not paying that. Its just what they are asking.

 

[And-Con]

Re: Jet boat owers question

OK, first off, if its a mercury(sport jet) you should be OK-ish, if it's an OMC(turbojet) I would walk. OMC quit doing the jet drives some time ago, and parts availability can be troublesome. Second, try find out why the boat doesn't run, try hand cranking it; if its seized, walk. If its turning you should be OK. See about manually firing the starter, easily done with a set of jumper cables-you do keep those in your trunk right? if you can get the starter to fire see about a compression test.

If those appear decent i would consider it, but remember its a non running boat. Take advantage of that; offer 700-tops-see what he says. 2000 is ridiculous. Now of course who knows if he'll let you do all this trouble shooting, or what he'll do if he hears the engine turning-but if he is as mechanically clueless as implied, you by far have the upper hand.

 

[karatejoe]

Re: Jet boat owers question

Thanks for your help. The engine was locked tight. I walked away from it.
They put a new battery in it. When that didnt fix it, they went to the internet to troubleshoot it. They pulled plug wires to check for spark on an engine that didnt even turn over. I chuckeled a little and gave a short version of how that worked.
All in all, I just walked away. It had sat for 8 months and then they tried to use it. Some point in there the engine seized.

 

[NSBCraig]

Re: Jet boat owers question

Good to hear you walked.