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Cracked hull after 1 ride

70520 Views 67 Replies 29 Participants Last post by  xdrian
My husband purchased a Sea Doo Spark 3up 90hp brand new. The hull cracked after our first day riding it. Less than 2 hours on the Spark!! Have no idea how it happened. Was not going fast as he was riding with our 8 year old son. Noticed some discoloration on the hull when photographing the Spark (for insurance) after he brought it home from the dealership. Did not think anything of it until we noticed that the hull cracked in that exact area. Sea Doo is now determining whether they are going to fix it..... Makes me seriously question the quality of the product.
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Good thing you have "before" pictures. This is not the first report of this issue. It's very disheartening and I feel like it's only a matter of time before someone gets hurt on one of these. Please keep us posted on how Sea Doo responds.
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Good thing you have "before" pictures.
Yes, and lawyers in the family, too!
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Amazing how wound up people get about this stuff. re-lax people. it's a toy. it can get fixed. take a deep breath. chilllllll.
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It's a $6000 "toy" that is having issues that could get someone hurt or even killed. I'm pretty sure this is something to get wound up about.....
Especially since Sea Doo is blaming most of these issues on the user and not fixing them.
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Here comes another one. Just joined the forum. First time posting anything. First time out on the ski and of course it disintegrates without doing anything wrong. I just don't get it. I have over 40 hours on mine in debris filled salt water. I drive ( sometimes slam ) it up a floating ramp every time I use it (which is daily if it's not raining). I've used it pretty heavy chop and it's been air born many times. I weigh 220 and often take a passenger. My Spark has no issues at all. My wear ring is fine, my hull is fine, my steering Is fine. I wonder how many having issues are people new to boating, who haven't developed an awareness of what you realistically can and can't do on the water or how to take a wave or land a hull. ThE other side of the coin is seeing people (like the guy with the outrageous video from Australia) who definitely knows what he is doing and can do stuff with the Spark that is beyond belief, and he has had no issues at all.
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A hull should not crack with less than 2 hours on it. It was gently rode by husband & son. I have documentation of discoloration prior to the item being used. After taxes, fees, and trailer, this cost over $9k out the door. The hull should not crack after 1 use- period!
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Here comes another one. Just joined the forum. First time posting anything. First time out on the ski and of course it disintegrates without doing anything wrong. I just don't get it.
Can't help noticing the exact same thing, especially in the past week or so.

Strange, isn't it?

Could almost seem ... strategic, or even coordinated.
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Can't help noticing the exact same thing, especially in the past week or so.

Strange, isn't it?

Could almost seem ... strategic, or even coordinated.
Or not. Not connected to other post. Just another issue of a cracked hull.
Or not. Not connected to other post. Just another issue of a cracked hull.
... where the rider simply rode the ski?

The hull cracked in the water? No impacts at all? Didn't hit the dock? The trailer?

It just cracked all by itself?

Really?
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... where the rider simply rode the ski?

The hull cracked in the water? No impacts at all? Didn't hit the dock? The trailer?

It just cracked all by itself?

Really?
Noticed the crack when back at home. Nothing irregular in riding, etc. do all the sparks come discolored? Do you work for seadoo since you defend them so well?
Noticed the crack when back at home. Nothing irregular in riding, etc. do all the sparks come discolored? Do you work for seadoo since you defend them so well?
No, I don't.

If you came on here and said, "We accidentally nudged it into the back of the trailer and cracked the hull - what should we do?", there are people on this site who would be sympathetic, offer advice and tell you what to do next in terms of talking to your dealer and getting the damage repaired or the hull replaced.

Saying "We did nothing, it cracked by magic" makes me less sympathetic.

And your post comes on the back of others by new members in recent days starting similar new threads instead of posting in existing ones, where it could ALMOST seem to be a coordinated effort to paint the Spark as plagued with problems.

Plenty of us have owned these machines for months, with tens of hours on them , with no problems.

Yet a lot of first time posters seem to have experienced a Sparkpocalypse which was in no way, absolutely not, anything to do with them.

You might say it's natural, if someone has an issue, that they turn to the web and wind up on a site like this. But the tone of these first time posts is often the same.

If you have a genuine issue, I feel real sorry for you and hope you get back on the water soon. The Sparks are a fantastic machine and heaps of fun.

But when you take it back to your dealer, bear in mind they will be looking for impact damage and they will most likely recognise it if they see it.
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Noticed the crack when back at home. Nothing irregular in riding, etc. do all the sparks come discolored? Do you work for seadoo since you defend them so well?
Are you able to post pics of the discolor? My hull had scratches on it that the dealer says they will fix, but I wonder if my hull looks like yours. Also, can you post the crack? Thanks and sorry about your experience...that sucks!
Why is it not coming from seasoned users with lots of experience and lots of hours on the Jet Ski? I'm going out now to put even more hours on and I am convinced I' ll come home without anything broken. And if I'm wrong there is a good chance that it will be a result of some stupid misjudgment on my part. After countless hours on the water I have come to the conclusion that everything is a calculated risk and most problems can be avoided with good judgement and experience. I won't hit the dock or other vessels. I won't ride beyond my ability or the Sparks capability. I won't misjudge how to ride waves and I won't land with my 220 pounds weighted directly on the handle bars. I don't go in shallow water because when I do with my 53 foot sailboat it costs hundreds of times what a replacement wear ring costs on a Spark. I don't go out without navigation equipment, a waterproof cell phone , a floating vhf, a spark tracking device , a paddle , fenders ,a clamp for emergency towing,a can horn. I don't make hair pin turns at 50 miles an hour just because the machine can.
The Spark has limitations like any boat has limitations. It's not bullet proof but it provides a lot of fun, good seaworthiness at a reasonable price. It can't be all things to all people. Use it and don't abuse it and you'll get more than your monies worth. Yes some will have legitimate warranty issues and chances are Sea Doo will respond appropriately.
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Are you able to post pics of the discolor? My hull had scratches on it that the dealer says they will fix, but I wonder if my hull looks like yours. Also, can you post the crack? Thanks and sorry about your experience...that sucks!
This is one of the discoloration areas.

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This is one of the discoloration areas.
Bigger than what I have for sure. Did you guys not notice it on the inspection? I made the dealer take pics (as I did) and send them to BRP
I mean even tho my handle bar support cracked my hull is fine. And I rode it in some heavy chop where like mark said the ski isn't even in the water. Little wave after wave of mini jumps going air born with me and my girlfriend a total of 360 lbs.
Bigger than what I have for sure. Did you guys not notice it on the inspection? I made the dealer take pics (as I did) and send them to BRP
My husband brought it home as a surprise for the family. I picky about those things but he is not. Similar marks on the other side in front of the hull where it is cracked. I have to get those photos from my other device.
My husband brought it home as a surprise for the family. I picky about those things but he is not. Similar marks on the other side in front of the hull where it is cracked. I have to get those photos from my other device.

:) I can certainly relate to your husband! I was fortunate that I had read so much in all the forums that I felt pretty prepared for things to look for.

I also 'surprised' the family. My wife didn't say much for the first hour, but came around after that! :)
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Why is it not coming from seasoned users with lots of experience and lots of hours on the Jet Ski? I'm going out now to put even more hours on and I am convinced I' ll come home without anything broken. And if I'm wrong there is a good chance that it will be a result of some stupid misjudgment on my part. After countless hours on the water I have come to the conclusion that everything is a calculated risk and most problems can be avoided with good judgement and experience. I won't hit the dock or other vessels. I won't ride beyond my ability or the Sparks capability. I won't misjudge how to ride waves and I won't land with my 220 pounds weighted directly on the handle bars. I don't go in shallow water because when I do with my 53 foot sailboat it costs hundreds of times what a replacement wear ring costs on a Spark. I don't go out without navigation equipment, a waterproof cell phone , a floating vhf, a spark tracking device , a paddle , fenders ,a clamp for emergency towing,a can horn. I don't make hair pin turns at 50 miles an hour just because the machine can.
The Spark has limitations like any boat has limitations. It's not bullet proof but it provides a lot of fun, good seaworthiness at a reasonable price. It can't be all things to all people. Use it and don't abuse it and you'll get more than your monies worth. Yes some will have legitimate warranty issues and chances are Sea Doo will respond appropriately.
Very well said I couldnt agree with you more, it seems like lots of people are out there expeting these things to be invincible, heres a quick shot of reality.. they arent! Just like anything else (car, boat, motorcycle) if you run it into something whether your going 20 mph or 5mph something will break, take this as an example; drive your car into a pole at "only" 5 mph and see what happens to it. Its sad to hear all these "first time use" problems and I truly hope that is what happened and that they resolve your issue. But we all have to remember these arent indestructable.
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