2008 RXP 215. 474 Hours. Coolant reservoir empty. P1116 code. Limp mode. Added water,

[dolphinride]

EDIT- ADDED 6/23/15 2:25PM EDT - I looked that the oil dip stick and did not see any indication of water in the oil. Does this mean that the head gasket is intact? I have some pictures of the dip stick. Not sure how clear they are, but I will try to add them.

PLEASE SEE POST BELOW FOR OIL STICK PICTURES.

I have a 2008 RXP 215. Love it. I have had it since new and it has 474 hours on it. I attribute the longevity in large part to the 'blow-off valve' which I installed before putting it on the water the first time.

Anyway, onto the current issue.

I was riding earlier today and I got the LOUD beep. I also got the P1116 code, and limp mode.

I immediately took the 2 minute trip to shore.

I took off the seat.

Looked around.

I -carefully- removed the coolant cap.

The reservoir seemed to be completely empty.

I filled it with water, as there was not any antifreeze around. (is that okay?) (if not, how do I replace the water with antifreeze)

For almost as long as I can remember, there has been evidence of something squirting out of a hose near the top rear of the engine. I have attached pictures showing:

1. See all the white stuff on the top of the motor that looks like it has squirt out of that hose, then dried? Is that dried antifreeze? Is it salt water?

2. Should I add a second hose clamp between the clamp in the pics and the motor?

So, as I said, I filled the reservoir with water. It got me home, and did not leak out again in the 5 miles or less that I traveled to get home.

I did not check the water / coolant level when I got back, but I have a feeling it would look just fine.

I have a feeling that there is slow coolant leak, and that it may be coming from that hose that is shown in the picture.

I am concerned though, because this is the first time this have ever happened. So, this possibly means that the coolant is leaking more quickly now than it has before. (?)

I am presuming that each winter season, when I have the craft in for service that they properly service the cooling system, topping it off as needed. However I am not sure about this.

Can anyone tell me where to look first, second, Etc for the leak? (if it is not the hose shown in the pics)

Has this happened to anyone?

Any insight or info would be greatly appreciated.

[toxicgun]

probably a blown headgasket. Under load the coolant will escape out of the overflow hose. Do a leak test to confirm but 474 hours is a lot so be ready to open it up.

[troyheb]

probably a blown headgasket. Under load the coolant will escape out of the overflow hose. Do a leak test to confirm but 474 hours is a lot so be ready to open it up.

Easier way to find out. Make sure the reservior is full, warm up the ski, then do a WOT run. If the tank is lower or empty, then the head gasket is gone.
That being said, I think you just may have a leak were you are pointing. Ride it with the seat off and see if you can see it leaking.

[Kmorningstar_rxp]

That poor ski! Wash that thing lol. She is leaking coolant because all that corrosion lol

[dolphinride]

probably a blown headgasket. Under load the coolant will escape out of the overflow hose. Do a leak test to confirm but 474 hours is a lot so be ready to open it up.

Easier way to find out. Make sure the reservior is full, warm up the ski, then do a WOT run. If the tank is lower or empty, then the head gasket is gone.
That being said, I think you just may have a leak were you are pointing. Ride it with the seat off and see if you can see it leaking.

I forgot to mention in my original post that I did not see oil in the water. Would this be an indication that the head gasket is intact?

[dolphinride]

Here are some pictures of the oil stick from right after I got back, after I filled the coolant reservoir with water. I do not see any evidence of water in the oil, but I am not sure that I know exactly what to look for, or what it would look like? Can you tell anything from these pics as far as head gasket diagnosis or other?

[dolphinride]

probably a blown headgasket. Under load the coolant will escape out of the overflow hose. Do a leak test to confirm but 474 hours is a lot so be ready to open it up.

Easier way to find out. Make sure the reservior is full, warm up the ski, then do a WOT run. If the tank is lower or empty, then the head gasket is gone.
That being said, I think you just may have a leak were you are pointing. Ride it with the seat off and see if you can see it leaking.

Thanks very much. I did some wide open runs on the way back to my floating dock after refilling with water. I did not check the water level after that, but will do so. Can you tell anything by looking at the pics of my oil stick?

[dolphinride]

Okay, that is definitely a coolant leak coming from that hose clamp area? If so, I imagine that could be my problem.

[troyheb]

Okay, that is definitely a coolant leak coming from that hose clamp area? If so, I imagine that could be my problem.

Cant see the pics. You don't always have to have water in the oil for it to be a head gasket. If the coolant level is staying the same, it probably is that hose. I say, clean up the neck and get a new hose and clamp.

[dolphinride]

EDIT- ADDED 6/23/15 2:25PM EDT - I looked that the oil dip stick and did not see any indication of water in the oil. Does this mean that the head gasket is intact? I have some pictures of the dip stick. Not sure how clear they are, but I will try to add them.

PLEASE SEE POST BELOW FOR OIL STICK PICTURES.

I have a 2008 RXP 215. Love it. I have had it since new and it has 474 hours on it. I attribute the longevity in large part to the 'blow-off valve' which I installed before putting it on the water the first time.

Anyway, onto the current issue.

I was riding earlier today and I got the LOUD beep. I also got the P1116 code, and limp mode.

I immediately took the 2 minute trip to shore.

I took off the seat.

Looked around.

I -carefully- removed the coolant cap.

The reservoir seemed to be completely empty.

I filled it with water, as there was not any antifreeze around. (is that okay?) (if not, how do I replace the water with antifreeze)

For almost as long as I can remember, there has been evidence of something squirting out of a hose near the top rear of the engine. I have attached pictures showing:

1. See all the white stuff on the top of the motor that looks like it has squirt out of that hose, then dried? Is that dried antifreeze? Is it salt water?

2. Should I add a second hose clamp between the clamp in the pics and the motor?

So, as I said, I filled the reservoir with water. It got me home, and did not leak out again in the 5 miles or less that I traveled to get home.

I did not check the water / coolant level when I got back, but I have a feeling it would look just fine.

I have a feeling that there is slow coolant leak, and that it may be coming from that hose that is shown in the picture.

I am concerned though, because this is the first time this have ever happened. So, this possibly means that the coolant is leaking more quickly now than it has before. (?)

I am presuming that each winter season, when I have the craft in for service that they properly service the cooling system, topping it off as needed. However I am not sure about this.

Can anyone tell me where to look first, second, Etc for the leak? (if it is not the hose shown in the pics)

Has this happened to anyone?

Any insight or info would be greatly appreciated.

I topped off the reservoir today, then used the ski for maybe 1.5 hours of ride time. There was a few miles of WOT included in my riding.

No apparent problem.

I rode with the seat off at first to see if I could see any coolant leakage or any other issues. I did not see anything.

Also, I looked at the oil stick a number of times while riding and did not see any evidence of water in the oil.

Where did my coolant go when I had to fill it up a couple days ago?