G23 Prop Fell Off .....

[RDT-G23]

I’ve managed to calm down following the issues I’ve had with my G in the first year. I really like the boat. If my prop shaft were to break, well, it just wouldn’t be good. Ironically, last spring when I was talking to my dealer about this issue, he joked about the anxiety Tesla owners can have without the ability to re-charge to my own concerns of this happening, and my being stranded,,,

[Skipdawg316]

The Tesla analogy is sightly different than this.

You can see your battery range in miles at any given moment. If you use the map/directions, the car won’t go out of range without letting you know you will have a problem to get to your destination.

So, if your battery does die, it wasn’t for lack of warning. Yes, range anxiety is a perception, potentially impacting buyers, but it’s pretty quick to get over when you see how it actually works.

Here, a shaft breaking is a complete surprise, with no apparent way to prevent and does not have a clear pattern as to why, which to me is much more nerve racking and far more difficult a perception to overcome given all of this.

I have a 2017 G23 with 114 hours on it and lately I’ve been wondering when we go out, if today is the day.


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[dlowry81]

Skipdawg pointed out the difference in a very politically correct and nice way. I would've called your dealer an idiot and throat punched him for even insinuating that a complete random mechanical on my boat with no warning or way to prevent it from my end that would leave my family stranded in a lake is even close to a Tesla running out of juice.

[scottb7]

I wakeboard almost exclusively. But do like to surf once or twice a year... Now I am super apprehensive about going surfing...Since people seem to say it happens more when surfing or when people surf more often....

[NautiqueJeff]

[wakerider107]

I wakeboard almost exclusively. But do like to surf once or twice a year... Now I am super apprehensive about going surfing...Since people seem to say it happens more when surfing or when people surf more often....

It happens randomly under different driving conditions and at any number of hours. There is no rhyme or reason. It's happned on brand new boats with 2 hours, and with pros boats with over 700.
For instance, I was just out cruising for probably 3 hours - a combination of idling and cruising at 25mph with no ballast. When I went to pull into a dock and tapped it into reverse, the shaft broke.

It's a bummer, but not worth the anxiety of thinking it may happen. Just use the boat and enjoy the short summer!

[greggmck]

It happens randomly under different driving conditions and at any number of hours. There is no rhyme or reason. It's happned on brand new boats with 2 hours, and with pros boats with over 700.
For instance, I was just out cruising for probably 3 hours - a combination of idling and cruising at 25mph with no ballast. When I went to pull into a dock and tapped it into reverse, the shaft broke.

It's a bummer, but not worth the anxiety of thinking it may happen. Just use the boat and enjoy the short summer!

The circumstances occurring at the time of the failure are not what cause the shaft to fatigue. It is my understanding (after speaking with engineers working on this) that the primary cause is an asymetric load on the shaft that occurs after extensive surfing. The force focal point is the end of the keyway closest to the strut and this is where the failure occurs. Are you saying there are cases where the shaft has failed but the boat was NOT used to surf? This would be very different than all of the reported cases thus far.

[charlesml3]

Are you saying there are cases where the shaft has failed but the boat was NOT used to surf? This would be very different than all of the reported cases thus far.

Yes, absolutely. One of my friends is a Wakeboard instructor. It's a G21 and never used for surfing and has had 2 shaft failures.

-Charles

[wakerider107]

The circumstances occurring at the time of the failure are not what cause the shaft to fatigue. It is my understanding (after speaking with engineers working on this) that the primary cause is an asymetric load on the shaft that occurs after extensive surfing. The force focal point is the end of the keyway closest to the strut and this is where the failure occurs. Are you saying there are cases where the shaft has failed but the boat was NOT used to surf? This would be very different than all of the reported cases thus far.

I was referring to the time of failure. I understand that fatigue that leads to failure could begin long before the shaft breaks. Whats interesting is there are boats that have very few hours on them that were not used for surfing that had shaft failures, then there are boats that are heavily weighted 100% of the time that last hundreds of hours before failure.
Even if surfing is the likely culprit due to the load on the shaft/prop, I would be hesitant to say that a boat is at risk specifically because it was used for surfing a few times.

Remember that those of us who use the forums represent an extremely small portion of boat owners and we tend to be the more die hard watersport enthusiasts that use these boats for what they were designed to do.

[greggmck]

I was referring to the time of failure. I understand that fatigue that leads to failure could begin long before the shaft breaks. Whats interesting is there are boats that have very few hours on them that were not used for surfing that had shaft failures, then there are boats that are heavily weighted 100% of the time that last hundreds of hours before failure.
Even if surfing is the likely culprit due to the load on the shaft/prop, I would be hesitant to say that a boat is at risk specifically because it was used for surfing a few times.

Remember that those of us who use the forums represent an extremely small portion of boat owners and we tend to be the more die hard watersport enthusiasts that use these boats for what they were designed to do.

Completely agree. I was just curious that some were implying there have been failures occurring with only a few hours of casual use. That would be very different than what the engineers have shared.

And to be clear I am referring to the shaft failures that have occurred on 2018 boats with the long cut keyway. I understand there have been failures on earlier boats but I have not invistigated the reasons they failed.

[RDT-G23]

Yes, absolutely. One of my friends is a Wakeboard instructor. It's a G21 and never used for surfing and has had 2 shaft failures.

-Charles

Shoot, if mine failed twice-there would be a prop flying "like a throwing star" through the dealer's front window (like the old lady in the Discount Tire ad throwing the tire through the window)...

[funkster]

I’m not a G owner, I definitely feel for you all! I had a shaft shear on my old 87’ 2001 about 15 years ago. Nautique is known for their quality. This problem should have been fixed along time ago. Out of curiosity, do we have an official count of how many G owners are on the forum and how many have had their shafts shear?



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[SoCal G-Man]

My G23 shaft broke in early June. Put a hole in the bottom of my boat, and had to pay to get a tow in. Waranty covered it, but our group spent thousands on a vacation that was dead on the first day. Then again, I have a Lemon G23 with too many issues to list here. I am actually typing this from the Nautique dealership in Lake Havasu (our family week vacation) after being towed in (yet again) due to an engine failure. If you are a G23 owner under warranty and you have any vibration, have your dealer swap the shaft ASAP. Avoid the getcoat damage!

[Evening Shade]

My G23 shaft broke in early June. Put a hole in the bottom of my boat, and had to pay to get a tow in. Waranty covered it, but our group spent thousands on a vacation that was dead on the first day. Then again, I have a Lemon G23 with too many issues to list here. I am actually typing this from the Nautique dealership in Lake Havasu (our family week vacation) after being towed in (yet again) due to an engine failure. If you are a G23 owner under warranty and you have any vibration, have your dealer swap the shaft ASAP. Avoid the getcoat damage!

I really feel for you guys that have had prop shaft failures.

I was wondering if anyone had any damage to the hull when the shaft breaks

[scottb7]

I guess it wouldn't be end of the world to write the check...but i just wonder when they gonna quit covering the shaft and propeller replacements? It often crosses my mind having a 2014....