Questions on Warranty Coverage

[Deuce]

I recently had some issues arise with my ’03 SAN. I have done all scheduled maintenance and the impeller was changed in June. After 2 perfect days on the lake, pulled the boat to gas up and after putting it back in, boat starts to overheat. Pull the boat again, take it to the marina and they change the impeller, which is shot by their report(they show me the shredded impeller). Take it back to the lake and boat is still overheating. Back to marina shop and the thermostat is changed, still overheating. Decide that I better let my dealer take over and get things right. Drop it off to the dealer and am informed that there are numerous issues, water pump, impeller is shot again; think there were some other things. In the end, I ask what does this mean to me and am informed about $800+. They report everything is due to the impeller going and thus not covered under warranty.

Now I am not a mechanic but it seems that there has to be a possibility that something else could have been the cause of this? Could the water pump go, thus causing the impeller to go? Something else that could have failed? Note, the intake was clear as was the water filter. I don’t mind paying a hundred here or a few hundred there when service is needed, but the 5 year bow to stern warranty was a pretty good selling point to save me from $800+ issues like this.

Thoughts?

I want to say that I have a good relationship with my dealer(this is my second boat with them) and have e-mailed the owner and he is going to look into what can/will be covered under warranty. I just want to have an informed opinion. This is NOT a dealer bashing, dealer not taking care of me thread. Just want to know if there is something that someone “could” be missing. Or if this is a “yea” the impeller can go and before leaving the marina, you can be $800+ in the hole due to this…..

Anyway…..

[surroundsound64]

Just my view of it, for what it's worth... I'd thing a "bow to stern" warranty would cover everything from the bow to the stern, IF all the schedualed mantinence had been performed. You obviously couldn't blame anyone if you ruined a motor due to never changing the oil because it was under warranty.

But as long as the schedualed mantinence has been performed, which in your case you say it has, I'd thing "bow to stern" would mean bow to stern, not "bow to water intake, water pump to stern". hehe.

Just my $.2.

[NautiqueJeff]

But as long as the schedualed mantinence has been performed, which in your case you say it has, I'd think "bow to stern" would mean bow to stern, not "bow to water intake, water pump to stern". hehe.

The warranty specifically does not include impellers and damage caused by defective impellers though, so this might be a tough call. It will be interesting to see how this is handled. I hope everything works out for the best.

[Deuce]

Yea, I understand that the impeller is a maintenance item and would not be covered. It seems doubtful that it was defective due to working fine for 3.5 months or whatever. Bigger question is if the waterpump going out or something else happening that "could" cause the impeller to go. Is there an arguement to be made there?

I am hoping this this works out for the best Jeff.... Again, I have what I consider a good relationship with my dealer and have no reason to think that I will not be taken care if it he can. He has been good to me, obviously I have been a repeat customer. But with that said, I want to be informed. It is a business relationship and business is business, so better to be informed I guess.

[G-man]

No manufacture covers overheat. I have to ask do you "bump" your engine to check the battery before putting boat down boat ramp? I have seen people run for 30 seconds claiming to check the battery and wonder why they overheated. I have also seen several times boats put in the water and the water intake having air in it and water not moving into the pump until the boat is run just faster than idle speed . refered to as air lock.

[Deuce]

No bumping.....or anything of that nature. I have always been under the impression that boats run better IN the water.

My boat has NEVER been started or run out of the water, except for when a "fake a lake" has been attached for service related business.

[Deuce]

George, I have to ask "No manufacture covers overheat." So there is nothing that could happen to cause your boat to overheat that is would be covered under warranty? That is a pretty broad statement. If I remember correctly, I was reading on this forum recently about an individual who was having overheating issues on his new 211 that was getting the twice over under warranty.....

[nms1991]

Do you have the excalibur engine in your boat? If it does have your dealer check the production date on the impellar pump to see if it was in the early production of that years engine.

[G-man]

the only time I have seen overheat covered is when the manufature of the impeller has a manufacturing defect where the rubber of the impeller separates from the collar that goes over the spline of the impeller pump. Around 2000 model year the MC impellers had this problem. I will rephrase my statement to say rarely is overheat covered by warranty. I work in the marine industrty, not with any inboards so I feel comfortable making that statement.

[Laptom]

Deuce, check what nms1991 said!

[Deuce]

Yes it does have the Excalibur engine. I will have the dealer check the production date. Why am I asking him this, was their a recall that I was not aware of? Something else?

Again, I am not saying that the dealer is trying to get out of anything or shirking responsibility, this may just be a difficult to swallow reality. I just want to collect all the information I can and be an informed consumer. I think there is always the possibility that someone looks at the problem, says it must be this and that is as far as it goes. Being that there are other parts involved(water pump, thermostat and ect.), I want to be assured that something else was not a contributing factor.

It also strikes me as odd that the impeller was replaced at the marina shop and then the same problem happens when we take it back to the water???? Couldn't this indicate that there is something causing the impeller to go? Also remember that we are talking about wakeless speed, just sitting in the marina and watching the boat heat up, not out wakeboarding or flying down the lake. Though I don't claim to be a mechanic or know anything about this stuff, so maybe this is not uncommon.

[skinautique]

yes there was a recall on the pumps. If your pump falls in the bad date code, they will replace the pump for free and the labor to replace that but you will be responsible for the cost of the impeller.

[Deuce]

Thank you, I appreciate any and all information that may have some relevance to this unfortunate situation. I have now asked if they could look into the production date of the impeller pump.

[Mikeski]

I had a similar situation that was caused by a bad strainer seal. The bad seal would allow just enough air at an idle to run the impeller dry but not enough to overheat the motor until the impeller had tossed it's blades into the thermostat. I went through 3 impellers one weekend until I jerked the strainer and tossed it in the trash. Had I been less mechanically inclined I am sure I would have went down the same path you did.

Listen to the sound of your motor, if it ever gets loud it's probably running dry, this the early warning indicator that you are just about to have major issues.