Buying a Used PWC      Ted Rankine: Between the early and mid '90s, personal water craft represented one out of every four new boats sold in North America, and as a result there is plenty of used personal water craft on the market. So to learn how to buy one, we have come to CAL-JET performance in Toronto to catch up with Mike Kollar.      Mike how has the technology changed over the past few years?           Mike Kollar: The exciting portion of technological change has really been in the engine compartment.

 What we have done going from the older models that had carbureted two cycle engines in them, to fuel injected two-cycle engines. And the most exciting thing is got to be the advent of the four-cycle technology, which has shown up in personal watercraft in the last couple of years.
     So Ted, let's start by checking over the condition of the hull. What we are looking for are signs of any damage or abuse. Most of the abuse is typically going to be on the bottom of the boat. While we are underneath there, we are also going to take a look at the ride plate and the intake grate.
     So let's take look topside. What we are going to take a quick look at is the controls, the gauges, some of the instruments. Make sure everything is complete and there.

      Ted Rankine: What about as we move back toward the pump? Well let's spend a minute looking at the exterior. We will also use a flashlight, and we will look at the interior of it, looking at the impeller, and we are also going to look at the pump veins. We need to look for any signs of damage from debris or rocks but really to tell if this is a good purchase, I highly recommend that we have it checked over by a certified technician, and here's why.
      This piston is a good example of some of that hidden damage that we cannot see with just doing a visual inspection. This is where we really need a technician with some specialty tools that can determine whether or not you might be looking at a costly rebuild. The impellor is another item that is going to be hard to detect any damage. This one is clearly damaged by a lot of pebbles or sticks that have gone through there.
      This could be a costly repair and really the average guy will not be able to detect this. So whether your choice is by carbureted, fuel injected or four-stroke, first choose a watercraft that suits your budget. Then get some help from a trained technician. That way you will not only be guaranteed to get good value for your money, you will also be guaranteed to get some good clean fun on the water as well.
      * taken from a transcript of our Footitis Used Boat Profiles on PowerBoat TV 2004 Episode 13- Order A Copy of the Show