15F Recall Due to ruptured fuel tank

[308walky]

Bought my Brand spanking new STX -15f, had it for a week , and only put 5 hours of power through it. Opened the front hatch and nearly got knocked out by the strong smell of fuel.Rang and returned the ski back to the dealer & 4 weeks later I am still waiting for repairs.
Where the fuel filler meets the tank it had split. In the mean time I have received a letter from KAWASAKI telling me of the problem & recall.
I had Rung Kawasaki Australia but no-one will talk to me, And the dealer is very frustrated as all Kawasaki Austalia will do is " Send the tank when they sort the problem out in the states".
The fix is to replace the tank, the only problem is that the Tech release states a full engine out to remove the tank.
Spoke to my dealer yesterday morning & he now has the tank but is argueing with KAWASAKI because they wont pay full price for the repairs.
All I want is to ride my ski before winter .
Has anyone else had this issue????
P.S- Should have bought the Ultra 250

[coldspace]

Bought my Brand spanking new STX -15f, had it for a week , and only put 5 hours of power through it. Opened the front hatch and nearly got knocked out by the strong smell of fuel.Rang and returned the ski back to the dealer & 4 weeks later I am still waiting for repairs.
Where the fuel filler meets the tank it had split. In the mean time I have received a letter from KAWASAKI telling me of the problem & recall.
I had Rung Kawasaki Australia but no-one will talk to me, And the dealer is very frustrated as all Kawasaki Austalia will do is " Send the tank when they sort the problem out in the states".
The fix is to replace the tank, the only problem is that the Tech release states a full engine out to remove the tank.
Spoke to my dealer yesterday morning & he now has the tank but is argueing with KAWASAKI because they wont pay full price for the repairs.
All I want is to ride my ski before winter .
Has anyone else had this issue????
P.S- Should have bought the Ultra 250

Sounds like typical Kawasaki responses.
I had the same problem you had when I bought my 09 15F in Feb.
Tank split near filler neck and filled up the hull with fuel.I had two young children on the back and it has really pissed me off that I put their lives at risk. My ski was 8 hrs old and i had it for 1 week.
When did you buy your ski?
This mob of liers in Kawasaki head office in Sydney treated me like a fool when I spoke with them.
I wrote a formal leter of complaint to my dealer about what was going on.
Its like they were putting profits before saftey and so was my dealer who sold me the ski.
Some dealers like the Kawasaki Brisbane people apparantly knew about these issues and took the ski off the market till Kawasaki would sort it out.
But other dealers and there are many in Australia because I phoned most of them kept on selling these dangerous ski's because Kawasaki Australia were too slow at recalling them.
Skips, told me in another thread in the Kawasaki performance section,
http://greenhulk.net/showthread.php?t=87757 that in the US they recalled these ski's many month's ago.
I was very pissed at my dealer and eventually got put through to someone who is head of the warranty section in Kawasaki in Sydney after a few arguments and made the fool of by another bloke down there who kept yelling and arguing with me that it was a minor problem even though I had put my children at risk. I frend of mine who is in the VMR was shocked to here that a serious saftey issue with fuel in a confined engine hull was not been addresed ASAP and he has seen a few boat fires on Morton bay and I tell you what it is not a nice outcome. This bloke in Sydney is lucky I live 1000K's away.
Funny that 4 weeks later they sent me out a recall noticed.
He basically told me that the ski's would be fixed under warranty and the motor needs to come out.
The older 07 and 08 ski's have alot better quality and a tried and tested fuel tank than these 09 models that Kawasaki put in cheapies.
The 09 filler tube that runs from cap to the tank is also solid rubber, but on the earlier good tanks it has a flexible tube that would help with the stresses.
I waited 3 weeks through Febuary and got no F--king answers out of this mob so I sourced an 07 tank and my dealer put it in under warranty.
I feel better that I put in a tried and tested tank as I did not want to trust Kawasaki in the new tanks they were getting in as I could not get 100% assurance from them that they were going to be as good as the earlier ones so I did not want to risk it with my kids on the back.
My ski is fixed now and I have an earlier tank in it now so I feel better, but it was disgusting that these people still allowed these ski's to be sold while all along they knew they had a major saftey issue.
The Mechanic at my dealership told me that I did the right thing by putting in the 07 tank as the new replacement ones look the same as the cracking ones and who knows if they are going to be much better in the long run than the cracking ones, he told me that they had a different part number so should be a different tank, if I was you request in writing that they are different than the faulty ones as you don't want to put yourself at risk again. If not try and get your money back but might be hard as my dealer wuld not do that for me.

I think your dealer is arguing with them about payment as it takes a day for a good mechanic to pull the motor out ,change tank , put back in without rushing and making sure everything is right and your hull not getting damaged.
The Mechanic who did my ski told me they were pissed with Kawasaki Australia because the dealers were only getting offered about 4 hrs pay to do the warranty changeover. Another f--k up on Kawasaki's behalf and shows that they don't care about their customers in Australia and put profit first even on warranty fixes that they caused if thet refuse to pay for your dealer to put the new tank in, I told my dealer he should tell them to f--k off and stock other brands because they don't give a rats arse about anyone really.

The real culprit is someone in Kawasaki Australia and who ever made this call in Head office to allowed this shit to happen.

I would if I was you ring them up and abuse them for this and to sort it out with your dealer ASAP an ask the question why in the US they recalled these but not here straight away and don't let them tell you anymore lies, on these grounds request a refund.

If I could have been bothered I would have approached the media about this dangerous circus they were operating and probally putting profit before saftey.

It turned me and my many,many ski friends off the brand not because of the issue but because of all the lies I was told by them.Its funny that they told me in head office a few weeks ago on the phone after a blasted them that they had not received any directive from the overseas plant regarding what to do about these ski's and that untill they did they were still allowing their dealers to sell these ski's but according to skip that in the US they have known about the problem for many months and issued a recall many months ago and it was well known and they have been putting new fuel tanks in their ski's over there probally before you and I parted with our cash on our ski's down here. Another example of profit before saftey from them and more lies to us customers. I have to ask why did they not do that here, it has to be because they wanted to keep selling these ski's and could not give a dam about people.

I will be getting a Yamaha later this year. Shame really because it was a fun ski to ride but I don't trust the company or my dealer anymore.
PS. Don't get an Ultra , look at the new FZR'S, thats the ski I will get next summer ultra fun like 15F but alot faster.

Good luck with it and tell them to get cracking.

[TDSRacing]

Sounds like the issue I posted on my 12F.

[308walky]

Spoke to the dealer Today, He was very upset that I had spoken to Kawasaki head office, He said I have no right to ring them as it is his issue to get it fixed, and said he would get my ski done when he has time.But he is far too busy as everyone wants there ski before Easter( mind you, his repairs are on all brands of ski's, You think being a Kawasaki dealer he would look after his own product).
Its a real shame because we have had great weather in Sydney since my ski has been off the water, now it seems to be getting colder & miserable.
He also told me not to beleive anything on these type of forums as they just spread rumour & gossip, not Facts.
He doesnt beleive that these skis where recalled months ago in the states.
Just gives you no faith that these companies who are "struggling in the current economic times" treat there customers so poorly
Anyway hope I get it back next week.

[coldspace]

Spoke to the dealer Today, He was very upset that I had spoken to Kawasaki head office, He said I have no right to ring them as it is his issue to get it fixed, and said he would get my ski done when he has time.But he is far too busy as everyone wants there ski before Easter( mind you, his repairs are on all brands of ski's, You think being a Kawasaki dealer he would look after his own product).
Its a real shame because we have had great weather in Sydney since my ski has been off the water, now it seems to be getting colder & miserable.
He also told me not to beleive anything on these type of forums as they just spread rumour & gossip, not Facts.
He doesnt beleive that these skis where recalled months ago in the states.
Just gives you no faith that these companies who are "struggling in the current economic times" treat there customers so poorly
Anyway hope I get it back next week.

Of course he going to say these forums start rumors the truth hurts and he is angry because you have found out some facts of what is going on with your ski that he kept from you.

If he had helped you out from the start you would not have had the need to contact head office, my dealer would not return my phone calls so I went and rang head office and blasted them after I also found out all the lies I was told once my ski f--ked up.

He doesn't beleive that these ski's were recalled many months ago in the us as he probally does not know. Kawasaki head office only recalled these ski's 2 weeks ago and still allowed these dealers to sell what stock they had in their show rooms. My dealer told me that he had no choice but to keep selling his stock, so head office are probally to blame here for allowing this to happen if it is true that they stopped selling the faulty fuel tank ski's in the US many months ago.

I think I would trust Skip in his comments about the US recall than these local people, he has no gain in giving false info on this issue.


I know things fail and need to be fixed, this was not the main issue, it was all the lies I was told from the start that pissed me off the most.
They need to here it from the horses mouth so to speak, maybe next time something really f--ks up again they might treat it better instead of selling the ski, putting people's lives at risk then trying to clean up the mess and get these ski's fixed.

The fact is these forums are where the average joe can get alot of info and why would we want to spend time posting silly things if it did not happen to us, I can think of better things to do with my time like riding my 15f when it finally got back on the water, these forums help peopkle communicate with each other about issues both good and bad.
Some of these dealers need to wake up to them selves and show their customers a bit more respect.
We are all spending very big money with them on buying and maintaining these things and keeping these blokes in buisiness.

It amazes me how some of these dealers operate and treat their customers with no respect,its has not just happened to me but lots of other people I have since found out, I run a succesful buisiness and if any of my staff including myself carried on to our customers like some of these jet ski dealers here I would kickem up the a--se.

I think some of these dealers have had it abit too easy over the last good years but now the economy is going bad they might need to wake up to themselves and treat people like people and this in turn will keep them in buisiness.
Some of these dealers think that we are stupid and will tell you lies,my dealer did this to me and I did some research and found he was lying all the time to me, I have o respect for these people, but when I spoke with the people at the Bisbane dealership they told me the truth and had stopped selling bthese ski's before they were recalled because of the issue at hand.

I respect dealerships like this for been honest and they will get my money now.
The bottom line is that there are dealers and there are dealers, you just have to work out who is good and bad then close your wallet to the bad ones and tell all your friends. If he has had your new ski for weeks and the tanks are in stock now he needs to show you urgent priority and to get your tank in now, no if's or buts. This should have been done a couple of weeks ago by now and he is dragging the chain on you because he is probally making more money at the moment on other ski's, and could not give a dam about you. When you get it back change dealers and make it known to his competitors about his treatment of you.

Its a pitty that he has put you on the end of the list and is doingbthe other ski's first.
My dealer hated me for ringing head office, but f--k him as he was not really helping me out,and gave me no info in whats was happening.
Get your ski sorted and back on the water.
I would hope he does the right thing for you now and gets you back on the water by easter now that you have raised some facts with him if not then when you get your ski back I would look for another dealer to try.

Its amazing how some of these people treat you as if your the problem when they caused it.

I know I will never take my ski back to my dealer and will use the other one we have around here as I heard through a friend that they are good.
Alot of dealers are feeling the pinch at the moment in jet ski and boat sales with the economy the way it is so some of the bad ones might go broke as what is starting to happen up here in QLD.

Some of these dealers fear these type of forums not only in the jet ski industry but in other industries as well,
it keeps the bastards honest. Enough raving now.

Good luck.

[Skips313]

Ill get the K-Tech release. Its given to all dealers. The dealer is also lying about selling the units, sure Kawi says the dealers can sell them but to not release them to the customer until the tank is replaced.

Kawasaki will not force dealers to unpack a crate for recalls. They simply wait until the unit is sold or the dealer wants to unpack the crate.

Also the amount for which the dealer is payed is BS. Kawasaki has rebates, service bonuses, and kick backs that always covers the dealer. Sure the pay may not be so great on a recall but neither is the warranty pay either.

For example. I was quoted a motor for my Ultra. Dealer says it would cost me $7500 installed. It ended up being covered under warranty after Kawi was contacted. Dealer showed me what Kawi payed them for the Job, $4100. My dealer told me they much rather have done the job through me then Kawi. NO SHIT.

Look I see you two are upset. I think I would too but I must say Kawasaki themselves do their best to keep customers happy. They cant always keep dealers from doing stupid stuff. So if your seeing this correctly then you'll find it doesn't matter what brand you buy from that dealer, your going to have issues with that dealer.

As for the dealer telling you it wasn't your business. Tell him to go fuck himself and give back your money. You bought a new ski and you want a new ski now. If he cant deliver a "safe" new ski then give back your money and you'll buy a new one else where. Your dealer is a wanker, call Kawi back and tell them your pissed at the dealer for being such a wanker over the deal and your going to the Yamaha dealer down the street to buy one of those.

You'll find that the Forums can be harsh but the real info always comes out in the end.
Kawi as other manufacture hate the Forums as its the newest and most effective way for consumers to communicate back and forth. In the past we only had their version of serveys to look at. Now we have real people and real information swapping and it puts the dealers BS to the test.
Youll find in forums guys like myself that are tapped into a vein and are bleeding off the information to. Sure mine tap is at the foot and often the info reaching the foot can be a bit old but its always the truth. I hear alot of crap I dont post but if the crap comes with a bulliten or K-Tech then I post it.

This crap did but I didnt post it because I look for Ultra stuff mostly.

[coldspace]

Ill get the K-Tech release. Its given to all dealers. The dealer is also lying about selling the units, sure Kawi says the dealers can sell them but to not release them to the customer until the tank is replaced.

Kawasaki will not force dealers to unpack a crate for recalls. They simply wait until the unit is sold or the dealer wants to unpack the crate.

Also the amount for which the dealer is payed is BS. Kawasaki has rebates, service bonuses, and kick backs that always covers the dealer. Sure the pay may not be so great on a recall but neither is the warranty pay either.

For example. I was quoted a motor for my Ultra. Dealer says it would cost me $7500 installed. It ended up being covered under warranty after Kawi was contacted. Dealer showed me what Kawi payed them for the Job, $4100. My dealer told me they much rather have done the job through me then Kawi. NO SHIT.

Look I see you two are upset. I think I would too but I must say Kawasaki themselves do their best to keep customers happy. They cant always keep dealers from doing stupid stuff. So if your seeing this correctly then you'll find it doesn't matter what brand you buy from that dealer, your going to have issues with that dealer.

As for the dealer telling you it wasn't your business. Tell him to go fuck himself and give back your money. You bought a new ski and you want a new ski now. If he cant deliver a "safe" new ski then give back your money and you'll buy a new one else where. Your dealer is a wanker, call Kawi back and tell them your pissed at the dealer for being such a wanker over the deal and your going to the Yamaha dealer down the street to buy one of those.

You'll find that the Forums can be harsh but the real info always comes out in the end.
Kawi as other manufacture hate the Forums as its the newest and most effective way for consumers to communicate back and forth. In the past we only had their version of serveys to look at. Now we have real people and real information swapping and it puts the dealers BS to the test.
Youll find in forums guys like myself that are tapped into a vein and are bleeding off the information to. Sure mine tap is at the foot and often the info reaching the foot can be a bit old but its always the truth. I hear alot of crap I dont post but if the crap comes with a bulliten or K-Tech then I post it.

This crap did but I didnt post it because I look for Ultra stuff mostly.

You are right Skip,
I have cooled down now after I had an excellent surf ride today.
This problem could have happened with any brand, my ski is fixed right now so I will hold onto it.
Pity about some of our dealers down here, just have to work that one out ourselves.
I don't know why some of these blokes in head office down here still allowed these ski's on the market when clearly the factory had recalled them earlier.
I hope someone in the parent company reads this to see what went on down here and kick some of these guys butts down here.
I blasted these blokes in head office and wrote a nice little letter to my dealer and 2 weeks later they recalled these ski's.

Thanks for you input.

[Skips313]

Here is the story as I know it.

Kawi went with another manufacture as their original one went up 30% in price. When your looking as mass production then that's alot. A new manufacture stepped up and promised the same tank with the same material and same specs for the original Kawi cost. Test batches were made and passed Kawi inspection.
Once the manufacture was given the green light to produce tanks for the 15F and SXR, somehow the tank specs fell short and the thickness of the tank was not to spec. Excusses could be made but what it looks like was the manufacture cutting 30% off the material used. Stupid trick to cut cost on the manufacture side.
Unfortunate for Kawi the problem raised its ugly head after the units had been packed and were shipping world wide.

So what does one do? Recall all units back to the essembly plant or put a recall out to all dealers making them replace the tanks as part of PDI when they sell one.? The choice was made in effert to allow Dealers to have inventory to sell as long as they promised to follow their Kawi Dealer agreement contract. Thus being, honor all Kawasaki manufacturing defects and recalls.

Your dealer just got lazy. They had the info first and they know it. You got a letter cause Kawi finally "after a few pissed off people called here in the US" felt it important to not only let the dealer know but the consumer too just in case the dealer, "yours" was being lazy and let units go without doing the factory issued recall.

[ThePerchik]

Hi, I just picked up an 08 15f myself. I saw it go from crate, to trailer and to my garage. What year 15f's had this recall?

[308walky]

Perchink, Not sure if yours needs to be recalled, probably best to ring your dealer & ask if its affected. Kawasaki actually repaired the ones that were in there factory stock before releasing them to the stores, so you might be lucky.
My 09 was the first failure from my dealer in Australia, he has has 5 more since i dropped mine off 6 weeks ago (which I am still waiting to get fixed, but that is another story!!!!!!!!!!!), and I am sure I saw an 08 model in there for the recall
Thanks

[STX-15FER]

Hi, I just picked up an 08 15f myself. I saw it go from crate, to trailer and to my garage. What year 15f's had this recall?

Perchik Check the filler neck and see it its molded to the tank or you have a filler tube clamped to the filler neck on the tank ... That should let you know if yours is in it ... After talking to a friend of mine who is a tech at the local kawi store, he said the ones shipped in the US have had the problem tanks replaced already. might check to see if your might have slipped thru the cracks so to speak.

[crashhard]

perchik you are good to go, ran the vin and no warranty issues shown, Thanks Joe

[madtown_chris]

would love to see pics of the difference prior to recall and afterwards for future problems/issues that may arise from members in the future...

[ThePerchik]

perchik you are good to go, ran the vin and no warranty issues shown, Thanks Joe

Thanks Joe.

Gotta give props to Joe from Bucks County Kawasaki in PA. Their service and speed was great!!!

[crashhard]

thanks cover is on its way