Help. Engine bay full of water..

[JohnZ3]

Took our new Z3 out for the maiden voyage today.

All was great. First time driving a V Drive.

I filled up the ballast tanks to get used to driving the boat heavy. I drained the tanks and drove back to the ramp.
At the ramp I could hear water splashing when the throttle was engaged. The sound would go away in neutral.

I peaked inside the access door on the floor to have a look. I was surprised to see my drive shaft submerged in water.
The sound I was hearing was the splashing water as it was spinning.

Question.. Does the ballast sacks drain into bilge? I didn't hear the splashing noise until I filled then emptied the ballast tanks.

Also, doesn't the bilge pumps have an auto switch. I had to manually turn the bilge on and it pumped water over board for 5+ minutes.

Any ideas?

[chpthril]

Maiden voyage as in you have never had the boat in the water? Was the dealer rep with you? Did your dealer sea trial the boat like they are supposed to before delivery? did they sea trial with you at the time of delivery? Was this boat coming out of winter storage? Its common for some shops to leave the boats in a non-usable state so you have to come back for a "Summerization" in the spring. On other words, they charge a fee to reconnect hoses and re-install the plugs removed during the winterization.

No, the ballast doesnt drain into the bilge. The ballast tanks/sacs have drain pumps that pump the water overboard.

Yes, the bilge is automatic.

Ideas, yes, take your new boat back to the dealer and ask them to do their job. Boat should have been sea trialed by them twice by now, checking all things. In any other case, I would have a list of things to look for, but on a brand new boat that you have just splashed, you should not have to mess with it.

[JohnZ3]

Thanks for the quick reply.

First time I've had the boat in the lake. It was a dealer demo boat from last year. It's a 2012 Z3. I was told it was good to go when I picked it up.

I am used to my cruiser boat. Lots of room in the engine bay to fix things easily.

Guess I'll take it back to the dealer in the morning and let them fix it.

[Hubier]

I had the same problem with my 2011 z2 last summer . It was a leaking hose that filled the hard tank.

[chpthril]

Theres a good chance that some water left in the ballast system froze and busted a hose or drain pump.

[JohnZ3]

Are the tanks in the nose hard tanks?

There shouldn't be any freeze damage. At least since the time I took possession. I stored it in a heated garage.

Either way, it needs to go to the dealer. The auto bilge pump needs to be in working order.

Boat growing pains. Still loved to get her out though. I've been driving a twin engine cruiser for 5 summers now.
It's nice to get on plane in 3 seconds and make tight turns. Great performance and a nice safe ride. The kids loved it.

[trent]

Johnz3,

I had a ton of issues on my Z3 last year that I am still getting resolved. In my case it was the shaft seal that was causing problems with the majority of water in the bilge. I bet the bilge pump issue is a fuse... Tige implemented a fix that adds a diode on the power panel to prevent the fuse from popping.I also had a similar issue with my blower as well.