Sea-Doo VS Supercharged and Explorer experiences

Hi!

I'm considering buying a budget scooter in the near future, just to shorten some common surface swims in the Monterey, CA area. I've tried to read as many of the reviews and comments here as possible, but I've yet to find anybody here who has actually shared much experience with either of these scooters. I've heard both good and bad things...

I'm looking for any experiences with these scooters from people who have actually used them, ideally in conditions similar to mine (cold water, shore dives, etc.). Just to head off some distractions, yes - I would much rather own an X-Scooter, but I'm not looking to make an investment right now. I'm interested in an entry level scooter in the sub-$1000 price range.

Thanks!
Brian

My wife and I own the seadoo supercharged vs for a little over a year. WE LOVE THEM. They are alot of fun and the cost was very reasonable.

I shore dive the freezing waters of Cape Cod and alternate between a few scooters.
This is the deal with the Sea Doos:

I use the Sea-Doo Seascooter VS Supercharged (or GTI which is similar tho 1 speed) when weight is a real concern. At 18lbs it's very easy to carry when loaded down with gear. Much of my diving requires pretty grueling hikes to the water, so the weight factor is important. It's not as powerful as the heavier scooters but it does the OK. As far as changing out the battery-it's a little bit of a pain-but after doing it a few times it's no big deal. One thing tho, because of the way the battery is sealed into the battery compartment, it takes some care to seal this properly to ensure water doesn't get into this area-many of these units fail prematurely because people just throw them together, not applying silicone grease etc.

The Sea-Doo Seascooter Explorer is a completely different animal than the VS. It is built with much heavier duty material (and as a result is heavier) has significanly more power, has 3 speeds instead of 2, has a battery life indicator, has quieter operation and the battery is very, very simple to change out. Weight however is twice of the VS at 32# and the Explorer is a few hundred bucks more expensive and a spare battery is around $200 vs $70ish for the VS battery.

In the water I'd take the Explorer over the VS anytime but out of the water the VS is much more portable (and affordable)

Thanks for the feedback. This was most helpful!

rapidiver - do you think that the explorer is beefy enough to tow a second diver if necessary? Most of our shore diving is pretty accessible, so I'm less concerned about the weight factor.

absolutely

Hepcat62:

Hi!

I'm considering buying a budget scooter in the near future, just to shorten some common surface swims in the Monterey, CA area. I've tried to read as many of the reviews and comments here as possible, but I've yet to find anybody here who has actually shared much experience with either of these scooters. I've heard both good and bad things...

I'm looking for any experiences with these scooters from people who have actually used them, ideally in conditions similar to mine (cold water, shore dives, etc.). Just to head off some distractions, yes - I would much rather own an X-Scooter, but I'm not looking to make an investment right now. I'm interested in an entry level scooter in the sub-$1000 price range.

Thanks!
Brian

Click to expand...

Pardon the commercial plug, but this deal may warrant it.

This may be a touch beyond your budget, but if you want to move up considerably from the Sea Doo scooters, we have another two TUSA SAV-7 EVO scooters for sale for $1350.00 plus freight. These two scooters have been used a single time for about 20 minutes in a fresh water quarry. These are pretty nice scooters and if I didn't tell you they had been wet, you would never know it. You can use this link to take a look at the features and the normal price on these scooters.

TUSA SAV-7 Evolution Scooter

We sold two of these same units earlier this month and both buyers seemed to love the great deal. To order one of these units, you will need to phone us at (800) 601-3483. Only $1350.00 each plus shipping.

Phil Ellis
www.divesports.com

Not to step on Phil (with whom I've done business in the past and is on my short list of "damn, he's awesome" dive gear suppliers that I love)...but one other option is to find a nice used Mako or Tekna DPV. The used ones show up in the sub-$1k range quite frequently by those looking to upgrade to a more modern technical class of scooter.

The advantage of going that route is that the resale value on the Mako/Tekna will be pretty constant when you're looking up upgrade to an X/SS/Gavin/Salvo/similar. If you take care of it and buy the right one, you'll get out of it what you put into it when you turn it around. The Tekna / Mako units basically have the same prop/drive assembly as the "better units" and many of the big guys started out by modifying their tail sections with rewound motors and better trigger mechanisms. They're more than capable of light to moderate tech dives, towing two effectively, not too heavy, etc, and you'll have a LOT of fun with one of them.

In order to stay on topic here we may need to read the original post

Since the original poster named the thread: "Sea-Doo VS Supercharged and Explorer experiences" then went on to state he really only wanted to here from folks who had experiences with either the VS Supercharged or Sea Doo Explorer, it's probably a good idea to stay on topic by hearing from other users who have actually used these products

Maybe a new thread titled "Tusa DPV Experiences" or "Gavin DPV Experiences" or even just "your DPV experience" could be started for folks who own those scooters to share their experiences

Thanks for the additional feedback and thread-defense, rapidiver.

I do appreciate the other suggestions - certainly if somebody was selling an X Sierra in good condition for $700, I'd be very interested. Right now though, I think that the Explorer is at roughly the right price for the type of usage I expect to get out of it. The choice for me now is between a pair of VS Supercharged units or a single Explorer.

I had/have two of the Explorers. They both flooded - and more than once. One I managed to return to the vendor; the other sits high and dry in my office since it got really old really fast Fedex'ing them across the country to get serviced.
I've only been around scooters, submersibles, and submarines since 1981, so maybe I don't have all the answers.
If you buy one, you will intimately come to know the SeaDoo repair facility there in LA. They literally share a common alleyway with Scuba.com, but I don't what the connection is.
They are nice looking units, but there is some kind of fatal flaw in the rear seal that floods 'em.