power steering YAMAHA VX CRUISER 2020 Owners Manual

Safety information
11
EJU44481
Cruising limitations
Scan constantly for people, objects, and
other watercraft. Be alert for conditions
that limit your visibility or block your vision
of others.
Operate defensively at safe speeds and
keep a safe distance away from people,
objects, and other watercraft.
Do not follow directly behind watercraft or
other boats.
Do not go near others to spray or splash
them with water, go too close to other
boats, or go too fast for the traffic condi-
tions.
VX-C: Take early action to avoid collisions.
Remember, watercraft and other boats do
not have brakes.
VX-C: Avoid sharp turns or other maneu-
vers that make it hard for others to avoid
you or understand where you are going.
VX / VX Deluxe / VX Cruiser / VX Limited:
Take early action to avoid collisions. Re-
member, watercraft and other boats do not
have brakes. In addition, the Reverse with
Intuitive Deceleration Electronics (RiDE)
system is not a braking device for avoiding
dangerous situations. The RiDE system is
an electronic system for controlling the en-
gine speed and reverse gate, which is lo-
cated near the jet thrust nozzle. The RiDE
lever located at the left handlebar grip canbe used to change the direction of the jet
thrust so that the watercraft moves in re-
verse or is in neutral. The RiDE system as-
sists the operator when slowing down and
during slow-speed maneuvering, such as
launching, beaching, and docking.
VX / VX Deluxe / VX Cruiser / VX Limited:
Avoid sharp turns, slowing down rapidly by
squeezing the RiDE lever forcefully, and
other maneuvers that make it hard for oth-
ers to avoid you or understand where you
are going.
Avoid areas with submerged objects or
shallow water.
Do not release the throttle lever when trying
to steer away from objects—as with other
powerboats, you need throttle to steer. Al-
ways check throttle and steering controls
before starting the watercraft.
Ride within your limits and avoid aggres-
sive maneuvers to reduce the risk of loss of
control, ejection, and collision.
This is a high performance boat—not a toy.
Avoid aggressive operation, sharp turns,
and unexpected acceleration that can cau-
se you to be thrown off. Do not jump waves
or wakes—jumping can cause injuries such
as back or spinal injuries (paralysis), facial
injuries, and broken legs, ankles, and other
bones. Improper operation can result in se-
vere injury or death.
Do not operate the watercraft in rough wa-
ter, bad weather, or when visibility is poor;
this may lead to an accident causing injury
or death. Be alert to the possibility of ad-
verse weather. Take note of weather fore-
casts and the prevailing weather
conditions before setting out on your wa-
tercraft.
As with any water sport, you should not op-
erate your watercraft without someone else
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Safety information
18
er’s or water-skier’s ability, as well as water
and weather conditions.
When preparing to pull a wakeboarder or
water-skier, operate the watercraft at the
slowest possible speed until the watercraft
is well away from the person being pulled
and slack in the ski rope is taken up. Make
sure that the rope is not looped around
anything.
After checking that the wakeboarder or wa-
ter-skier is ready and that there is no traffic
or other obstacles, apply enough throttle to
raise the person.
Make smooth, wide turns. The watercraft is
capable of very sharp turns, which could
exceed the abilities of the wakeboarder or
water-skier. Keep the person being towed
at least 50 m (164 ft), about twice the dis-
tance of a standard ski rope, away from
any potential hazard.
The operators of boats and other water-
craft may not be aware that you are pulling
a wakeboarder or water-skier. Together
with the spotter, pay attention to others
around you and cruise at safe speeds.
Be alert to the hazard of the ski rope handle
snapping back at the watercraft when the
wakeboarder or water-skier falls or is un-
able to get up.
Towing heavy or bulky objects other than
wakeboarders or water-skiers, such as an-
other boat or watercraft, can cause loss of
steering control and create a hazardous
condition. If you must tow another boat in
an emergency situation, operate slowly
and cautiously.
EJU30971
Safe boating rules
Your Yamaha watercraft is legally considered
a powerboat. Operation of the watercraft
must be in accordance with the rules and
regulations governing the waterway on which
it is used.
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Pre-operation checks
62
ed properly. WARNING! Fire or explosion
could result if the breather hose is dam-
aged, obstructed, or not connected prop-
erly.
[EWJ00452]
Make sure that the electrolyte level is be-
tween the minimum and maximum level
marks. WARNING! Never operate the wa-
tercraft if the battery does not have suffi-
cient power to start the engine or if it
shows any other signs of decreased pow-
er. Loss of battery power may leave you
stranded.
[EWJ01241]
Make sure that the battery is securely held in
place.
EJU32614Steering system checks
Turn the handlebars to the right and left sev-
eral times to make sure that operation is
smooth and unrestricted throughout the
whole range, and that the free play is not ex-
cessive.
Turn the handlebars as far as possible to the
right and left to make sure that the jet thrust
nozzle moves as the handlebars are turned,
and that there is no difference between the
1Negative (–) battery terminal: Black lead
2Positive (+) battery terminal: Red lead
3Breather hose
1Maximum level mark
2Minimum level mark
1
32
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Operation
73
handlebars are turned when the water-
craft is cruising at planing speed, the wa-
tercraft will turn gradually while slowing
down.
This model is equipped with the Yamaha En-
gine Management System (YEMS) that in-
cludes an off-throttle steering (OTS) system.
It will activate at planing speeds should you
attempt to steer the watercraft after releasing
the throttle lever (see condition C above).
The OTS system assists in turning by con-
tinuing to supply some thrust while the water-
craft is decelerating, but you can turn more
sharply if you apply throttle while turning the
handlebars. The OTS system does not func-
tion below planing speeds or when the en-
gine is off. Once the engine slows down, the
watercraft will no longer turn in response to
handlebar input until you apply throttle again
or you reach trolling speed.
EJU45001Stopping the watercraft
The watercraft is not equipped with a sepa-
rate braking system. The watercraft slows
down by water resistance or, when operating
in reverse, by the water jet. The watercraft
slows down as soon as the throttle lever is re-
leased, but will coast for a distance before
fully stopping. If you are not sure you can
stop in time before hitting an obstacle, apply
throttle and turn in another direction.From full speed, the watercraft comes to a
complete stop due to water resistance in ap-
proximately 100 m (330 ft) after the throttle le-
ver is released or the engine is stopped,
although this distance will vary depending on
many factors, including gross weight, water
surface conditions, and wind direction.
VX / VX Deluxe / VX Cruiser / VX Limited: If
the RiDE lever is squeezed to slow down, the
stopping distance is approximately 30%
shorter than when the RiDE lever is not used.
However, this distance will vary depending
on many factors, including gross weight, wa-
ter surface conditions, and wind direction.
WARNING
EWJ01793
Allow adequate stopping distance. Stay
far enough away from others so you can
always safely coast to a stop.
Take early action to avoid collisions. Re-
member, watercraft and other boats do
not have brakes.
Operate defensively at safe speeds and
keep a safe distance away from people,
objects, and other watercraft to give you
time to stop.
Do not shut the engine off when slowing
down in case you need engine power to
steer away from a boat or other obstacle
that comes into your path.
1Reverse gate
E
1
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