Yamaha Waverunner 3 GP Review. Flat bottomed PWCs, they make the riding world spin around?

This early to mid 90s machine is quite a handful, but also can be tremendous fun.
They are one of the first to have oil injection, are incredibly simple and generally quite reliable, there isn't much to go wrong, but they have reverse and enough power to scoot you across the lake half sideways under a tidal wave of water, or at least that was what I kept doing.
Things you may want if you own a WR3:
➡Storage cover: amzn.to/3AiG7Mc
➡Traction Mats: amzn.to/3Lll2ah
➡Seat cover: amzn.to/3oCcdjg or amzn.to/3AjbOoz
These links may be affiliate links, which earn me a commission if you choose to purchase items from them.

[@trythistv]

Things you may want if you own a WR3: Storage cover: amzn.to/3AiG7Mc Traction Mats: amzn.to/3Lll2ah Seat cover: amzn.to/3oCcdjg or amzn.to/3AjbOoz These links may be affiliate links, which earn me a commission if you choose to purchase items from them.

[@InTheVise]

Remember having the same Yamaha Waverunner 3 back in the summer of 2001 and 2002 here in Norway. Rebuilt the whole engine with balancing crankshaft, all new bearings, cylinder boring, new pistons, new starter motor and replaced all gaskets. Had a ton of fun with it!! It ran really good. Cool to see videos of it again!

[@badmouse02]

Thanks, somehow this is like the only Waverunner III review on the internet!

[@trythistv]

Probably not a lot of these old machines still out and about!

[@mikeperry2814]

We have 3 of these and have had so much fun for many years!!

[@trythistv]

They are sure a lot of fun!

[@StefanMailey]

I have a bunch of those hulls sitting in my back field! The motors are like gold. Work great in standup ski builds!

[@trythistv]

You should check out my videos on reviving one of these skis. Its in far worse shape than the one in this video, but it runs like a champ now, new carb and starter and some other bits and bobs and away we went! I'm trying to sell that ski whole but may end up parting it out, nobody seems even mildly interested.

[@StefanMailey]

@@trythistv Cool! I did a short video with my VXR Pro 701 and 440/650 build annnd a waverunner 500. lol All in same video. Ill check your out!

[@trythistv]

If you want a sneak preview of a unique machine I'm working on, I was going to do a little comedic skit about it but I didn't like how it turned out so I never released it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mH2Zn2amhbiMhbM

[@ebutuoyebutouy]

Welcome back. Thanks for sharing.

[@kylearea2227]

Thanks for sharing. I had one in this same color scheme in college over 20 years ago. Loved it!

[@InTheVise]

Me too! Had a ton of fun with it back in the summer of 2001 and 2002 here in Norway!

[@cub1009]

I enjoy seeing these old 2 strokes out on the lake. Brings back memories when I was a kid first getting on a PWC with my dad and grandpa. I still have 2 older seadoos that are a lot of fun. My dad had an old Yamaha similar to this. It was a lot of fun back in the late 1990s. My grandpa had an old Seadoo I think it was a 1995 XP and a GTX. Lots of fun.

[@trythistv]

I'm testing a 96 Seadoo XP for a customer today (no video most likely), the older machines can really be a lot of fun, I've had a blast slowly getting the 91 Kawasaki SC I have back to lake worthy condition.

[@diveranytime]

Oh how sweet!! I still have my 1994 Waverunner III along with a 2019 Yamaha GP 1800R. Two different machines two different types of riding. I agree the old machine is still a lot of fun!

[@trythistv]

Indeed very different rides, and each fun in their own way for sure! I recently recovered a wr3 that had been sunk and abandoned for over a year, it is in far worse shape than the one featured in this video, but with some electrical parts, a carb and cleaning the entire fuel system it runs great again, I need to get the second video on that out, the Yamaha 701 engines are incredibly durable lol

[@diveranytime]

Thanks, the pic are actually my machines.

[@angrygnome4304]

Worst thing to happen to the PWC market was everyone moving away from offering flat bottom hulls and focusing almost entirely on stability and speed. These early 90s Yamahas were a blast! Doing wild tricks and a higher skill ceiling made learning how to ride these things a much more satisfying experience.

[@trythistv]

Just wait until I get the hull fixed and carb tuned up on my 91 Kawasaki sc,. The lake isn't ready for me!

[@gureno19]

Nothing better and these days they are pretty rare to see on the water. I have a 95 Waveraider 701 with a purple hull, and it's an absolute blast

[@trythistv]

I've got a 1100 waveraider I need to do something with, its blown up currently but in fairly decent shape otherwise. They are real fun machines!

[@albertodias5900]

So FYI the WRIII was designed in 1988-89 for the 1990 model year and had a 650. It remained unchanged utill it"s last year in production in 1997 appart form the graphics and the addition of the larger 701cc engine on the GP version as of 1994 (the year of the one in the video.)

[@trythistv]

Neat! I just finished reviving a WR3GP that was sunken and abandoned, identical to the one in this video but in far far worse shape, still runs like a champ though!

[@danb4275]

I just bought a 1990. Still getting the bugs out of it, replaced ground cable and reverse cable, but on our first attempt I noticed that reverse seemed to be pushing it forward. At least out of the water the reverse bucket seems to move all the way up and down. Any ideas? Is it possible the new cable is just slightly out of adjustment? Or, is it possible this happened in shallow water, and won't happen in deeper water after I get it running right?

[@trythistv]

I would check the adjustment, if the bucket doesn't go down all the way it would probably still go forward while in the water, as reverse just diverts the water flow, so it is a very weak amount of reverse thrust, just enough to help you back off a trailer or navigate docking a little easier.

[@zimbu1430]

i use to have one of these soo much fun

[@zimbu1430]

plus it never had any problems

[@trythistv]

The 701cc engines were basically indestructible. They used them in the superjets up until 2018 or somewhere in that range, An engine platform that gets used with nearly no changes for over 20 years is worthy of imitation. I still need to figure out what to do with the one I got that was abandoned. Runs great now.

[@laurelinmn3137]

What years did the Waverunner have the flat bottom hull?

[@trythistv]

All the Waverunner 3s had a very similar hull whether 500cc, 650cc, or 701cc models, which is likely late 80s when they were introduced to somewhere around 1995 or 1996 when they were discontinued. I'm not 100% sure, but I know some of the other models had a deeper vee, the waveraider line is one of those with a deeper vee, I'm not sure about the VXR and other ones for sure.

[@patrickduncanjr.6847]

What oil should I get for this Waverunner it still has the oil injection

[@trythistv]

Any reasonably decent 2 stroke oil will work fine, typically you want something with a tc-w3 rating, I know Walmart or any auto parts store will have gallons of 2 stroke oil that is perfectly acceptable

[@patrickduncanjr.6847]

@@trythistv thanks