tkuss
TY 4 Stroke Junkie
(See last post for Update)
Background- I am relatively new to snowmobiling. I keep my sled in Eagle River, Wisconsin and ride in Northern Wisconsin and the U.P. My first real snowmobile I got about 3 or 4 years ago and it was a 2001 MXZ 800. I loved it; it was fast, handled nicely and really brought me into the sport of snowmobiling. But about that same year I got that sled, Yamaha just came out with the Apex with the fuel injected high horsepower 4 stroke motor in the new rider forward chassis I loved everything about it. Since I started to really get into snowmobiling the year before I decided to sell my 800 and pick up an Apex.
I got the sled in the fall of 06 with 500 miles on it along with some other accessories for 8300$. Right now there is about 5100 miles on the sled.
Engine- Everybody on here knows how great the engine is, but I will talk about it anyway. It is a rocket, if you are at 0mph and pin it it takes off, and if you are at 60mph and pin it, it takes off. One off the things I like about it is the smoothness, once the engine warms up there is no vibration at all at normal driving speeds. Although I have noticed once I get up to about 85mph I feel a very small vibration, but it is so small it is a non issue. Also I love the difference between a 2 and 4 stroke. When I hit the gas there is no waiting for the engine to spool up, the throttle response is amazing. I have gotten so use to the smooth throttle that now when I get on my friends 700 2 strokes they seem hard to control because the engine kicks in all at once. I know a lot of people like that but I prefer the way my apex feels. Every time I go to start it up it roars to life right away and I never worry about it not starting, that is a good feeling. When riding I ride hard, but I go as fast as I can while still making sure I am always on my side of trail and I try to always set myself up so that if something bad is going to happen I have enough time and room to react. Still only about twice in the last 2 years have I had to stop so people can get around me. That is another thing to if you are riding and you look behind you and see people that are not in your group please pull over and let them by. Anyway I figure I average about 13-14 mile per gallon, the best I ever had was about 17-18 miles per gallon. The engine rocks.
Clutching- Clutching is stock,
I know absolutely nothing about clutching other than the guys with 07 800R summits complain about there’s a lot. Like I said before the Apex runs so smooth and think that is a lot due to the clutching. I blew my first belt at 4000 miles which I am extremely pleased with that considering it seems like a lot of other high horsepower machines struggle to see 1000 miles out of a belt much less 4000.
Chassis- I love the way my Apex sits, it is very comfortable and feels ergonomically correct.
With about 2700 miles on the sled I was going down a straight smooth trail,
it was snowing the night before and the day of as well so it was very hard to read contour. I figure I was going about 50 or 60 when I all of this sudden saw about 3 or 4, three foot mogul sized bumps in the middle of the trail. I jammed on my brakes and tried to slow down. It was to late though so when I hit the first mogul at what I figure to be about 30mph I punched it to try and pop my skis over the next one, well my suspension bottomed out, that sent the rear end to fly back up and then in all different directions, I was lucky enough to get off the sled before it started rolling, luckily not end over end. I think it only rolled about 1 and a quarter times but I really don’t know. I walked over to the sled which was tipped in such a way that if you were to draw a line from ski to ski, that line would be pointing to the sky. I tipped it right side up expecting to see the skis pointing different directions and the running boards and A-Arms all mashed, but they weren’t. The only damage was I needed a whole new headlight pod because the plastic covering the headlight broke and I couldn’t just buy a new plastic cover. I know I was probably more lucky than anything but I was impressed with the way the sled help up. Also I added the mountain riser over the summer and it raised the bars about an inch or two and it really makes the sled more comfortable.
Rear Suspension- The 06 RTX has the monoshock with the floats up front and I love it. The mono is such a smooth rear suspension. No it is not for going through 3 foot troughs and moguls but that is not what it is designed for. Although I guess in 06 it is because the RTX was still marketed as the rough trail sled. I did and still do bottom my sled out every once in a while but last summer I sent my shock into to pioneer performance for the revalve and this made a huge difference.
Actually I started riding the sled after the revalve and didn’t notice any difference in ride. The difference comes after the ride when you realize you didn’t bottom the sled out at all. Two thumbs up for the revalve. Like everybody else says the hyfax wear down quick, at about 1000 miles I am pretty close to the wear line. But the next thousand miles have barely worn them at all, so wait as along as you can before you change the hyfax because the wear really slows down. I have changed the hyfax twice so far.
Front Suspension- Fox Floats are awesome,
don’t bottom at all and are very smooth. I may talk to Bruce and Pioneer Performance and see if he does anything to them to make a difference. Just because he did such a nice job with the rear suspension. If not no big deal.
Handling- When I first bought the sled, it had 144 studs and stock skis with duallies. I read about shimming skies on this site and decided to do it with the duallies. I didn’t care for the performance of the duallies in the corners so I bought a pair of shaper and they worked awesome, I was much happier with the cornering. And with the shims there was no darting. At the same time I got my sled, my buddy got C&A Razors for his Firecat. They made an awesome difference, so much so that over the summer I bought a pair of C&A Outlaws for mine.
They make the sled handle better everywhere, on the trail and in the powder.
I shimmed them as well and experience no darting and about as much steering effort as the stock skis. I now keep my transfer in between half and max, I have very little inside ski lift and I can carve through the corners very well. Anybody thinking about getting an aftermarket pair of skis, Do It, they make a world of difference.
Updates- I only got about 50 miles on with the 06 bars and the temps were about 30 degrees outside, so I can’t really say how well they worked. But I did get the updated bars and I found they keep my hands warm enough to about 5 or so degrees. Although just last week I got the tallest cobra windshield they make and I am kind of disappointed with it.
Before I got that one I had the Yamaha mid height windshield.
This one blew the air around my hands and into my chin. The new windshield blows the air to the top of my head but the wind is able to touch the very end of the handlebars, making my hands a bit colder. Luckily I have the Katahdin gauntlets
that make me have to turn the warmers down to half when it is -15 out. But I think overall I would take the new tall windshield I just got.
Problems- The only problem I have had was that the transfer rod broke. A mechanic told me that the lock nut on the transfer rod did not have to be so tight. This would make it easier to adjust it trail side. So I listened to him and did not tighten it up very much. While riding, all of this sudden the sled was bottoming over the smallest of bumps, so I looked at the suspension and saw the transfer rod came out and it was bent the threads were screwed up. Luckily I was able to drive it 40 miles back to the truck and get it on the trailer. When I drove it on the trailer there was enough force to send the rod right into the track. This put a big gouge in the track. Luckily it was all paid for under warranty, except Yamaha wouldn’t pay for the studs that were in the track, I paid 200$ and they put an Ice Ripper track on it.
I have got about 3000 mile on that track and I love it.
Reasons I don’t like the sled- I am pretty young and like to jump every once in a while, the apex with the mono is not a jump sled. Luckily I own half of a phazer as well, so I am to go jump that thing. Also get rid of the barometer and put on a outside temp gauge or engine temp gauge. Again no big deal
Reasons I love the Sled- Smooth Power, decent fuel mileage, no adding oil, always starts, has never left me stranded, smooth suspension, in the 5000 miles I have driven it, It has been in for a repair once that was my own fault because I should have checked the transfer rod periodically, I did get the sled back by the next weekend to ride as well. It has had 2 oil changes and is getting one right now, and just for the sake of it the plugs are getting changed. This summer I take the sled in for some preventative maintence such as greasing bearing and changing bushings to keep it running top notch. I hope because of me righting this my good luck doesn’t change. I hoping to keep the sled for 10,000 miles which should take right up to the point where my YES warranty will end. I will then hopefully be able to trade it in for a Nytro LTX RTX. Or keep it for a back up sled depends I much cash I have at the time.
Update- Sled is at dealer for oil change, it was backfiring the last 100 miles or so, I told him about the exhaust donuts going bad for so many people on this site, he said he would keep it in mind. I just got a call from him and the donuts are bad. Everything is being replace under warranty.
Background- I am relatively new to snowmobiling. I keep my sled in Eagle River, Wisconsin and ride in Northern Wisconsin and the U.P. My first real snowmobile I got about 3 or 4 years ago and it was a 2001 MXZ 800. I loved it; it was fast, handled nicely and really brought me into the sport of snowmobiling. But about that same year I got that sled, Yamaha just came out with the Apex with the fuel injected high horsepower 4 stroke motor in the new rider forward chassis I loved everything about it. Since I started to really get into snowmobiling the year before I decided to sell my 800 and pick up an Apex.
Engine- Everybody on here knows how great the engine is, but I will talk about it anyway. It is a rocket, if you are at 0mph and pin it it takes off, and if you are at 60mph and pin it, it takes off. One off the things I like about it is the smoothness, once the engine warms up there is no vibration at all at normal driving speeds. Although I have noticed once I get up to about 85mph I feel a very small vibration, but it is so small it is a non issue. Also I love the difference between a 2 and 4 stroke. When I hit the gas there is no waiting for the engine to spool up, the throttle response is amazing. I have gotten so use to the smooth throttle that now when I get on my friends 700 2 strokes they seem hard to control because the engine kicks in all at once. I know a lot of people like that but I prefer the way my apex feels. Every time I go to start it up it roars to life right away and I never worry about it not starting, that is a good feeling. When riding I ride hard, but I go as fast as I can while still making sure I am always on my side of trail and I try to always set myself up so that if something bad is going to happen I have enough time and room to react. Still only about twice in the last 2 years have I had to stop so people can get around me. That is another thing to if you are riding and you look behind you and see people that are not in your group please pull over and let them by. Anyway I figure I average about 13-14 mile per gallon, the best I ever had was about 17-18 miles per gallon. The engine rocks.
Clutching- Clutching is stock,
Chassis- I love the way my Apex sits, it is very comfortable and feels ergonomically correct.
Rear Suspension- The 06 RTX has the monoshock with the floats up front and I love it. The mono is such a smooth rear suspension. No it is not for going through 3 foot troughs and moguls but that is not what it is designed for. Although I guess in 06 it is because the RTX was still marketed as the rough trail sled. I did and still do bottom my sled out every once in a while but last summer I sent my shock into to pioneer performance for the revalve and this made a huge difference.
Front Suspension- Fox Floats are awesome,
Handling- When I first bought the sled, it had 144 studs and stock skis with duallies. I read about shimming skies on this site and decided to do it with the duallies. I didn’t care for the performance of the duallies in the corners so I bought a pair of shaper and they worked awesome, I was much happier with the cornering. And with the shims there was no darting. At the same time I got my sled, my buddy got C&A Razors for his Firecat. They made an awesome difference, so much so that over the summer I bought a pair of C&A Outlaws for mine.
Updates- I only got about 50 miles on with the 06 bars and the temps were about 30 degrees outside, so I can’t really say how well they worked. But I did get the updated bars and I found they keep my hands warm enough to about 5 or so degrees. Although just last week I got the tallest cobra windshield they make and I am kind of disappointed with it.
Problems- The only problem I have had was that the transfer rod broke. A mechanic told me that the lock nut on the transfer rod did not have to be so tight. This would make it easier to adjust it trail side. So I listened to him and did not tighten it up very much. While riding, all of this sudden the sled was bottoming over the smallest of bumps, so I looked at the suspension and saw the transfer rod came out and it was bent the threads were screwed up. Luckily I was able to drive it 40 miles back to the truck and get it on the trailer. When I drove it on the trailer there was enough force to send the rod right into the track. This put a big gouge in the track. Luckily it was all paid for under warranty, except Yamaha wouldn’t pay for the studs that were in the track, I paid 200$ and they put an Ice Ripper track on it.
Reasons I don’t like the sled- I am pretty young and like to jump every once in a while, the apex with the mono is not a jump sled. Luckily I own half of a phazer as well, so I am to go jump that thing. Also get rid of the barometer and put on a outside temp gauge or engine temp gauge. Again no big deal
Reasons I love the Sled- Smooth Power, decent fuel mileage, no adding oil, always starts, has never left me stranded, smooth suspension, in the 5000 miles I have driven it, It has been in for a repair once that was my own fault because I should have checked the transfer rod periodically, I did get the sled back by the next weekend to ride as well. It has had 2 oil changes and is getting one right now, and just for the sake of it the plugs are getting changed. This summer I take the sled in for some preventative maintence such as greasing bearing and changing bushings to keep it running top notch. I hope because of me righting this my good luck doesn’t change. I hoping to keep the sled for 10,000 miles which should take right up to the point where my YES warranty will end. I will then hopefully be able to trade it in for a Nytro LTX RTX. Or keep it for a back up sled depends I much cash I have at the time.
Update- Sled is at dealer for oil change, it was backfiring the last 100 miles or so, I told him about the exhaust donuts going bad for so many people on this site, he said he would keep it in mind. I just got a call from him and the donuts are bad. Everything is being replace under warranty.
number1kyster
TY 4 Stroke God
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Good write up. I have an 07 RTX and love everything about it except the handling. I haven't got it figured out yet but hopefully soon!
kotapug
Expert
I'm glade to hear that you are enjoying your APEX it's always nice to hear a good report.
yamaslob
TY 4 Stroke Guru
Nice write up Tkuss I have a 06 RTX also, I also put a set of C&A skis on that sled and boy it sure does rock, i have a few questions what did you set your floats to, i have mine at 55 and I feel that the sled almost sits to low. Also how much does the revalve job cost through Pioneer?
Thank you
-James
Thank you
-James
SharkAttak
TY 4 Stroke God
nice report
blue sled
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nice
hope to have the same luck nice report ,great pics.
hope to have the same luck nice report ,great pics.
tkuss
TY 4 Stroke Junkie
I believe I have that I have my floats set at about 60. The revalve cost about 85$ and about 30$ of that was the shipping. I didn't have the big boy spring installed, I weigh about 180 and he said i was right on the edge of where I could get away with the stock spring. I believe the big boy spring is about 100$ extra.yamaslob said:
blue sled
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iam 235pounds looks like i need big boy spring ............
Ported Hornet
Expert
Nice write up. I love my 07
MCApex44
TY 4 Stroke Guru
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Great report! Thanks for taking the time.
cat hunter
TY 4 Stroke Junkie
I have over 5,000 on my GT and had some problems but love my baby!!! GREAT POST 
RTX DUDE
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3000 miles and counting here! Love my RTX, is there any other sled on the planet? well yes but I wouldn't own one LOL
welterracer
TY 4 Stroke God
very nice report..
You might want to change the belt a little more often.. I never go more than 1600 miles on a belt.. the sled feels really slugish by then..
You might want to change the belt a little more often.. I never go more than 1600 miles on a belt.. the sled feels really slugish by then..
SnofishersBuddy
Veteran
Great report! This is the type of report and feedback that needs to be posted more!
tkuss
TY 4 Stroke Junkie
Just below 7000 miles on the Apex now. It was a great year with the 4000 miles I was able to put on. On my last ride this weekend I wore through my entire hyfax in 100 miles. Half way through the ride we up in Houghton at the Yamaha dealer when I noticed one of the my wheels on the rear axel was missing. Luckily I was able to get a new wheel and put it on right there. I also noticed I had very few track clips left on my Ice ripper on one side of the track. So from here we headed back. At the end of the day we brought my sled to the dealer and they saw that I was missing an additional two wheel in the rear suspension. Right now my sled is at the dealer and they will be inspecting all the rear wheel and replacing if necessary seeing as how the bearings are starting to go on them. Also the drive and jack shaft bearing will be replaced, along with the track re clipped, also whatever they feel should be inspected and repaired will be done so that I can ride the sled or another 3 or 4000 next year and not have to worry about anything. I have the YES warranty and my dealer will calling Yamaha and will find out what they will cover under warranty. I still love my apex and am already looking forward to next year.
