2010 SRX

[stopdropanroll]

I agree with those who say Yamaha tends to fall short on the "wow" factor. I am a fairly agressive rider and therefore always waiting for it but Yamaha never comes through for me. I have learned something over the past few years though, its called reality.
Think about it, Ski-Doo released the Mach Z in '05, now thats what I call wow factor, but the truth is the market isn't there for them. I have a friend who was looking to dump his, and a lot of the dealers he is looking to trade with don't want it because they are too hard to move off the lot. If you ever get accurate stats on the sled market you will see that the most popular class by far is middle weight class. I was once told that nearly 70% of all sleds sold fall into this class. Kind of gives you an idea of what most riders really want. Most people are not looking for that kind of over the top power.
We all know Yamaha could produce better numbers from their engines cause they are doing it in the bikes. Even with the high RPM's, there are ways around that with the gear reductions etc. (which I was told actually allows them to place the motor lower in the chassis cause it raises the clutch giving them more clearance with a lower motor). I don't think we will ever see it cause the market just isn't there. Too many people are happy with sleds that have great fit and finish, are well rounded performance wise, and have enough power, not insane power. The wow factor only comes from extremes which usually result in compromise. They may produce some attractive numbers but what those numbers don't reveal the compromises you get from such extremes, and thats what Yamaha is trying to avoid. After all, how many times have you heard a yamaha rep say that they build sleds for real people to ride, and therefore their focus is on your average snowmobiler. Lets not forget, thats where most of the market and therefore $$$ is for them.
In the end I think we will continue to see more sleds from Yamaha that will fall short of producing stellar numbers, but will weigh in very heavily on real world performance. Its been that way since the departure of the VMax-4 and I don't think things are going to change any time soon.

100% agree

 

[MR.HAPPY]

I agree too. But if you want to be #1 you must cover all markets! Yamaha can add 10-15 hp without any major changes that cost any major money! I believe Yamaha designed the 150 FI with the thought that they can make increases in hp without it being a major expense! Smart business!
Just make it (EXCITER) "Power Surge Only" and cover that market that way. Order one or forget it! Keeps resale up & dealers don't have them sitting around!



BR

 

[99SRX700]

COLDONE I agree with you. They should in theory be able to cover that small part of the market without having to invest too heavily. Not only that, but to me sleds like the late Mach Z help for advertising and getting a company on the map. While people may not be interested in buying them it makes the manufacturer look capable and draws more attention to the rest of the product line. This is why I still carry hope that they will eventually break through with something in this realm. Maybe 165-170HP range? Still crossing my fingers.

 

[hionspeed]

Right on, COLDONE. You stated the point better than I articulated.
Yamaha is holding back from the wow market. So it isn't the bread&butter of a company. Never said it was. But Yamaha is big enough to hit this market and creative enough to make the numbers work (i like the spring -buy idea). It would be a premium product with a premium pricetag. Are we willing to shell out 12-15k?
I think of the Corvette as an example- serves a small market, premium product, big pricetag. Chevrolet makes other models for the masses and yet showcases their engineering and design in a bold sportscar. Corvette= brand loyalty, pride, wowfactor.
I agree that Yamaha can hit this market without major cost. a few tweaks, 165 ponies, some magic pixie dust....

gsxr- with all due respect, nothing you said makes sense to me. I think you're telling me to lower my standards and that slow to market= profitablity. I'll have another beer and re-read it.

 

[Vmax4]

Is now really a good time to compare Yamaha with Chevy?????? ..........................

 

[yammiman]

...Is now really a good time to compare Yamaha with Chevy??????...

Well look at it this way, if they put out a 170 hp Apex and it flops, they can go to the Government for a bailout!!! LOL!

 

[kyzer]

Yamaha has to be careful...The Mach Z is a good example of advertising it was also a really bad example of advertising ....Sure it was as fast but it was also very unreliable , So that word gets out pretty fast too .................

 

[GotJuice]

BINGO!!!!!!!!!!

Yamaha has to be careful...The Mach Z is a good example of advertising it was also a really bad example of advertising ....Sure it was as fast but it was also very unreliable , So that word gets out pretty fast too .................

>>>
Yamaha has never had a hard on for being the best in the market, just profitability and consistency. How long did we suffer with the proactive crap suspension and they didn't chnage it because it was making them money and was more expensive to change to an entirely different line. The same holds true with there current sleds....same old little nuissance problems they won't fix, sure everyone wishes Yamaha would come out with alight weight twin with boost but the liability and cost to profit ratio are TO HIGH. Yamaha won't risk anything....out of all the manufacturers team blue is the most conservative and there fore will never hold the number one spot! Is this a bad thing....no not necessarily but it is the reality of it.

 

[ShootToThrill]

Does it really matter if they are #1 or #4?

 

[sheetwright]

Does it really matter if they are #1 or #4?

2nd place is a first place loser remember

Like George Carlin used to say "If we think each of our kids are special, and we think most adults are A%#holes; at what age do we go from one to the other. Cause if we were all special we would be taking buses to work, instead of driving cars"

 

[SledFreak]

Re: BINGO!!!!!!!!!!

Yamaha has to be careful...The Mach Z is a good example of advertising it was also a really bad example of advertising ....Sure it was as fast but it was also very unreliable , So that word gets out pretty fast too .................

>>>
Yamaha has never had a hard on for being the best in the market, just profitability and consistency. How long did we suffer with the proactive crap suspension and they didn't chnage it because it was making them money and was more expensive to change to an entirely different line. The same holds true with there current sleds....same old little nuissance problems they won't fix, sure everyone wishes Yamaha would come out with alight weight twin with boost but the liability and cost to profit ratio are TO HIGH. Yamaha won't risk anything....out of all the manufacturers team blue is the most conservative and there fore will never hold the number one spot! Is this a bad thing....no not necessarily but it is the reality of it.

I'm not so sure about your theory. They don't seemed to be holding back to much in the bike department. The new R1 for next year will have 200hp.

 

[Crewchief47]

From the Yamaha sled talk blog:

Now I’m looking at some interesting stats on Yamaha. The global revenue was down in the first nine months of the year (less than 4% but nonetheless down) mostly blamed on slumping North American and Euro sales. The company generated a nine month revenue of just over 13 billion USD or 1.3 trillion Yen. I can tell you one thing for sure, those clams weren’t harvested selling snowmobiles! Motorcycle sales were down in NA about 20% as were ATV / Snowmobile but overall motorcycles saved the day with similar increases elsewhere.

To put things in perspective Yamaha sold close to 4.5 million motorcycles in those same nine months which was up from the previous years nine month yield of 3.7 million bikes. Now where did all those motorcycles go you ask? Good question.

117,00 motorcycles were imported to North America and about 300,00 made it to Europe. That still leaves about 4 million and change elsewhere… read: Asia. The forecast sees the year ending at 6 million motorcycles sold and 17 billion in the coffers. Not bad for a down year I guess. Now lets get back to snowmobiles. Last time I checked the totals it appears world wide sales for all sleds combined (that’s at least 5 manufacturers) adds up to about 160,000 units.

Let me see now 6 million bikes versus 160,000 sleds. That’s very humbling math for a former product manager! So where am I going with all this you ask? Well I really don’t know but the numbers are public and thought provoking to say the least.

 

[Phatboyc]

In the end I think we will continue to see more sleds from Yamaha that will fall short of producing stellar numbers, but will weigh in very heavily on real world performance. Its been that way since the departure of the VMax-4 and I don't think things are going to change any time soon.

VMax-4 was not the last one. The latest SRX's where the fastest stock sled when they came out.

They have done it before, they will do it again. The question is, is it time?

 

[jimmyhighway]

From the Yamaha sled talk blog:

Now I’m looking at some interesting stats on Yamaha. The global revenue was down in the first nine months of the year (less than 4% but nonetheless down) mostly blamed on slumping North American and Euro sales. The company generated a nine month revenue of just over 13 billion USD or 1.3 trillion Yen. I can tell you one thing for sure, those clams weren’t harvested selling snowmobiles! Motorcycle sales were down in NA about 20% as were ATV / Snowmobile but overall motorcycles saved the day with similar increases elsewhere.

To put things in perspective Yamaha sold close to 4.5 million motorcycles in those same nine months which was up from the previous years nine month yield of 3.7 million bikes. Now where did all those motorcycles go you ask? Good question.

117,00 motorcycles were imported to North America and about 300,00 made it to Europe. That still leaves about 4 million and change elsewhere… read: Asia. The forecast sees the year ending at 6 million motorcycles sold and 17 billion in the coffers. Not bad for a down year I guess. Now lets get back to snowmobiles. Last time I checked the totals it appears world wide sales for all sleds combined (that’s at least 5 manufacturers) adds up to about 160,000 units.

Let me see now 6 million bikes versus 160,000 sleds. That’s very humbling math for a former product manager! So where am I going with all this you ask? Well I really don’t know but the numbers are public and thought provoking to say the least.

Maybe Yamaha will consider exiting the snowmobile business.

 

[99SRX700]

Phatboy I agree with you there but many would argue that Yamaha held back with the SRX by not producing and 800. If they did they would have blew the market away with it. Instead they inched over the line with the SRX and left themselves open for defeat by not producing an 800. Yamaha has done some great things in many aspects of the market its just that most of the time its not on the extreme performance end.
As far as the proaction goes, geomtrically its superior, and so is the monoshock, anyone who trully understands the way they work can't deny that. The problem has always been the valving in the shocks themselves. And frankly if your 165lb guy like me who likes to ride hard, sleds like the SRX and especially the first viper (before they changed the shocks as a result of everyone complaining) were valved perfectly for guys like me so frankly thats a matter of opinion. The other issue is the W arms, and frankly I have no idea why they haven't addressed that yet.