2015 - Lineup Streamlining?

[Straight_up_XTX]

I think this 2015 release is all part of chassis streamlining. The reason we are not seeing a phazer and apex motor in the srv chassis is because there is still too much phazer and apex inventory still sitting around in showrooms and warehouses. This 2015 lineup release buys one more season to sell off some of that inventory without direct competition from srv based models within.
This could mean the apex / phazer motors will be transplanted into the srv chassis for 2016. OR INTO A NEW YAMAHA EXCLUSIVE CHASSIS. After all by the 2016 lineup release date the viper will have bought yamaha 2 years to develop another chassis that can accommodate a variety of different motors.
You have to admit that the revelation of using one all encompassing chassis for many motor variations is not a new idea idea but it was obviously going to take time for yamaha to adjust to this type of lineup. I still think this is the true purpose of the viper... a bridgegap measure to buy time to develop a new chassis / motors. It just so happens that the viper is a very capable snowmobile as it was meant to be and yamaha is running with it... and rightly so! Ye now have a viper variety to fill almost any mainstream mid range horse power market segment. I dont see this as a bad thing.

And yes I think the next version of the phazer will have a smaller displacement tripple that is loosly based off of the new fz-09 naked bike. Again these things take time though

The sad reality is that a lot of people are looking for something completely new from yamaha but we have to remember that yamaha admits that the bulk of their development efforts were focused elsewhere ever since the release of the nytro. Again I believe the viper is being used to fill this gap. Very successfully I may add by the reviews I read in magazines.

Just my thoughts though. Hey we all have em might as well share.

 

[timebomb]

Well said. Good point

 

[NOS-PRO]

X2

 

[Yamacat21]

I agree. I own a 14 viper and love it, but if yamaha is promising new sleds the next five years who is going to buy their outdated inventory and then buy a new sled again when they finally release the sled everyone really wanted.

 

[thereandbackagain08]

I agree to a large extent that they want single chassis; if they are, however, as happy as CR implies with the deal and the SRV chassis, I see Yamaha fans getting a whole lot of BNG and minor tweaks in that chassis for at least another year. You're likely right that the Phazer will be dropped and we'll see a small motor in that chassis next, but I don't think they'll touch the Apex next year and I think that also means no turbo on the Viper to pull people from the Apex.

The decisive year will be year four of the deal. If we see an Apex replacement in the SRV chassis, I think it's likely a sign that they are in it for the long haul with Cat and the next new chassis will be a Cat/Yamaha collaboration. But on the other hand, if the next sled chassis is to be all Yamaha, I would think they would release it in year four with whatever their flagship engine for the next generation will be so that there is some transition back out of the SRV period.

I personally think that if the sled division continues in the black with this Cat deal, we will see a whole new generation of Yamaha's in name only. But it's awfully short sighted if they do abandon their own chassis altogether, and it probably would be the beginning of the end for the sled division.

 

[T-Bone]

The day Yamaha decided to stop spending money on R&D was the beginning of the end. Any company that does not invest in new product development is dead, especially a sled manufacture when the mentality of many is "when do the new sleds come out." Clearly there was nothing in the pipeline for release in 2014 and 2015. As Chris Reid says Yamaha needs AC agreement to get the sled division in the black which happened in 2014 and likely in 2015. If Yamaha is waiting for this profitability to return before investing in the future, then it will be at least 2016 before a new pure Yamaha is available for release. My guess is 2017 model year before we see a new Apex.

 

[agriffinjd]

I think Yamaha will soon only be supplying motors for Cat. The question is, will they keep having a Yamaha snowmobile division that is all yamaha motors in cat chassis, or will they just supply all of the motors for cat and cease to sell yamaha snowmobiles?

 

[mathis]

Here in Europe BRP bought Lynx snowmobiles some years ago, since then both brands are using the same chassis and doing well in the market. Wouldn't surprise if Yamaha and Arctic Cat ends up in one company soon...
http://www.brplynx.com/en/sleds.html

 

[ROCKERDAN]

Here in Europe BRP bought Lynx snowmobiles some years ago, since then both brands are using the same chassis and doing well in the market. Wouldn't surprise if Yamaha and Arctic Cat ends up in one company soon...
http://www.brplynx.com/en/sleds.html

yes and there is some evidence BRP is considering bringing lynx to North America.

there are several DOO owners on dootalk that have been invited by BRP to come test ride the lynx sleds in the mountains. Very interesting.

Dan