Apex engine great but wowthe chases eats parts

[Wilbust]

I have 7300 mi. and the engine has been sweet but thank god for the 5 yr warranty. That saved me over 3000 $.
* suspesion wheels (going into 3rd time all wheels 18 wheels myself
* hefax never over 800 mi 8X myself
*bearings (take out speedo sensor)
*w arm ( 2 X welded 1 replaced) welded myself
* doughnuts 2 x
*Y pipe 2 x 1 myself
*track at 7300 mi
*rt side ft clam shell ( this job absolutly blows) myself
*Front A arm bushings 2nd time myself
*spark plugs twice myself
*oil change 1 shop 4 myself
My point here is the 3000 did not include everytime you see myself and in my time as shop time I have @ 3000 additional maintance parts and hours.
You guys that jab on ski doos for pistons and rings, that is a relatively cheap job in comparison.
I put 8500 mi on 98 skidoo mxz 670: 600$ on 1 motor burn down (bad gas at -20 lake racing) and colectively another 500 on shock rebuilds and torque arm welding and track at 7500 mi @ 9 gal oil /$17 gal.
02 Arctic cat zr 800 9500 mi, traded in on Apex: blew the shocks every year all the way @ $150 pr 4, primary clutch at 6800 mi, track at 8000 mi,
stator coil at 5500 mi because recoil, Cat covered 2 yrs old.
The Arctic cat was the best bang for the buck, only stranded me once. Both the Apex and mxz stranded me 3 times. Don't get me wrong I like the ride of the Apex best but newer tech. will always make a nicer more expensive ride.

 

[Wilbust]

forgot to add

Both the mxz and zr spent time at the bottom of a river mid life and I only put in cheap oil (sea and snow) zr made it 9500 and ran like a champ when I traded. I don't water cross the Apex as much, l learned a little something.

 

[Super Sled]

So let me get this straight, you submarined your sled under water and you wonder why you are having issues? Your mad donuts fail after some miles? Spark plugs need replacing and this upsets you? Mad about oil changes on a 4 stroke motor? And your track dies at 7,300 miles and this upsets you too. That about sum it all up?

Dude, I'd say your doing pretty well......

 

[Wilbust]

not upset

I am not exactly complaining, I was merely stating that my Apex has cost more than triple anything else I have had to keep going. No engine problems, converse to say a ski doo, but very costly everywhere else. My one buddy has a 07 rev 800, 5800 mi. No engine problems, never replaced a wheel, first time on highfax last week. Only thing he buys are chaincases (2). He has got used chaincases for 150 a piece, there a dime a dozen.

 

[thor452]

most of your big problems were avoidable berrings are fine if they get grease 1x a year y pipes only break if donuts are not changed slides on mine have gone 1700 to 2500 and only cost $12
If you put the replacement wheels on it they hold up alot beter but yes shame on you yamaha on that one. Spark plugs being changed is something im sure you did just to do as they could go 25,000 miles (i have changed mine twice too cause i was in there and figured wth) unlike a 2 smoke that needs them to even work every 1000 miles or 1 good stuck and the track well that sounds like you had a heck of a lot of fun if you wore it out (mine lasted 6700 so Belive me I know the fun you had) but that is not yamahas fault nor camoplast it is all on the rider for that. If you are able to crack the suspension arms then that explains the worn out track.but even still bushings w arm and some donut gaskets and some grease is all i see that was needed if you spend a day preseason on you P.M. each year.

 

[kinger]

I have to agree, I was just thinking the other day my list of 'preventative maintenance' seems to be rather extensive compared to what I am used to back in the day.

However then I realized I'm riding a 250hp rocket (I'm supercharged) ship getting 10-12 mpg on 91 fuel. So I offset the extra costs with the fact that I cant wipe the smile off my face till about July each year.

If you want touring and like to cruise my old mans vector has been cheaper then a 2 stroke. He changes oil once a year greases it and just put slides on just cause at 3000 miles. His has been flawless othewise.

I just realize I beat the snot out of it and with more weight, more power, equals harder hits and more stuff breaking or requiring maintenance.

I was not expecting it to cost me less thena 2 stroke.

 

[Honk]

Amazing! More people will talk NEG than Pos any day. What does it do to your head being neg all the time? If YOU don't like where youv'e been, change something. Like regreesing bearings,Ulmer bushings, Or buy a different brand! They have ZERO problems!

 

[AIRWOLF]

I LOVE MY YAMAHA APEX

 

[Super Sled]

I LOVE MY YAMAHA APEX

X2!!!!!

 

[cat hunter]

I LOVE MY YAMAHA APEX

Used to buy a new sled every year or two but that stopped in 06 !!!

 

[DigitalFusion]

To be honest, I do think Will has a few valid points, along with a few that can be resolved with routine maintenance and/or solutions the aftermarket have created. If you take a look at his list, and then break it down:

* suspesion wheels (going into 3rd time all wheels 18 wheels myself
* hefax never over 800 mi 8X myself
*bearings (take out speedo sensor)
*w arm ( 2 X welded 1 replaced) welded myself
* doughnuts 2 x
*Y pipe 2 x 1 myself
*track at 7300 mi
*rt side ft clam shell ( this job absolutly blows) myself
*Front A arm bushings 2nd time myself
*spark plugs twice myself
*oil change 1 shop 4 myself


Stuff that would be solved with maintenance:
*bearings (take out speedo sensor) grease these at least at the end of the season, if not more, and they last a long, long time. My sled had 10K on the bearings, and I am replacing them just because!
*Y pipe 2 x 1 myself if the donuts go bad and are not attended to, they take out the Y pipes.

Stuff that the after market has created solutions for:
*w arm check out the beefup kit from one of the vedors here. You have have the W arm beefed up and powder coated at the same time
* doughnuts 2 x both sled toyz and OFT offer copper gaskets that last nearly forever. The sledtoys gasktes are made in China and are only a few bucks more than the OEM gaskets. The OFT are made in the US but are 35 bucks a pop. Either way, you can do them once and forget about it. This will also save your Y pipes as noted above
*Front A arm bushings Ulmer Racing, which is a great company and also a sponsor on this site offers an Oilite bushing kit that will last longer than your sled. Those cheap OEM plastic bushings are complete junk.

Stuff that is universal to any sled:
*track at 7300 mi hmm, how can you complain about this one? Its not the most mileage I have seen out of a track, but it also isnt the least? You said you put a track on your ski doo at 7500, so how is this any different?
*spark plugs twice myself I can only assume you either did this just because, or because you fouled them by not letting the sled run until the red light went out? Plugs on a 4 stroke last forever! Either way, two sets of plugs in 7300 miles is unheard of on a two stroke (at least in my experience!)
*oil change 1 shop 4 myself uhh yeah.. I change the oil ever season regardless of sled brand/type. How can you claim this is eating into the cost of owning a 4 stroke Yamaha?

Having said that, I feel the complaints about the skid (hyfax, wheels, W arm) are justified. I went through nearly two sets of hyfax in 1000 miles on mine with decent snow conditions and the track tension in spec. Thats why I gave up and plunked down the cash for a ZX2 that I can take with me for the next yamaha I buy!

 

[actionjack]

I live in Maryland and I can hardly imagine many people riding on more marginal conditions than I do. If it snows 4" we ride roads hours at a time. I have ridden 350+ miles in one day riding roads - 07Jan96 (basically Gettysburg to Baltimore twice). I have never gone less than 2 seasons on a set of hyfax. They wear to the line and stay there. I just changed them on my Attak after of 2 seasons since I had the skid out.

I won't speak to the '11s but my 06, 07 and earlier Yamahas wore to the line fast them wore very little after that.

 

[heelingcowboy1]

Its all in how well a sled is maintained no matter what brand you own!! Every year I change the stuff that needs fixed or is questionable. I regrease all my driveshaft bearings every year, and or replace any if they feel questionable to me. Exhaust Donuts get changed every year--I have done the bushing kit for the front end and the steering blocks for the steering column. I replaced my drive axle last year too. Why?? because they are known to fail at around 6000-9000 miles. Simply thinking ahead saves you downtime when the snow is on the ground!!! When I had the Polaris's all I ever worried about is wether or not I was gunna make it home or not!!! I have put 8000 hard miles on the Apex over 3 years and it has NEVER left me stranded!!To me that is worth EVERY PENNY that I spend on new parts or a little work time!!! My buddys ride 800R's and one blew up his motor at about 2000 miles and both sleds overheat terrible in low snow conditions!!! Not to mention they vibrate Terrible!!! We can complain all we want about how the engine is going to outlast they rest of the chassis but I do believe we all knew that right from the beginning--And ya know what? I wouldn't have it any other way!!!

 

[thor452]

I live in Maryland and I can hardly imagine many people riding on more marginal conditions than I do. If it snows 4" we ride roads hours at a time. I have ridden 350+ miles in one day riding roads - 07Jan96 (basically Gettysburg to Baltimore twice). I have never gone less than 2 seasons on a set of hyfax. They wear to the line and stay there. I just changed them on my Attak after of 2 seasons since I had the skid out.

I won't speak to the '11s but my 06, 07 and earlier Yamahas wore to the line fast them wore very little after that.

I couldnt agree more my slides always get to the line in the first year but then stay there for the next year or two

 

[grubf]

Have owned and ridden over 30 sleds. All colors. Not a single one has been perfect or has been 'free' to ride. That being said my last 6 sleds have been Yammies. Put on the Pioneer Wheel repositioning kit and forget about Hifax wear. Send off your suspension arms to Half Baked and forget about breakage. Put in the good exhaust O-rings and be done with it. There - now most of the major issues have been taken care of. I never trust a studded track with over 5000 miles on it. When I change that I put in a new drive axle and all bearings as long as everything is apart. The engine and clutches are just about bulletproof if you leave things stock. I ride alone a lot and I have to have a dependable horse. None of my Yammies have ever left me stranded. Can't say that about any of the others.