I do own both a sidewinder ltx le and a 2012 apex XTX. when I got the apex XTX it was an upgrade from my GT and I thought it was the greatest sled on snow and at the time it probably was I could ride harder and longer with little to no fatigue it didn't ring my bell if it ever bottomed out like the gt would almost every trip it had noticeable more power and I loved it so much I supercharged it instead of upgrading. I loved it even more with the supercharger I could pass everything but a gas station. it handled well cornered on rails and had power steering to boot. however I put $1700.00 into it before it hit the snow for its first season just to make it what I felt was acceptable ridding condition or if you will min it should have been from the factory. I continued to invest more into it over the years and the added the super charger used to it all told I had $25,000 invested including the purchase price of 13,700 to make it be what I felt was the perfect trail monster for me. that lasted two seasons with the SC and they were not trouble free in fact 3/4 of the way through the second season the SC lost oil and it went down first time I ever had to call for a trailer riding Yamaha (not that it was Yamahas fault the SC went down). I removed the SC and it was back up and running. I decided that I wanted the power back but I wanted it with a warranty from the factory so I decided to buy the sidewinder but I kept the apex because I was not sure if I could trust the "Cat DNA" or if I would even be happy with it. I brought both sleds on every trip the last two years and told myself I would ride both and decide what I preferred. the sidewinder got a set of hand guards I grip screw in studs and cat skis all in I spent $500.00 making it how I like it I am certain I will keep adding but from here it is for fun not need. it has close to the same HP as the SC apex had and with a small tune it will have more it is unreal the way it handles the terrain on even the XTX I would jar my spine and have a sore back up in my mid to upper area but it was nothing like the low back issues from the mono. on the sidewinder I have yet to have a sore spine at all. I have rode harder and longer than even the XTX it just doesn't jar the spine at all. the power is more smooth the seating positon from the factory is great and with suspension adjustment and different skis it handles on rails as well. I have forced myself to ride the apex a few times and every time I do even with all the upgrades I did to it, it just feels like so much less of a sled still fun to ride but given the choice I take the sidewinder every time. My son is very happy to ride the apex as it is now almost solely his sled and is a huge upgrade from his 1991 Phazer. so I am still glad I kept it for him. Is the sidewinder without issues? No not at all it took me 5 belts to finally figure out how to make them last over 500 miles but thanks to this site we got it going great. I also had to remove the fuse box and do a better job of protecting the wires and thanks to this site I knew it was a concern and fixed it before it was a problem. my chain case has had no issues so far thankfully and because of this site I know that when I do my fall maintenance I will be addressing the issue and because of this site I know exactly what to do for a no cost repair. and the bearing on the drive shaft so far I haven't had issue that I am aware of but again because of this site I know there is potential for an issue there and I will be checking it and most likely either way do the set screw solution to it that is an almost zero cost repair. on the apex I had to do something about hyfax wear the solution was expensive duponts that in that sled wore at the rate of standard hyfax in other sleds or oversized wheels and the came at a price too. I did both eventually and am very happy with that result but spent close to $300 to make it work correctly. the apex is know for the bearing by the speed sensor to get rusty and fail prematurely and take out the speed sensor again thanks to this site a little zero cost PM keeps it from failing but many did have a ride end from it who didn't know and is why I mention it. the apex has donuts that still fail and if left unchecked crack headers that the common person has no resources to have them fixed because they are titanium and the replacement is in the 3000 range there or aftermarket for around 1500 either way expensive repair. the apex has rails that are prone to cracking and the apex has a suspension that if you don't spend money to have shocks re-valve or a star suspension kit or something of the sort it rides like a lumber wagon but can handle its own it the rough stuff well. So is either sled perfect no is one more reliable then the other not really the apex has been around so long the we forget we all learned how to make it reliable because of this site or life experience with it. the benefit of it being almost the same sled for 13 years and even longer if you count the rx1 that was very similar in many was is it seems more reliable then it is because we all know how to make them that way. Bottom line choice between the two for me starting new bone stock with both I will have less into the sidewinder and have factory reliable power by not adding aftermarket SC/turbo and a more comfortable sled. FOR ME !! the sidewinder is my choice. To each their own but the fact is no sled is perfect or deserves God like status I can find you just as many horror stories about the apex as the sidewinder. I also think it would be nice if Yamaha would make a stand in the 150-180 hp market to keep more market share and fill the want for the Yamaha faithful.
Fall is on it's way with winter soon behind . Lets all start doing the Snow dance and get our sleds ready to ride !
