Chain Case Failure?

[stingray719]

that sucks but after hearing all of these issue with the chain adjustments you should have taken it back to the dealer ASAP before even riding it or after 100 miles or so. i know it's not you're fault but now your unable to ride for 3-4 weeks and a little preventive maintainence on you're part would have saved you a lot of frustration. i know it sucks and I agree with you that it should have been ready to roll right from the dealer. there has been posts about this since Dec. i don't own one (this is the reason why, not bashing, but there are always issues with first year models) but i know i would have taken it right back to the dealer ASAP to have it checlked out after reading all of this for almost a month.

sucks big time.

My dealer (Coyote Motorsports in Denver) is insisting on a 300 mile checkup. Guess I should.

 

[yamaha1973]

I always check chain and track tension on a new sled at 100, 300, and 500 miles. I know the book doesnt say this but it may help prevent a situation like this.

 

[yamyfreak]

I feel for you stain. If I didn't go through every sled I bought in the many new sleds I have purchased there would have been more issues. You have to remember that dealers are maxed to the limit as far as labor hours and who gets to do our PDI is the detail guy. He gets a list to look over and that's all that is done. No extra's. Seen it. And when you do get the sled its dirty not even polished.

 

[yamyfreak]

Sorry that was meant for Freelance.

 

[STAIN]

Calm down, the question was not ment to irritate. I was just asking, trying to see if there is a patern to some of these chain breakage incidents. It seems to me that these chains strech VERY early. I am not sure if the lenth of the chain is playing a part in it. I checked mine at 130 miles after hearing of another guy who broke his chain @ 350 miles with no adjustment. It was VERY loose. I did not replace the gasket.
If you know it might be an issue I would think you would be a little more proactive or at least ask your dealer if you are not comfortable doing it.

 

[stingray719]

Calm down, the question was not ment to irritate. I was just asking, trying to see if there is a patern to some of these chain breakage incidents. It seems to me that these chains strech VERY early. I am not sure if the lenth of the chain is playing a part in it. I checked mine at 130 miles after hearing of another guy who broke his chain @ 350 miles with no adjustment. It was VERY loose. I did not replace the gasket.
If you know it might be an issue I would think you would be a little more proactive or at least ask your dealer if you are not comfortable doing it.

Yep, chains of all kinds stretch when breaking in. Ever buy a new dirt bike or replace dirt bike chain and gears? If so remember how the chain stretched in the first 20 miles or so? Now these snowmobile chains are much more robust but I suspect a longer chain will stretch more in breakin.

I had an old ZRT 800 with 900 cylinders and I had to check chain every outing and replace several yimes a year....lol. And unlike the Viper the old Cat did not have brakes on the drive shaft so when you lost the chain you lost your brakes...not good in the Rocky Mountains

 

[OVR4D]

I have to agree with freelance on this one. Especially when he says "Do I need to service it at 0 miles??"

If the jam nut on the chain tensioner/adjuster bolt had been properly tightened this likely would never have happened. I think a buyer should have a reasonable expectation that a new sled will be ready to ride when he/she takes delivery. I think it's unreasonable to point a finger at the buyer in this case.

 

[STAIN]

Who's pointing fingers??? I just asked if the chain had been adjusted. I was not implying he had left it loose. I am seeing a lot of chains loose at low miles and was wondering if it was adjusted yet. Jeeesh!!!

 

[09nytro]

I know Yamaha doesn't have parts but cat does , so see if your dealer would friend a cat dealer and get your parts , the cat dealer in town here has exhaust gaskets I got 4 of them and I'm sure they have chaincase parts also !
Just saying !

 

[NOS-PRO]

OK guys, I see a point to everybody's comment.....

I totally understand freelance wondering why he would pay all that money for something that he has to fix/adjust after 0 miles. I get that. It isn't right and now he is suffering because of something that came loose. These are mechanical machines and things are going to wear, bend and break over time. I would expect a new vehicle to make it home after I purchased it, but I did experience 2 vehicles that had problems right off the lot and had to be addressed for repair or replacement. Like I have always told my family, even tho its new, doesn't mean something can't go wrong. My GF decided not to check her tires, because they were new.....she caught a nail and developed a low tire which she hit a large pot hole and bent the rim. Things happen.....

Stain just asked a simple question, but through the keyboard on a topic, I can see where freelance could take it as personal because he's not happy with the outcome so far.

It sucks to have to tear apart a new sled to check some issues from assembly, but I did it and glad I did. If I wouldn't have I would be in the same situation posting comments on what happened and why?

I'm happy to be on this forum and a couple questions for all involved here.... What would happen if this forum wasn't here? I'm glad the topic came up to check the chaincase. How many more problems out on the trail would there be if nothing was rechecked because you didn't hear or read about it? I for one, would like to know if there is an issue so I can find out first hand if I should do something about it....instead of break down, get injured and/or freeze to death out on the trail. I have always gone for a ride alone but now I make sure someone is with me cause you never know.

Freelance, sorry for your misfortune. Hope you get parts ASAP and have zero problems in the future.

 

[sgauthier]

never said i didn't agree that the dealer or Yamaha (along with the AC assembly line)should have made sure it was tight. it's just that this has been talked about for over a month (this post has been up since Dec.)and he is a long time member here so he should have taken it back to the dealer if he didn't want to mess with it, just to make sure. yes yamaha is at fault, but yes it's now partly his fault that he is without the sled for not taking it back for preventive measures when he knew/read about this problem. now had it failed after it was checked at the dealer then i would totally agree with him.

i do however agree he should be pissed waiting 3-4 weeks and i would be even more pissed knowing that AC has the parts and they are not giving those to Yamaha to service it. like mentioned above go talk to your dealer and have him contact or purchase the parts from AC to get you up and running. Or have him give you the list of parts from the AC microfiche and pick them up yourself and he can reimburse you for it. he can then take it up with Yamaha to get his money back. waiting that long for parts is totaly unacceptable when you only have a small window of riding available.


live and learn

 

[freelance]

I'm going to go with the "live and learn" statement and leave it at that.

Just back from the dealership. As I first posted this issue yesterday I said, "Not sure if I got all the info correct cuz as the story unfolded my knees buckled and I was sick to my stomach."

Well, at a glance things are not as bad as I thought but still bad enough. Chain was not broken but has been subjected to high heat and will be replaced. Upper gears show no wear on the teeth but also have been subjected to high heat so will be replaced. The tensioning bolt did not come completely out but when I looked at it, it would easily have taken at least 6 or more turns to make contact with the tensioner. There was still some oil in the lower part of the chaincase so the bottom gears were still receiving some lubrication. I didn't see the chaincase cover so I don't know what shape that was in but it gets replaced along with the other items. There were some rubber bushings that were melted as well. The reason for not seeing any oil leakage anywhere is the oil pooled up in the skid plate and the skid plate has no holes for anything to drain or leak out. We will be drilling a couple holes so if a leak every develops again we will get a visual.

The pics below were posted by Calltrex a couple of weeks ago. My whole chaincase, chain, and gears look much darker than the nice shiney ones that apper in his pics.

I am not a mechanic. I have an unheated garage and it's -30C outside. I buy my toys brand new and expect them to work and when they break, excluding warranty, I pay someone to fix them.

I'm also fortunate that I have a 2011 Arctic Cat Z1 LXR fully serviced and ready to ride so I will not be on the sidelines waiting for parts for the Viper.

I, too, appreciate this site as I have gained a wealth of knowledge......some good, some bad........but I can't keep making the 80 mile round trip to my dealership every time I read something on the internet. Not everyone is having problems.......my number was up.........back to the live and learn statement.

No worries Stain. I was frustrated and lashed out.........I apologize.

The very good part is I am 100% confident in my dealership's ability to fix this issue and make it right. They were absolutely adamant that they will take care of me and I have no reason to doubt them. I may not have to wait as long as first suggested for parts. No gaurantees on the time frame..........but the best way and most politically correct way of describing the owner of my dealership is "tenaciuos" !!

Thanks everybody for your posts. After all it is all about sharing information. Hope this shite doesn't happen to someone else.

 

[freelance]

BTW, the regional rep for Yamaha just happened to have a scheduled appointment at my dealership this afternoon. So if there was ever a good time for this to happen, now would be the time so that he can see it and report back to Yamaha corporate on this issue.

 

[NOS-PRO]

Well said freelance

Perfect time for the rep also!

 

[subaru2006]

Do you know what the cause of the leak was? Seal or bearing bad? I know you first thought the bolt came out and that was the cause.

Subaru2006