Honest Opinions Sought

[Homer]

Hi all. Let me start out by saying I am not brand loyal. I ride whatever I perceive to be the best sled for me at the time. The most fun sled I have ever owned by far was my 97 700SX. My 98 XC 700 had more power and my o2 Viper does alot well, but neither of them was as much "fun" (light weight, toss around, jumping, ect, ect). I thought the Viper was going to be the ticket, but it feels way heavier in the front than the sx.

My question is this: Are the 4 strokers (Apex and Vector) more like the SX? Or would I be better off with something like an F7 Firecat (which are very light and fast).

Thanks

 

[ROCKERDAN]

you want fun factor?..PHAZER...FUN FUN FUN!...but you would need a turbo to make it fast enough for what youre used too..lol.

Not sure an apex would be for you..not as light upfront as you might want...but a firecat?..yikes!....id be afraid to ride a cat..hehe.

dan

 

[Homer]

I don't think the Phazer is for me. I've spoken to a few people who are very dissapointed with it. 80 hp Just doesn't cut it and to sink another 4 or 5 grand into it for a turbo is not a reality for me. Plus I think it is butt ugly! I hear what you are saying about the Firecat, but I have had great experiences with Cat mountain sleds.

 

[ROCKERDAN]

I don't think the Phazer is for me. I've spoken to a few people who are very dissapointed with it. 80 hp Just doesn't cut it and to sink another 4 or 5 grand into it for a turbo is not a reality for me. Plus I think it is butt ugly! I hear what you are saying about the Firecat, but I have had great experiences with Cat mountain sleds.

for FUN FACTOR,you cannot beat phazer...we all test rode them on saturday and they are a blast....the look is growing on me now,i actually think the FX is awesome looking...you must be abit OLD SCHOOL in your tastes if you like a Firecat..2 smoke is sooooo ancient IMO...

yeah i know 80hp isnt fast but for 80hp..it IS fast for what it is!...

you wont get that kinda FUN factor and SPEED/power all in one..maybe the new blizzard doos would be good to look at?..

once you go 4 stroke you dont look back....at least it seems to be what i see with all apex owners...its like a complete new way of sledding...when i smell 2 strokes on trail It seems so ancient to me...and man i get headache now!.lol

dan

 

[berge75]

Here's the deal. I came off of a 700 sxr and started riding the 4 strokers I thought there would be no way i could ride these as hard as the sxr,but as it turns out, it's easier keeping up with my budds with the revs, than what it was on the sxr. I even bought a rev thinking it was light and should be the best replacement for the sxr ,but only kept it a month,and sold it because i was so dissapointed with it. Even though it was light,it had heavy feel to the bars,piss poor milage, appitite for belts. That same season I bought a vector and this sled ,even though heavier,had a light feel to it,got outstanding milage, rode decent,and never broke. As far as keeping up to the guys with the revs,i had an easier time staying with than i did with the rev or the old sxr. This year i updated to an apex,and even though it does feel porky at first, this bitch rips. Out on the trails it just feels rite,it rails corners,and drives through the rough better than my buds revs,and it does it without tiring you out. I don't regret going to the 4 str. the weight issue is overrated and the benifets out weight the negatives.

 

[Sno Cat]

I've owned SX's, SXR's, SRX's & Vipers. The SXR is IMO THE best handling sled of the group. My Viper was definately less sprightly than the SX. I am confident you'll enjoy the hell out of an Apex. The Apex's are better handling than a Viper & I think in some ways, better handling than an SX. The Apex is an entirely different experience. This is meant to be very positive. The Apex's are smooth. At 1st, this may not seem like a big deal but the reailty is, the smoothness allows you to drive faster than you can on an SX or Viper. Another HUGE advantage the Apex offers is weight balance. The wieght is centralized & when cornering hard, everything on the Apex chassis works together. On the older 2-strokes, you could fel the weight up front & the lack of wieght in the rear. The Apex's are incredibly stabel. All the hype about the sleds being too heavy is BS. I could go on here but you'll enjoy an Apex much, much more than the other sleds mentioned. I was a die hard 2-stroker, so were my buddy's but we're all now die hard 4-strokers. The RTX is the best cornering Apex, my Attak runs a close 2nd. Take the plunge, you won't regret it! The best way to help make your decision is to try one. Borrow a buddy's, go to one of the Yamaha Demo Days & drive one or work w/your dealer. Explain to him you're in the market & you'd like to try one 1st.

 

[yamadoo]

I love my Apex, I also loved the Yamaha 700 tripple, still have it at over 10,000 miles, I also have/ had a xc800 over 5000 miles I loved that too.

The Apex is different- YES better - but still fun, it feels light but I would not say flickable, it is totally different .

SMOOTH power, Smooth ride and More body roll than your Sx, but controlled and predictable - not bad, I have heard the bigger sway bars tone the roll way down.

I love my Apex it is refined, like getting into a BMW or Cadillac sports car and going 0 to 100 faster than your old loud and rough muscle car. You know by the numbers it is just as fast or faster but feels so smooth in power and ride that your brain wonders. It use to feel that I was on the ragged edge of performance and control, now same performance and feels so smooth I think some think some of the thrill is (gone) no just different.

YOU MUST RIDE ONE! It will sell itself.

I recently set my transfer rod for more wt shift and it doesn't wheelie like my two strokes that "bam" come on and up comes the front, this is like smooth, you want more power "OK I got more" just squeeze a little more, I can lift and carry the skis so smooth and effertless, I wonder why I couldn't on the other sleds, unless I timed it just right.

I am gushing because I finally got to ride again this week end and I loved it even at -17 up to -7 below zero

Yamadoo

 

[xcsp]

You need to ride one!

Best way to see if you like it is to take one for a ride! Any local dealers have a demo to try? That is if there is snow to ride on.

 

[schmeg]

I tried one last year, and loved it so much I bought two of them. It handles way better thn my XC700. The weight isn't a factor trail riding. My newbie to sledding wife rides the other one with no problems. Its so rider friendly with no bad manners, its easy for her to manage, as long as she doesn't get stuck. But then again, she could get a 370 fan stuck and she's not pulling it out herself. One ride will change your mind forever. The issues the sleds have are minor.

 

[Randy J Beyer]

Buy the Apex for sure !! No sled out there can match the value you get for money spent!

Soooooooooooooo Glad I bought one Last year and sooner
or later the rest of the winter world will realize
what we already know !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Heck I even bought the wife a Rage this year and she also
realized that 4 stoke is it and she loves the sled !!!!!!!!!!!!

Read my signature !!!!!!!!!

 

[Auskins]

(I know this is getting old but...) Don't forget about the 08's that are coming out in less then 20 days, spose to be a higher hp phazer!

 

[yamaouch08]

Hi all. Let me start out by saying I am not brand loyal. I ride whatever I perceive to be the best sled for me at the time. The most fun sled I have ever owned by far was my 97 700SX. My 98 XC 700 had more power and my o2 Viper does alot well, but neither of them was as much "fun" (light weight, toss around, jumping, ect, ect). I thought the Viper was going to be the ticket, but it feels way heavier in the front than the sx.

My question is this: Are the 4 strokers (Apex and Vector) more like the SX? Or would I be better off with something like an F7 Firecat (which are very light and fast).

Thanks

I think from what you are saying you would be better off with an F7. If you thought the Viper felt heavy in the front then the Apex will feel like a tank to you. Don't get me wrong I love my apex for trail riding but when I go playing off trail I take my viper,it feels night and day lighter to me off trail,but if I am going on a long trail ride I will take an Apex over any other sled, from any other brand. I know my opinion is going to get everyone all fired up but he was asking are honest opinions and this is mine. I love the Apex and the OL"Viper

 

[nate007]

I just walked back in the house from a short ride tonight with a buddy of mine who rides an F7. He would rather ride mine, and does so at the drop of a hat. Everytime he gets off of it he shouts "This F***ing' this is awesome!" He says he found his next sled. I do like to ride his sled too, but theres no chance I would make the choice to own one. Not that its a bad sled, but since I do have the option to ride one pretty much anytime I want to, I hope I can say from experience, you will absolutely love the Apex, and feel that you should have done it sooner! I'm kind of lucky to go out each time with guys on REV's and a Firecat. If you ask any of them, they all want the 4-stroke.
I'll never change. Don't even let the weight thing cloud your judgement. As refined as any sled is these days, the chasis and suspensions are all designed to have a great ride.
DO IT - YOU'LL LOVE IT!!!!
Nate

 

[monsterattak]

Off trail the attak/apex is not your best choice in my opinion. They are heavier in the front and just dont have that light feel that you get with the smaller lighter 2 cycle engine...BUT...... Where do you put the most miles on? If you ride trails and like to blast down a long road or lake and then jump off trail once in a while you will smile all day long on a big Yammie.

The sound , the feel , and the high rpm wind up is intoxicating. Especially when you reel in and pass (at 100 mph plus) a lighter and what that rider truly believes is a superior sled to your heavy tank. I swear as I am going by they start kicking their heels into the tunnel hoping it will shift again.....

My attak puts a huge smile on my face everytime i ride it. Is it perfect ? NO. but... Once you pull the throttle on the genesis 1000 you will be spoiled.....7500 rpm just wont get you excited anymore.... flipping over to my buddies 800 and 1000 2 strokes for short runs just isnt impressive even though the 1000 gets me with the light rider and me and the 800 split a lot of races. I know they are fast but they just dont feel as exciting.

The only way I can describe it is the difference between having 2,000 rpm of power to play with and 5,000 rpms to play with. The 4-stroke just gives you that range where you can just plain have more fun with it...and imagine running your sled as hard as she will go all day and everytime you ride it knowing that the engine is not only holding up but loosening a little with each ride and getting just a little faster. These engines run 50,000 miles in bikes i think my attak chassis will be broken down in pieces long before this engine tires out. just my opinion of course....

by the way: the big yammies fly pretty straight. I am heavy and i get her up pretty good as i feel very confident when i launch it..... my rev buddies seem to flatten out and not fly very well on the jumps . maybe they are just scared.....