AKrider
TY 4 Stroke God
I agree that warranty isn't going to save your ride or a trip. It's a hassle to deal with but lose a crank bearing and you are looking at $1200-1600 to fix a 2-stroke motor even doing the work yourself. Warranty is a nice thing to have in that event. It's just about the risk you are comfortable with taking. What I found is snowmachines are progressing and advancing so quickly that I wasn't seeing a big benefit to the 4-strokes reliablity and longevity. I didn't put a bunch more miles on the two 4-strokes I had than I did my older 2-stroke sleds. My criteria was emphasised towards handling, lighter weight and somethign more fun to ride. I found that I didn't want to ride my Nytro anymore and put up with all its quirks even though it was and is a very reliable sled. It simply didn't do what I wanted and time passed it by. For me sleds aren't like my truck or Grizzly in that I'll keep them for years and years because they get me where I want to go. The new sleds have advanced so much that they can get where I want to go faster with more control and fun than my aging Yamahas.
I think for the big mile, groomed trail touring aspect that Yamaha makes the best sled that can be ridden for years and years after the warranty expires and still be reliable. I guess I discovered that I'm happier with disposible sleds.
Back to the original post, if I were in the market for a purely trail use sled, I'd buy a base model Indy, install some high end shocks and ride it for a year or two, sell it and put the shocks on the next Indy. A guy could do the same thing with a base model MXZ.
I think for the big mile, groomed trail touring aspect that Yamaha makes the best sled that can be ridden for years and years after the warranty expires and still be reliable. I guess I discovered that I'm happier with disposible sleds.
Back to the original post, if I were in the market for a purely trail use sled, I'd buy a base model Indy, install some high end shocks and ride it for a year or two, sell it and put the shocks on the next Indy. A guy could do the same thing with a base model MXZ.
Murse
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That is fantastic for you in Alaska where you can ride what, 6-8 months out of the year perhaps? Where I'm from we get 3 months maybe 3 and a half months of decent to good riding and that's pushing it. If I have to take a week or 2 in those months to take my sled to the dealer for anything to be fixed...I'm happy it's covered but pissed that I'm stuck sitting inside looking out waiting for a call. I've ridden 3 Yamaha's and have never been without one for a winter for anything. Now I will agree with if you are trading a sled every 3 years that maybe you don't run into these issues but I would no way ever risk it.
AKrider
TY 4 Stroke God
You bring up a point of view I've never experienced because on average my season is 6-7 months long so if a new sled is down it isn't as big of a deal as it would be for you. Plus I've been riding since '85 and have more than one sled so I'm never without something to ride. Sometimes though, the only thing that isn't broken is the 21 year old Trial Indy.
Since I'm 250 miles away from the nearest dealer I do all my own repairs so the warranty is basically only there for something catastrophic. So with a 4-stroke the chances of an engine letting go are very minimal but yet I'm still dealing with and fixing chassis issues that I wouldn't have to deal with on a 2-stroke. For me I realized I'm not benefitting from a 4-stroke as much as I thought I would. Heck, now that my Nytro is 6 model years old and not worth much (here in AK) and out of warranty if it were to blow an engine its not even worth fixing. The whole 4-stroke benefit thing goes out the window.
Since I'm 250 miles away from the nearest dealer I do all my own repairs so the warranty is basically only there for something catastrophic. So with a 4-stroke the chances of an engine letting go are very minimal but yet I'm still dealing with and fixing chassis issues that I wouldn't have to deal with on a 2-stroke. For me I realized I'm not benefitting from a 4-stroke as much as I thought I would. Heck, now that my Nytro is 6 model years old and not worth much (here in AK) and out of warranty if it were to blow an engine its not even worth fixing. The whole 4-stroke benefit thing goes out the window.
low slung
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Looked at the polaris alot more today.I noticed the new indy 600 had a tag on the fuel cap stating to run 91 octane only(this was also stated in the owners manual).The Pro-R 600 next to it had the same engine but the fuel cap stated no lower than 87octane.Both sleds got a form of detanation control system.Very strange.
MOUNTAIN VMAX4
Pro
Akrider
Akrider,
Your TY 4stroke God Status has been revoked for you blasphemous comments LOL
Akrider,
Your TY 4stroke God Status has been revoked for you blasphemous comments LOL
AKrider
TY 4 Stroke God
I know.... I know, never would have guessed back in '08 that I would have gone back to a 2-stroke. I never thought that would happen. But, Yamaha has done very little to make me want to stay in regards to product development. Things have changed and progressed with the other OEM's and Yamaha hasn't kept up. I'll be watching to see what they release for '14. I'm prepared to be completely underwhelmed so.... whatever they do shouldn't be a disappointment for me. Still, I'd love to see a new chassis.
As far as the octane rating for the Indy, I'm sure its just like my RMK and you can switch back and forth between 87 and 91 using a feature in the gauge. The engine will make less power on 87.
As far as the octane rating for the Indy, I'm sure its just like my RMK and you can switch back and forth between 87 and 91 using a feature in the gauge. The engine will make less power on 87.
low slung
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A read on another thread where you adjusted your oil pump on the 600RMK.Was it easy to do?and did you have to rejet?.How are belts for lasting on these new 600poos?Seems polaris has good sucess with clutching(my old indy500 was a gem in this regard).AKrider said:
AKrider
TY 4 Stroke God
Funny you ask. : ) I'm halfway done adjusting my pump right now and its a PITA! I decided to take a break and eat lunch and check some sled forums. Here is the thread I used for the pump info.
http://www.backcountryrebels.com/showth ... 875&page=2
Here's a link to the Polaris shop manual.
http://www.snowestonline.com/forum/atta ... 1300848551
I don't have enough miles to pass judgement on belt life. We just haven't been getting the snow we should have so far this winter. My understanding is the belts are made Mitsibushi and are supposed to last a long time. I sure hope so, they run around $200 each!!! Way, way more expensive than the belts for my Yamahas. My RMK is fuel injected so no rejetting.
My RMK was running at 80:1. Way too lean for my tastes. People say by turning up the pump you can get it to 40:1. I'll feel a lot safer at that ratio. I'm just glad the Polaris pump is adjustable. The Ski-doo eTech pumps can't be adjusted unless you have a dealer computer. They are set to run really lean. One of the main reasons the crank bearings are greased rather than being lubed from the oil injection system.
http://www.backcountryrebels.com/showth ... 875&page=2
Here's a link to the Polaris shop manual.
http://www.snowestonline.com/forum/atta ... 1300848551
I don't have enough miles to pass judgement on belt life. We just haven't been getting the snow we should have so far this winter. My understanding is the belts are made Mitsibushi and are supposed to last a long time. I sure hope so, they run around $200 each!!! Way, way more expensive than the belts for my Yamahas. My RMK is fuel injected so no rejetting.
My RMK was running at 80:1. Way too lean for my tastes. People say by turning up the pump you can get it to 40:1. I'll feel a lot safer at that ratio. I'm just glad the Polaris pump is adjustable. The Ski-doo eTech pumps can't be adjusted unless you have a dealer computer. They are set to run really lean. One of the main reasons the crank bearings are greased rather than being lubed from the oil injection system.
AKrider
TY 4 Stroke God
I have two rides so far with the turned up pump and it is burning more oil. It smokes a lot more at idle and the level in the tank is dropping more quickly. I'll calculate the ratio when I fill up with gas.
low slung
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Thanks for the info.Its better to burn oil than crap the motor.AKrider said:
AKrider
TY 4 Stroke God
Filled up today, and got 101 miles out of 9.7 gallons. That's better than I figured it would be so I'm happy. Still had a little over 1.5 gals in reserve.
Rode the 3 miles back from the gas station to my house and filled the reservoir back to full, right up to the line I'd marked previously. It took an entire quart of oil so its running right at 40:1 or a hair a richer. That's just where I was hoping it would be! Pretty stoked.
Rode the 3 miles back from the gas station to my house and filled the reservoir back to full, right up to the line I'd marked previously. It took an entire quart of oil so its running right at 40:1 or a hair a richer. That's just where I was hoping it would be! Pretty stoked.
