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Jumped Ship, But It's been a great ride!!

That is one beautiful sled!! Love the all black, I was looking at a 08 121" MXZX, but hated the gray side panels. Decided on a black 04 800 MXZX since I guess here in NY unless you are 21 you have to have a co-signer and I didn't want to buy something I couldn't buy by myself. Hopefully Yamaha looses some weight or adds some power or next year I will be buying a 2010 Renegade X.

Please let me know how you like the sled!

Thanks,
Casey
 

So this past weekend, well, starting on Wednesday I finally had the chance to ride my new 800 Renegade. My previous sled was a Yamaha Apex so many of the points I make will be comparisons to that sled.

So my trip consisted of riding in Maine's Aroostook County which is consistently rated one of the best places in North Amercia to ride. The trails are a mix of high speed rail beds, power lines, tight trails, fields, and off trail powder. So where so I start, probably with the statement that the XP 800 IS the sled that I always wanted the Apex to be. The motor, from the get go, is super strong. I broke the belt in for the first 30 miles by varying speed, never breaking hard or going wot. It was difficult, since my friends were always waiting for me when typically it's the other way around, but it was worth it. After those 30 miles I proceeded to ride the machine like I typically ride, and was not going to baby it one bit. Of course I didn't go on any top speed runs on the lake yet either.

Motor

As stated, the motor pulls and pulls and pulls. I thought that after the Apex I would be dissapointed but I was not. The clutching was awesome, specifically the backshifting, almost felt like engine breaking from the Apex, to a lesser degree. At 60 mph , when you punch it, it almost hits a second level of anger and screams. I would say it almost seemed telepathic because wherever I was in the rpm's, when i punched it, it just went like a bat out of hell. At first I was pulling about 8500 rpm's on the tach and idling at 2000, I had the dealer go a clicker back and after that it was pulling 8300, but idling at 2500. It took some coaxing to get back to that sometimes from 3200 after longer runs, so I may need to look into that. I also noticed that many of the times when starting it, it needed a blip of gas to get it going quickly, not sure if thats normal either. It got COLD up there, specifically the last night it was -22. The next morning, the motor started right up with a little choke and had zero issues.

After 800 miles, i'm on my original belt. I never cleaned it in the dishwasher, and did not scrub the clutches or secondary down either. The belt looks brand new.

Suspension

Wow, WAY better then the Apex. There is a ton of adjustability in these x shocks and I spent a great deal of time tinkering with them. We got into some pretty big woops in some sections and i felt that the suspension handled them all very well, never bottoming out, and I'm 220 in street clothes, maybe 240 with all my gear and backpack. I will talk a bit about the setup in the ski's section.

Ergos

The new seat is WAY better then the 08 version. In my group there were 2 08 X packages , one an 800 and one a 600. My seat was much softer and much more comfortable. As for the super low windshield, I love the look of it. At -22 though you wished you had something more susbstantial. I may have to look into poolboys because they seem to at least be big enough to hide behind on those 20 minute rips across lakes and on rail beds. The gauges are awesome, easily readable and accurate.

Gas Gauge , was always accurate. Burping the sled got a bit more gas in, not a ton, but def helped.

Skis

I put USI Triple Threat Skis on. They have the stage 2 fins and 7.5 inch shaper bars. At first I was like, whoa, these skis are AGGRESSIVE. It was a bear to turn when going slow. When going fast into high speed sweepers though, they grabbed and grabbed and grabbed. I always felt secure that they werent going anywhere. The next day though I made significant changes to my suspension. I really cranked down the collar on the front shock in the rear suspension, i softened up the front shock setting as well and put the block on max transfer. This helped out a ton, but i think im going to try letting out the limiter strap some before my next trip. All in all, the skis are awesome for the super aggressive, and strong rider. Perhaps a smaller roundbar will be the trick, i may give that a shot.

Overall FUNABILITY

The most fun I have ever had with my clothes on. This sled is perfect for me. Its super light so it floats like hell. On my apex I was always afraid of the powder, and now I go off looking for it. Maine got pounded while we were there and there was close to 3 feet of powder in some areas. I was also breaking trail with 2 feet consistently and the sled floated like a dream and powered through all of it. I didnt get it stuck at all in my 800 miles of aggressive riding.

When going through trails, if there was even the slightest little bump or jump, you can just blip the throttle and LAUNCH off. Im sure my max tranfer settings helped alot, but the power, and light weight of this sled keeps u airborn when you want to be.

Overall, this sled was by far the most fun machine i have ever ridden.

Issues

So every first trip has it's issues. Mine happened to be coolant. During the first day and a half, I put on about 300 miles. When i brought it into the dealer for the 10 hour (dealer was trailside) , they discovered that my coolant was low. They said that the 09's have been coming alot like that and they put new style clamps on it. However, after the last day of riding, and having the sled sit on the snow overnight, there was quite a bit of coolant on the ground. So, back to the dealer she goes.

Also, on the ride back on the last night, I had heard my track making some different noises. When i stopped and then took off, sometimes it sounded like i hit an ice chunk or something like that. I have determined tgat my track is loose, and I was getting some track slap, so I will have to adjust that out as well.

Conclusion

Sorry for being so long winded, but I have read so many negatives on here. I will say that skidoo hit it out of the frikken park on this one. I LOVE this machine, and after this trip, 2 of my buddies are in the market for this sled. I would also love to give a shout out to THE SLED SHOP , in Presque Isle Maine. These guys are a class act, and an awesome dealer to work with. Very knowledgeable and on top of their game. They are big riders, they supprt Team Maine for the big race up in Canada, and are fellow fanatics. Fell free to shoot any questions over to me.
 
TB151,

Thanks for the report. I rode my buddy's new '09 XP 800 R and I was very impressed. Awesome weight transfer (even with his limiter strap pulled all the way up), unbelieveable acceleration out of the hole, super light weight and a great suspension is what I thought.

His XP is also leaking coolant and his gas gauge stopped working after a week. I would advise you to leave your motor stock. My buddy milled his head to make sure that he was faster than my Apex (see my separate post on this) and I ended up towing him back with a siezed motor.

Good luck and enjoy your new ride. Maybe if Yamaha puts the apex on a diet and gives it a better suspension we will get you back on our side in the future LOL!
 
TB151 said:
So this past weekend, well, starting on Wednesday I finally had the chance to ride my new 800 Renegade. My previous sled was a Yamaha Apex so many of the points I make will be comparisons to that sled.

So my trip consisted of riding in Maine's Aroostook County which is consistently rated one of the best places in North Amercia to ride. The trails are a mix of high speed rail beds, power lines, tight trails, fields, and off trail powder. So where so I start, probably with the statement that the XP 800 IS the sled that I always wanted the Apex to be. The motor, from the get go, is super strong. I broke the belt in for the first 30 miles by varying speed, never breaking hard or going wot. It was difficult, since my friends were always waiting for me when typically it's the other way around, but it was worth it. After those 30 miles I proceeded to ride the machine like I typically ride, and was not going to baby it one bit. Of course I didn't go on any top speed runs on the lake yet either.

Motor

As stated, the motor pulls and pulls and pulls. I thought that after the Apex I would be dissapointed but I was not. The clutching was awesome, specifically the backshifting, almost felt like engine breaking from the Apex, to a lesser degree. At 60 mph , when you punch it, it almost hits a second level of anger and screams. I would say it almost seemed telepathic because wherever I was in the rpm's, when i punched it, it just went like a bat out of hell. At first I was pulling about 8500 rpm's on the tach and idling at 2000, I had the dealer go a clicker back and after that it was pulling 8300, but idling at 2500. It took some coaxing to get back to that sometimes from 3200 after longer runs, so I may need to look into that. I also noticed that many of the times when starting it, it needed a blip of gas to get it going quickly, not sure if thats normal either. It got COLD up there, specifically the last night it was -22. The next morning, the motor started right up with a little choke and had zero issues.

After 800 miles, i'm on my original belt. I never cleaned it in the dishwasher, and did not scrub the clutches or secondary down either. The belt looks brand new.

Suspension

Wow, WAY better then the Apex. There is a ton of adjustability in these x shocks and I spent a great deal of time tinkering with them. We got into some pretty big woops in some sections and i felt that the suspension handled them all very well, never bottoming out, and I'm 220 in street clothes, maybe 240 with all my gear and backpack. I will talk a bit about the setup in the ski's section.

Ergos

The new seat is WAY better then the 08 version. In my group there were 2 08 X packages , one an 800 and one a 600. My seat was much softer and much more comfortable. As for the super low windshield, I love the look of it. At -22 though you wished you had something more susbstantial. I may have to look into poolboys because they seem to at least be big enough to hide behind on those 20 minute rips across lakes and on rail beds. The gauges are awesome, easily readable and accurate.

Gas Gauge , was always accurate. Burping the sled got a bit more gas in, not a ton, but def helped.

Skis

I put USI Triple Threat Skis on. They have the stage 2 fins and 7.5 inch shaper bars. At first I was like, whoa, these skis are AGGRESSIVE. It was a bear to turn when going slow. When going fast into high speed sweepers though, they grabbed and grabbed and grabbed. I always felt secure that they werent going anywhere. The next day though I made significant changes to my suspension. I really cranked down the collar on the front shock in the rear suspension, i softened up the front shock setting as well and put the block on max transfer. This helped out a ton, but i think im going to try letting out the limiter strap some before my next trip. All in all, the skis are awesome for the super aggressive, and strong rider. Perhaps a smaller roundbar will be the trick, i may give that a shot.

Overall FUNABILITY

The most fun I have ever had with my clothes on. This sled is perfect for me. Its super light so it floats like hell. On my apex I was always afraid of the powder, and now I go off looking for it. Maine got pounded while we were there and there was close to 3 feet of powder in some areas. I was also breaking trail with 2 feet consistently and the sled floated like a dream and powered through all of it. I didnt get it stuck at all in my 800 miles of aggressive riding.

When going through trails, if there was even the slightest little bump or jump, you can just blip the throttle and LAUNCH off. Im sure my max tranfer settings helped alot, but the power, and light weight of this sled keeps u airborn when you want to be.

Overall, this sled was by far the most fun machine i have ever ridden.

Issues

So every first trip has it's issues. Mine happened to be coolant. During the first day and a half, I put on about 300 miles. When i brought it into the dealer for the 10 hour (dealer was trailside) , they discovered that my coolant was low. They said that the 09's have been coming alot like that and they put new style clamps on it. However, after the last day of riding, and having the sled sit on the snow overnight, there was quite a bit of coolant on the ground. So, back to the dealer she goes.

Also, on the ride back on the last night, I had heard my track making some different noises. When i stopped and then took off, sometimes it sounded like i hit an ice chunk or something like that. I have determined tgat my track is loose, and I was getting some track slap, so I will have to adjust that out as well.

Conclusion

Sorry for being so long winded, but I have read so many negatives on here. I will say that skidoo hit it out of the frikken park on this one. I LOVE this machine, and after this trip, 2 of my buddies are in the market for this sled. I would also love to give a shout out to THE SLED SHOP , in Presque Isle Maine. These guys are a class act, and an awesome dealer to work with. Very knowledgeable and on top of their game. They are big riders, they supprt Team Maine for the big race up in Canada, and are fellow fanatics. Fell free to shoot any questions over to me.
Click to expand...
have fun just "BRP" Bring Rings & Pistons lol :rofl:
 
Nice report. I too jumped ship to a Dragon 800. I think the Dragon is a wayyy better trail sled than my Apex was. Is the motor as exciting...no. Is it just a fast yes. Does my Dragon get good mileage...NOT...sucks...but I love the sled. The Dragon has a few issues that I am working on but...doesn't every sled?

My buddy has an 08 800R and hates it. He bought a Boss seat and had the rear suspension upgraded to the 09 suspension and he hates it. I keep telling him how he should set it up but he won't listen...he'd rather just complain about it.
 
CountyTripJanuary09037.jpg


CountyTripJanuary09038.jpg


on the right
 
get the bugs worked out...you'll love it..got my eye on the fourstroke doo unless they come with a 800 sdi or etc...but I'd still wait a year for the bugs to get worked out....hopefully yam will excite in 2010 with more than electric steering!
 
TB151,

One thing that I forgot to mention about my ride on my Buddy's '09 XP 800 R is the total lack of wind protection. I literally froze my nuts off from the wind that gets in your crotch. Not to mention your legs, arms, hands, chest, neck, head, etc.

My buddy has ordered a larger windshield and some sort of side deflectors. I guess that I will have to try it again once he installs these (and gets it back from the engine rebuild @ 200 miles).

Have you run any Apex's? Now that I found out that my buddy's had a milled head (until it blew up) I would like to race one with a stock motor.
 
Thanks for the honest review. Always nice to read reports from different sleds.
 
Another convert. At least we get honest reports. My buddy just converted to 2 new E-Tech's after 6 years and 9 Yamaha's. He is on his first trip with them so I'm waiting for his report. I usually buy his wife's trade in every year, so next year, I have to make a decision. I really don't want to change even though I've owned 5 Ski Doo's in the past. I just love the 4 stroke. Maybe if Yamaha comes out with some changes, as long as the chassis doesn't look like a 3 cylinder, maybe that will convince me to stay on board. I just don't like the pushed in nose on the 3 cylinders.
 
The grass is always greener. Trade some stuff for other stuff. Nothing is perfect. But like another ex ski dooer, when he fires the 4 cylinder up, everything is right with the world..lol.
 
Good report, hopefully the people at Yamaha will read it too. Competition is good. It makes all the mfg's step up to the plate with better and better stuff.
 
Nice report Travis...

After riding w/ you all week, I'd say his report is 100% accurate...

I was able to put on the same mileage, as we rode together and I'd say he hit everything spot on.

He definitely kept saying that the Renegade is everything he wanted his Apex to be.

Touching on the tippiness factor...I'm on an 08 Vector LTX GT and I've set my front suspension so the A arms are parrellel to the ground...I rolled my sled 2 times and man did it suck. I bent my steering column and handlebars and brought it in to Gary's Yamaha for a quick fix. Big thanks to you guys, class act, very knowledgeable, and very customer service oriented. Highly recommend them! I called them, drove trailside to them, and they had me back out on the trail in an hour!

Although I did not get the chance to ride his Renegade, I can definitely see some major advantages of the Ski Doo over the DBII Chassis w/ either the 4 or 3 holer. One obviously is the weight difference. Another is the suspension. The suspension on the Renegade is quite impressive. We were hitting some pretty big woops and I'd have to say I bottomed out. I think it was a combination of my mono shock skid having so much ice built up on it, adding the extra un-needed weight and also the fact that the mono is really not suited for the big bumps. I got the chance to ride an 08 800 the first day of our trip and I must say that the ergonomics are quite nice. It definitely felt more "planted" to the snow/ground when hitting any turns at speed. I had a very hard time keeping my inside ski on the ground on my Vector. So, major plus to the not-so-tippy feeling on the XP. On another note, being our 4 strokes don't need injector oil (gotta love that!), I must say that his 800 didn't use much oil. Another guy was on a 600 SDI and that thing hardly used any oil! Ski Doo is definitely producing some great motors that are becoming verryyyy efficient. Although I always came in w/ the best fuel mileage, these guys weren't too far behind.

All in all, I'm starting to get used to my Vector and it seems like I really need to adapt the engine braking to maximize my deceleration before hitting any turns w/ speed. Hitting them slow and then being able to launch out fast seems to be the trick, especially if I don't want to lift that inside ski and/or roll the sled!

If I was in the market for a new sled, I'd definitely be considering a Ski Doo XP. The sled has great looks and it definitely seemed to perform, based on Travis' riding. He sure as hell didn't baby it! We did some hard riding and he put that thing through some hell!
 
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