Welcome. Great find.
1st- check your sway bar links, look original, they need to be the longer ones. You will also need to install a larger sway bar to decrease the ski lift.
2nd- Please turn those handle bars up. Older person own this sled? A 2" riser is the largest you can add w/o changing cables.
3rd- those mirrors on the side do not work and are worthless at blocking any wind. I will include a picture that will show the only mirrors that will give you a view of whats behind you.
4th- you need to check your a-arms, they need to be level to the floor. to achieve this you need to raise sled off the floor and loosen the top nuts on the front shocks until the spring is just touching the lock nut, NO PRELOAD on the springs at all while in the air. This will increase the cornering ability greatly. See picture below.
5th- The next thing is to shim the skis, the idea is that Yammies have a nose down attitude on the skis which causes darting, you can check this by lying on the floor and look at how your carbides are sitting, also check your carbides for wear, more than likely the front is more worn than the rear. you will need to place a shim (i use 1/4 x 1" x 2" aluminum stock drill, drill two holes and screw to the rubber block in the ski mount so that it pushes the back of the ski down, thus raising the front.
6th-
SledDogs air box mod. This will really open up the motor. I cannot find the link.
Maybe someone will see this post any provide it.
7th- No need to ever run premium fuel, it will run worse. The coolant reservoir will always be a little low, don't worry about it. Spark plugs- NGK cr10eks.
8th- Skis, OEM are not good, but can be improved with ski savers and Berstroms triple carbides or dualies. Everyone has their own opinion. My favorites are slydogs with Bergstroms.
9th- Many of us use Mobil one 0w40 w/o any problems. Better than Yamalube and cheaper, also available at any Walmart. Change every 2 years unless you ride 5k or more a year. Add the oil into the tank, not the top of the engine. You check the oil with the dip stick just sitting in the tank (unscrewed), does not need to be perfect.
10th- use the choke to start, gradually reduce as the sled warms up.
11th- 136" skid works very well. However if you are going to stretch it, put in a completely different skid. You will find many different opinions, however I have a M10 and love it. If you stretch it you will need to add a rear heat exchanger with protection. I will include a picture.
12th- seat is too soft and low. The first mod to address this was switching to an 05 seat, this is what I did. You can also easily add more foam yourself, (very easy). Many have added an Apex seat, I do not like the look, however many do.
13th- AND MOST IMPORTANT! unless you want to get really good at cleaning carbs, Purchase some Mechanic in a Bottle (can be found at Dollar General, Rural King, TSC and many small engine parts suppliers. Many will say Sea Foam will work as well, BUT THEY ARE WRONG.
hehe. Now if your sled is running rough, missing, backfiring, not starting well, it will almost always need a carb cleaning. If it still runs poorly, it will more than likely need another carb cleaning, and maybe even another. ALWAYS CHECK THIS AND THE PLUGS FIRST BEFORE ASKING ON THE FORUM.
This will get you started. Most of these mods are free or very inexpensive. Look in the classifieds here for parts. I have purchased many parts over the years from Bethviper.
