So four of us went to Bend Oregon this last weekend (2/16) and rode some of the Yamaha's. I had the Nitro and my GF had the Phazer. I spent about 8 hours riding and put about 85 miles on the sled. First of all since I just mentioned miles, the fuel economy is very good. 7.4 gallon tank and I still had 1 bar left on the digital display. I'm not sure how much that means left, but it was still good considering I rode it pretty hard.
The power was very good also. It's a very smooth type of power which at first makes you think that it doesnt have much power. The big difference is, is that there isnt any lag in moving. Hit the throttle and its instant pull all the way through, vs riding a 2stroke, you hear it wind up, then it takes off. I wouldnt cry if there was more power though. I went from trail to ditches to powder, to hill climbs and never had any problems. In fact at times I just rolled up to hills, ditches, etc and didnt need to hammer on it. My confidence in the power was that high. It definitely pulled your arms/shoulders back when you hit the gas.
The speed is pretty good. I had it up to 91. I wouldnt say it got there in an instant, but the sled isnt setup for top fuel dragsters either. The torque is what you really noticed from the bottom end. I idled up to a small lip and jumped across and entire road and then climbed up a pretty steep incline for about 100 feet in a good amount of powder. I just cant tell you how much confidence I had on the sled.
As far as the turning goes, I have read other people complain about how heavy it is and how it doesnt turn in and point and go. All BS. When riding it, you dont even notice the weight and again its not all that much more than other sleds when comparing fuel diff/oil, etc. For a 153 track, it turned really good. There was only a few times where I wanted to turn it sharper. I would say a better ski would help alot. The Phazer was actually 10 times worse to turn than the nitro. It felt like it weighed 1000lbs compared. I believe its because of the engine placement over the ski's, but im not positive. I did manage to roll the sled over on its side 2 times. Both times I was pushing it up hill to get it level again, which didnt help. Both times were also due to me trying to help a few other sleds that were stuck mid hill. I practically coasted up to them and stopped, asked them if they needed help and then started to take off. When I did, I didnt have any momentum and the inside ski dug and it was all over. YES, it was a pain in the @ss to get over. I'm about 220lbs and its not from being overweight and I still struggled. Without my buddy helping me, I would have been there awhile. However, if it was MY sled, I would have just rolled it completely over and been on my way. I just wanted to take as much care of the sled as I could, so I could have avoided the pain had it been mine.
The suspension is very nice. Again the confidence I had in the sled allowed me to fly over some pretty gnarly sections with ease. There was only one time that I bottomed out the rear suspension and that was from G'ng out when landing and immediately hitting the face of another speed bump. When jumping the sled, it soaked it up so easily and allowed me to get on the throttle instantly.
The riding position is SWEET. I went from sitting to standing without effort. It was very comfy to ride standing. Riding position is aimed forward and aggressive. It felt like I was going from my race bike (dirt) to quad riding. The running boards were far superior than anything I have ever ridden. Lots of room and your boots gripped it like crazy.
It did overheat a few times, but it only took seconds once in powder to cool it down. It only happened due to riding on the trails and not allowing any snow to get next to the track (cant think of what the part is called).
The F.I was incredible. never had any issues and it ran like a champ the entire day. Elec start, was flawless and the reverse was very nice. Infact the reverse will put you over the front if your not paying attention.
I will attach a few pics and if I can get the video downsized then I will upload it also. Any good shareware software to do that? its about 123mb.
Overall my impression was very good. Personally I will wait until Sept 08 and most likely ride/buy the Crossover XTX. I think it will be the best of all worlds. I love the nitro but for me, a little better turning, a little better suspension and a little shorter track would be perfect. And the XTX seems to have all of that.
