It's not just Yamalube, all the OEM-branded oils are rip-offs. "Pain-in-the-Polanus" sleds take 0-50w oil, and there aren't any "regular" brands that make that odd weight, so if you want you warranty you have to pay $15/quart for it, and they take a teeny bit over 4 quarts. Lot of oil for a 750cc motor.
I remember the Ski-Doo 2 stroke oil regularly ran about $30/gal for the mineral, or $45/gal for the full synthetic. The place that used to carry Amsoil sold gallons of HP Injector for about $25.
My friend insists on using the Arctic Cat oil, and gladly pays nearly $40/gal for regular synthetic with some green dye that would normally run about half that price.
Dealers in general should be prohibited by law to make these massive markups on OEM products. Isn't there some "price gouging" law for highway gas stations? It's all too easy to tack on an extra dollar on that quart of oil, or another $10 for that obscure, can't fix it part you absolutely need.
The best book about boating(What's a Hoy? by Cap'n Drew Brown) ever written summarized dealer pricing as such:
"It is arguably better to spend more than a small Hyundai on a fuel filter than to lose an entire weekend of boating"......"dealers operate at profit margins that make the White House's $400 toilet seats seem like a magnificent bargain"
Same thing goes. You WILL go riding this weekend, but you need what the dealer has. They know that only a crazy man would sacrifice riding time to go comparison-shop to get the part at a fair price, and know you'll bitch and moan but pay for the part. And you'll be back, since you can't make these parts, usually can't fix them, and there's no place else local to get them.
Except there usually is. I didn't realize until this year that about 20 minutes away was a tiny little Yamaha dealer out in the middle of nowhere that sold only sleds and ATV's. Showroom was the size of a large bedroom. The owner also worked the counter, and was also the mechanic. Stuff there is a bargain compared to the closer, larger dealer.
