Only 5 weeks without my sled this year

[sideshowBob]

I have been riding for over 55 years and have learned that they all break at one time or another and parts are unavailable or take time to get.
I always have a spare sled kicking around, my 2002 SRX was a spare for my Attak and now my Attak is a spare for my Winder.
Coming from an Aviation background, I also learned you need spare parts on hand to shorten down time. For my Winder I have tried to collect parts I think I may need like a complete drive shaft,brake caliper and bearing, relays, drive chains and gears adjuster, water pump, assortment of driveline bearings, gaskets, idler wheels, shafts ect ect.
The trouble with my approach is when you no longer have one of your sleds you end up with a mountain of unused parts...its crazy the amount of Apex/Attak parts I have after having that sled for over 10 years...pretty well all of my 2002 SRX parts are gone though.

 

[JayM]

Or a parts only warranty would be even better.

Yes, this! I would be all over that!

Even with warranty I rather spend the money to fix it myself in a couple days than leave it at the dealer for weeks and it be "free" .

 

[uofm]

My problem is I had to take it to a place that specializes in turbos. The dealer had no idea. The dealer has been really good though. No complaints with them.

 

[1nc 2000]

Even though all my Yamaha sled have a 5 year warranty I still do all my pre season maintenance. It keeps the down time down to a minimum in the riding season.
If something major breaks I take it to my dealer and they are the best at getting you back on the snow in a short time.
Thank you Meyer Yamaha!

 

[journeyman]

Dang right it is! I have heard of some companies or dealers giving out loaners while you wait. But its rare. I cant imagine missing the great riding opportunities for even a week! So sorry for you. Heck with it. My buddy who was a DooXRS buyer every year blew both his 850's two seasons in a row. They replaced engines but he lost well over a months riding. Switched to Polaris 850 last year. Blew that motor too. Dealer or factory gave him choice immediately of a new unstudded 850 or a ProS studded to ride while waiting. He chose the ProS. I believe because of what they did he will be committed to them for a long time.

Sounds like he found a decent dealer but sure tells you something about the 850's.....may go boom at any time. Everyone is different but I would not like that feeling owning a machine that is a ticking time bomb. If you keep it past the warranty it's most likely going to be a costly sled.

 

[HMTurbo]

Dang right it is! I have heard of some companies or dealers giving out loaners while you wait. But its rare. I cant imagine missing the great riding opportunities for even a week! So sorry for you. Heck with it. My buddy who was a DooXRS buyer every year blew both his 850's two seasons in a row. They replaced engines but he lost well over a months riding. Switched to Polaris 850 last year. Blew that motor too. Dealer or factory gave him choice immediately of a new unstudded 850 or a ProS studded to ride while waiting. He chose the ProS. I believe because of what they did he will be committed to them for a long time.

"Knocks on wood."

I just don't get so many people "blowing up" so many sleds. I've owned 18+ 2 strokes going back to 92 and the only engine failure with a 2 stroke I've ever had was with a 01 TCat when it was already 15 years old. Is this a poor gas/oil issue or not properly warming a sled up? Man I think I'd quit the sport if I had 3 new 850's have engines go down on their own.

 

[journeyman]

"Knocks on wood."

I just don't get so many people "blowing up" so many sleds. I've owned 18+ 2 strokes going back to 92 and the only engine failure with a 2 stroke I've ever had was with a 01 TCat when it was already 15 years old. Is this a poor gas/oil issue or not properly warming a sled up? Man I think I'd quit the sport if I had 3 new 850's have engines go down on their own.

The gas is definitely a different ball game these days with the ethanol blends. But in all reality they are getting some incredible HP numbers out of these top line 2 strokes today all along with great mileage and lower oil consumption. That last part might be part of it right there.....starve them of oil and you know what happens.

Years ago I went to an Olav Aaen clutch clinic he was putting on. Anyone that has ever met him knows he is quite sharp around a snowmobile engine. I remember he was dead against 2 stroke twins much larger than a 600 cc. He said with the larger cylinders you run into fuel scavenging and cooling issues.

The one thing I do not hear quite as often is the 600 cc Etec's, C Tec's...etc. blowing up like you do the 800 to 850's....hmm

 

[kinger]

The 850s and other 2 strokes are well engineered and tested. We like to climb on the stories of them blowing up but in reality the failure rate is very low. My dealer that moves hundreds of 850s since they came out have had 3 back in. Its typically related to user error, or bad fuel. They are great motors just not fast enough for a boosted yamaha guy. Sidewinder owners finally get to see what its like to ride a boosted apex like only a few of us experienced before cat/yammie made it available to the masses. It was a maintenance hog in the offseason. I stretched chains out to the point they would stand straight out when I held them. Only 1 tow that I can remember and that was my fault. They all require lots of off season maintenance and spare parts to survive the season. They are just so fast and the hits are harder on everything compared to going say half speed back in the day on a 500. Hard to wreck something going 50mph vs going 120 mph. So fun to drive!

 

[mikextx]

Or a parts only warranty would be even better.

Thats only good if they actually have the parts. If its on backorder for 3 months, parts only warranty is not worth a damn

 

[cannondale27]

The 850s and other 2 strokes are well engineered and tested. We like to climb on the stories of them blowing up but in reality the failure rate is very low. My dealer that moves hundreds of 850s since they came out have had 3 back in. Its typically related to user error, or bad fuel. They are great motors just not fast enough for a boosted yamaha guy. Sidewinder owners finally get to see what its like to ride a boosted apex like only a few of us experienced before cat/yammie made it available to the masses. It was a maintenance hog in the offseason. I stretched chains out to the point they would stand straight out when I held them. Only 1 tow that I can remember and that was my fault. They all require lots of off season maintenance and spare parts to survive the season. They are just so fast and the hits are harder on everything compared to going say half speed back in the day on a 500. Hard to wreck something going 50mph vs going 120 mph. So fun to drive!

It’s how they are ridden that determines when they will blow not if. How can maintenance be a issue in under 2000mi? They also are using oil and fuel programs to cheat epa just like Volkswagen. They sip fuel and oil if ridden like a Grandma. When ridden hard they are throwing it at them to try saving motor. Big lie that for most 2-3000 mi is 4 years so warranty not a factor.

 

[mikextx]

Most two strokes that I have seen blow up in the last few years have been modified from stock. that being said my Polaris buddies change Pistons every two thousand miles just to be safe. Lol

 

[Big_Phil]

It’s how they are ridden that determines when they will blow not if. How can maintenance be a issue in under 2000mi? They also are using oil and fuel programs to cheat epa just like Volkswagen. They sip fuel and oil if ridden like a Grandma. When ridden hard they are throwing it at them to try saving motor. Big lie that for most 2-3000 mi is 4 years so warranty not a factor.

Ya those ETECs are interesting. They run like 25:1 A/F ratio when cruising with no load on the engines. Thats why you have to index the plugs or they wont run right. The idea is there isnt enough fuel in the combustion chamber to completely burn the air, so that cushion of un-burnt air protects the piston from melting.

 

[journeyman]

I do know the guy that used to be the service manager at Waldoch’s (old Hayday’s site) before they sold out and were a Ski Doo and Yamaha dealer. So this was before the 850, was the 800 ETec....those were blowing up like crazy. In fact SD was out of motors it was so bad. Waldoch’s were happy at the time to get rid of SD it was such a problem with unhappy customers sitting with new sleds down for the season.

 

[HMTurbo]

Still feel fuel and proper warm up has something to do with it. I cringe when I see people sit in the bar a couple hours come out engine is about 20 deg and they fire it up and go ripping across the lake for a mile at WOT.

 

[Turboflash]

Completely agree. See it all the time. Engine stone cold; they fire it up, hold it WOT within 15 secs of start. C'mon man! Really?
Where is oil pump adjustment? Is it right? I drill ALL my thermostats to ALWAYS bleed a little even when engine is below stat temp. I want ALL coolant to warm up gradually and engine to come up to temp slowly and uniformly.