Rear Shock Poll

[Mighty]

I have been reading about Rear EC Ohlins failing but have yet to read about the other (the stocker that comes in the Apex ER, RTX and Attak) rear failing. How has yours done so far?

 

[wolfie]

Not alot of replies yet, yet 2 out of 9 are problematic Ohlins. Count by brothers and that's 3 out of 10. Not impressive. We both blew our shocks, I'm on my second one, his is due for a rebuild/replacement.

 

[rapeape]

After 500 miles my GT's rear shock shaft and bumper is covered with oil, I suppose its blown, though I did not notice it while riding. As far as the electronic control, I love it. I might adjust it 30 times in a 100 mile ride.

After the worst snow season in memory I still think this sled is bad to the bone. I'm finding that my dreameter hits triple digits in places my '03 RX1 never could.

 

[RedRX1]

A OK now that I have the fat boy spring!!

 

[welterracer]

at 750 miles my shock wire broke.. (wasnt zip tied right from the factory)

at 1500 miles the shock lost half of its charge and no longer clicked when turning the rebound adjuster)

i just put 220 miles on the new shock and its still fine..

The good thing about these shocks are they are rebuildable.. Bad thing is they are EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE!!

Brian

I did add the 5.5 fat boy spring at the 1500 mark

 

[impalapower]

Ohlins has nearly 2500 miles and have not had any problems. Having the quick adjustment at hand is the ticket.

 

[GT Dave]

2000 miles. Still works great! But, I too have the Fat Boy spring!!

 

[POWERHAULIC]

Installed a 6.4 kg spring at 100miles, but my wire broke today.
I really don't care, as 4 idler wheels and broken wire later it is still a GREAT sled!

 

[Mighty]

Hmmmmmm, over half the EC owners report problems.............

 

[SledFreak]

Yes Mighty, but I'm not sure this is not a true test, because this should be asked to Yamaha, how many EC's have had problems. I talked to 5 different dealers and only 1 said they had 1 problem with the 1 GT out of 50 GT's sold and the shock was not blown, just the wire broke.

 

[wolfie]

Yes Mighty, but I'm not sure this is not a true test, because this should be asked to Yamaha, how many EC's have had problems. I talked to 5 different dealers and only 1 said they had 1 problem with the 1 GT out of 50 GT's sold and the shock was not blown, just the wire broke.

Good points, this poll is an extremely small sample. But I also know what I've heard, and the fact that my brother and I both have blown the shocks on our GTS. Like someone else mentioned, I thought Ohlins were bulletproof. I'm wondering if they're using some new seals that aren't any good? It is my position that there is nothing wrong with the tunnels (mine is buckled), and there is nothing wrong with the skid. I think the design is superior, 15-20 pounds less unsprung weight is a huge design advantage. But when the shock is gone, there is nothing protecting the other parts of the suspension and the tunnel. Fix the shock, and you won't hear any more tunnel problems.

 

[S pump]

I think abusing the shock with too light a spring is what causes failure. The ride quality is mint just spring rate is too soft for fat aggressive guys. Hopefully cured now with heavier oil and spring. We'll see this weekend.

 

[rx-1erlimitededition]

I have stock Apex. I have not had leaking problems but have notice the shock and spring are fading after about 2000 miles. I plan to go to heavy spring next year, but am concerned this might be harsh in terms of rebound. Should help the fading and bottoming though.

 

[impalapower]

The other thing is that there are many owners not even on the site.

 

[Reaper]

300 miles stock spring, changed to heavier spring and shock blown at 1200 miles. New shock installed on warranty !