SteveO Gone

[grubf]

They are all junk. Pick your poison. They all break. You can buy heavy junk or you can buy light junk. If you like be responsible and invest your money wisely do not take up snowmobiling. If there was a way to kick yourself in the nuts and at the same time throw thousands of dollars to the four winds that practice would be called sledding.

 

[1049triple]

For sure it need a lot of attention and it is very high maintenance, but this is the one I like!
IMO you need to be a mechanic to own a thing like that. But if you do your homework, it wont let you down the trail. I must say I have at least half the time with this one wrenching on it... But..
I like that chassis, even if yes it have its short comings.
And I also always liked that 3 cyl engine with the grunt it provide.

 

[1nc 2000]

Oh ya it's a lot of fun to ride!
Just think about when the tunnel flexes and the chaincase goes in and out with it wearing the bushing in the top gear from uneven pull on the chain. Make a stronger center section with some real fasteners and it would be a good start then.

 

[vmxrdr]

Sorry to see Steve go, 600 doo is probably most reliable sled out right now too. I couldnt do it personally because i find 850s feel like smelly tippy mini bikes after riding a tuned winder for 3 years, I get my share of big fast northern Ontario and Quebec riding in so power is more important than to a lot of guys. Yamacat isnt as solidly engineered as made in japan i find for sure. Probably spun most of a 100,000 kms on japan built yamahas and really only fixed minor stuff that wasnt self induced. Yamacats have been solid for me but i addressed everything recommended on here. Big shout out to Travis! His intercooler cover had its first big test last week in Quebec and kept cooler nearly clean after 1500 kms including 90 mph blasts close to sled in front of me.
I can swallow the made in Japan guys chiming in but bragging you are going to an 850 of either brand is genuinely trolling. 5 of 7 of my buds who bought 850 doosnever saw second season without catastrophic failure even with the new super duper 4 stroke style crank that costs way more to fix. I am not trolling i can pm anybody that wants to talk to them all and get the skinny on them, most of them werent very happy but a few just consider it part of the ride.Our little doo dealer where i buy pilot skiis just offered a good friend 6200$ for one with 1350 kms, he cant give them away out of warranty.
I am really over putting up with the eye burning stink of the oil gobbling 850 doos too, luckily if you have a 270 hp winder you only need a 200’ straight stretch to fix the situation. Middle of our tour last week i declared quite sarcastically that i am calling our big seasonal tour the ‘skidoo tour’from now on, 4 dealer visits in 6 days mostly buying oil for them. They use way more than brp says they do.
Had big hopes for my big 900t test ride in Quebec but Rockerdan nailed that ill performing touring sled, anybody that thinks they work okay has blinders on or only bag tours with senior citizens. Tried to go thru big rollers with some bumps from lack of grooming, in the more than no power sport mode i honestly couldnt figure out how to work the throttle to make it feel safe let alone fun, either full on bog or spinning a noticeable bit of time after you hit the throttle?? Getting back on quick spool tuned winder felt sketchy after that turd but at least throttle response is linear on yamaha engine.
Its engineered to sell 850s to the faithful i think.
The real point of my rant inspired by going to an 850 for reliabilty is i really hope yamaha steps up their game soon. Some solid redesign of the chassis details for reliability and an interactive connected dash isnt too much to ask?? Ever seen the dash on a new ohlins active shock R1? Those bikes are works of art for a bit more money than an LE winder costs thats piss poorly assembled in Thief River Falls.
End of rant!!

 

[JayM]

2021 MXZ XRS 850 coming my way as well with the new gauge and Ice Ripper 1.5 XT, no QAS. Going to be a good season next year!

 

[ClutchMaster]

2021 MXZ XRS 850 coming my way as well with the new gauge and Ice Ripper 1.5 XT, no QAS. Going to be a good season next year!

Ya got bout a 50/50 chance the motor don’t blow. Ya also got half the horsepower.....
Good thing your optimistic tho

 

[JayM]

Ya got bout a 50/50 chance the motor don’t blow. Ya also got half the horsepower.....
Good thing your optimistic tho
View attachment 153432

Unfortunately 300hp doesn't make me turn any quicker or handle chop any better. I do a top speed run maybe once a season, completely useless really.

When I get feedback from guys like RockerDan who rides the same trails I do, that's what I listen to and has a big impact on a decision. I have 2 other buddies that switched from tuned Winders/Cats to 850's and aren't back.

If Yam came out with something revolutionary I'd be all in but a BNG Winder and no 129",no Thanks.

 

[74Nitro]

Unfortunately 300hp doesn't make me turn any quicker or handle chop any better. I do a top speed run maybe once a season, completely useless really.

When I get feedback from guys like RockerDan who rides the same trails I do, that's what I listen to and has a big impact on a decision. I have 2 other buddies that switched from tuned Winders/Cats to 850's and aren't back.

If Yam came out with something revolutionary I'd be all in but a BNG Winder and no 129",no Thanks.

Dan is stuck on those tight and twisty Huntsville trails unfortunately.

 

[ClutchMaster]

Unfortunately 300hp doesn't make me turn any quicker or handle chop any better. I do a top speed run maybe once a season, completely useless really.

When I get feedback from guys like RockerDan who rides the same trails I do, that's what I listen to and has a big impact on a decision. I have 2 other buddies that switched from tuned Winders/Cats to 850's and aren't back.

If Yam came out with something revolutionary I'd be all in but a BNG Winder and no 129",no Thanks.

Absolutely! No 121” and now no 129”?
Totally agree the big power in tight stuff really moot. I ride an area that has the tightest trails anywhere, I can still find spots where I can use the big power on occasion. When I’m in the U.P. look out for the turbo machines, they are king!

If your truly wanting the best handling snowmobile get an old school Viper or SRX 121” M10 or M12 suspension, ride great, super reliable, fastest sleds through the corners hands down.

PS. when are they gonna outlaw these super long 2.5” paddle tracks machines that blow every inch of snow off the trail?
Shouldn’t be on the trail period

 

[WinderFab]

Absolutely! No 121” and now no 129”?
Totally agree the big power in tight stuff really moot. I ride an area that has the tightest trails anywhere, I can still find spots where I can use the big power on occasion. When I’m in the U.P. look out for the turbo machines, they are king!

If your truly wanting the best handling snowmobile get an old school Viper or SRX 121” M10 or M12 suspension, ride great, super reliable, fastest sleds through the corners hands down.

PS. when are they gonna outlaw these super long 2.5” paddle tracks machines that blow every inch of snow off the trail?
Shouldn’t be on the trail period

I just got back from riding in Quebec, Sunday we caught up to 2 sleds cruising on the trail, I was in the lead and noticed a storm of snow flying out from behind the sleds as they were leaving a trench in the trail and literally destroying it, they were only doing about 40mph and could barely keep the sled straight. Turned out to be 2 btx’s. Totally agree they shouldn’t be allowed to be on the trails.

 

[number1kyster]

Honestly, I can't blame anyone for switching brands. Especially a guy like Steve, who just had his 2nd or 3rd in season failure on his Winder. To top it all off, some parts are on back order the rest of the season. Our season is too short for that!

I'm happy with my Sidewinder for the most part. I've installed many of the BOP fixes in hopes that it makes it a reliable sled for me. I did have to replace the bushing in the top gear at 1,500 miles. But, even my almighty Apex had warranty repairs by 1,500 miles. None of these machines are perfect.

My dad will have 10k miles on his by mid-march. The driveshaft was replaced under warranty. Aside from that, it's been flawless.

If I were to replace my Winder with something different, it would probably be the 900T with a tune. I know the throttle sucks, and so does the front end, but I've got a buddy with one who is approaching 10k miles. He changed the factory belt at 8k. The only issue he had was frozen steering boots, which BRP has now fixed.

 

[cannondale27]

While I agree there is issues they are all documented here. They are all manageable on a seasonal basis or for some half a season. This means if you do the maintainence the reliability IS there even at 17000mi I am confident enough to ride mine from Pembine WI to Muni,BigBay and back ALONE. 670mi in a weekend. Only issue was blowing top off a 8dn with over 3000mi on it. About half the issues long term are caused by aftermarket add ons. The rest are manageable. Steveo made a mistake buying a Doo.

 

[SumpBuster]

Honestly, I can't blame anyone for switching brands. Especially a guy like Steve, who just had his 2nd or 3rd in season failure on his Winder. To top it all off, some parts are on back order the rest of the season. Our season is too short for that!

I'm happy with my Sidewinder for the most part. I've installed many of the BOP fixes in hopes that it makes it a reliable sled for me. I did have to replace the bushing in the top gear at 1,500 miles. But, even my almighty Apex had warranty repairs by 1,500 miles. None of these machines are perfect.

My dad will have 10k miles on his by mid-march. The driveshaft was replaced under warranty. Aside from that, it's been flawless.

If I were to replace my Winder with something different, it would probably be the 900T with a tune. I know the throttle sucks, and so does the front end, but I've got a buddy with one who is approaching 10k miles. He changed the factory belt at 8k. The only issue he had was frozen steering boots, which BRP has now fixed.

That was my cat issue. Our cat guys would get one (firecats especially) that never had an issue, but another would have many. QC was spotty. Some great innovations. I suppose I hoped Id get a good one. Fixed some issues before disaster, but it's been a great sled so far. And I think they are well respected, as average Doo riders many time give a thumbs up, and the brappers make it a point to show how loud or how much they can spin by me when we take a break! They know they are probabky gonna be dead meat if they want to play. Somehow it even is handling great in the twisties. Gave the slim jims another shot on the curves and did some shimming. I really really like the front end. But what is that STINK on some trails behind some doos..they burning oil or something???

 

[SumpBuster]

While I agree there is issues they are all documented here. They are all manageable on a seasonal basis or for some half a season. This means if you do the maintainence the reliability IS there even at 17000mi I am confident enough to ride mine from Pembine WI to Muni,BigBay and back ALONE. 670mi in a weekend. Only issue was blowing top off a 8dn with over 3000mi on it. About half the issues long term are caused by aftermarket add ons. The rest are manageable. Steveo made a mistake buying a Doo.

I believe you are right! No doo rider has ridden my sw and not been impressed....just look at the face when they look down at it wishing their smashfaced bumblebee ran like that. Average guys, following the crowd riders.
Cat guys are funny....they don't say much...I think they are glad to have the motor, but still despise Yamaha...lol!

 

[Motorhead]

While I agree there is issues they are all documented here. They are all manageable on a seasonal basis or for some half a season. This means if you do the maintainence the reliability IS there even at 17000mi I am confident enough to ride mine from Pembine WI to Muni,BigBay and back ALONE. 670mi in a weekend. Only issue was blowing top off a 8dn with over 3000mi on it. About half the issues long term are caused by aftermarket add ons. The rest are manageable. Steveo made a mistake buying a Doo.

One thing is for certain pertaining to SteveO and his new Little Doo. He will be a great test pilot for Doo!
And with that lack of power, it should stay together for a while hopefully.
Don’t you think?

One downfall to most of the newer model sleds out there today, is the suspensions.
One does not realize how hard that suspension is working when you are flying over those bumpy trails at a high rate of speed because that suspension is just sucking them up. Something gotta give sometimes, period!

I often wonder how my Winder took that bump or series of bumps, and All I felt was very little movement. Most stable, best riding, and yep, freakin fast machine that gets good mpg, that I have ever owned. I have ridden with many who do not need this much power or could never use this kind of power. I on the other hand...

Not saying that they do not have their weak spots, because they do.

You know, if my sled didn’t ride, handle and have that great power and speed that it possesses, and if I treated in a much more gentle manner, well it would be much easier on maintenance I bet, but it wouldn’t be mine.