RX-Kid
Veteran
From reading a lot of the negative posts lately, I have to respectfully disagree with most of them. I purchased a 2008 Phazer GT in the summer of '08, so this has been my first season riding the sled. It seems more of the issues come from owners of the original 07 models.
After a ride or two to get acclaimated to the sled I was good to go. It's basically like riding the Yamaha 450R Quad. When the speeds go up, the rider needs to provide more input (just like they would for a performance quad). Yes the front does push in the turns a little bit, but that can be corrected. Most sleds require some tweaking to get it setup for your riding style and weight. I have not had anything break on the sled, and everythings has worked fine. It's started in cold weather, gone into reverse, and no broken links. Some folks complained of the rear end wanted to come around on hard breaking, but I have not experienced this anymore than I have with other non-studded sleds. Up until 50mph it has been able to hang with any sled that I've run against. Obviously on long straights and lakes you will get blown away, but come on it's a 500! The sled is a blast to ride and surprisingly quick from a dead stop. Lets stop the raggin' on Yamaha's entry model.
-Chuck
After a ride or two to get acclaimated to the sled I was good to go. It's basically like riding the Yamaha 450R Quad. When the speeds go up, the rider needs to provide more input (just like they would for a performance quad). Yes the front does push in the turns a little bit, but that can be corrected. Most sleds require some tweaking to get it setup for your riding style and weight. I have not had anything break on the sled, and everythings has worked fine. It's started in cold weather, gone into reverse, and no broken links. Some folks complained of the rear end wanted to come around on hard breaking, but I have not experienced this anymore than I have with other non-studded sleds. Up until 50mph it has been able to hang with any sled that I've run against. Obviously on long straights and lakes you will get blown away, but come on it's a 500! The sled is a blast to ride and surprisingly quick from a dead stop. Lets stop the raggin' on Yamaha's entry model.
-Chuck
I agree!!! When my nytro was down I was forced to ride the phazer (wifes sled) which I had never really rode before. I mean I took it around the yard but never trail riding. To my suprise it fun! It goes fast enough to ride the trails around here thats for sure. Only thing I would do if it were mine would be to put the 136 track on it. Then that thing would be an animal!!!
yam177
TY 4 Stroke Master
I love the Phazer it is a great little sled. Mine took a seasons worth of Cross country racing Abuse without breaking that many parts!
over 8000 miles on mine,bulletproof for me
driftrider
Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 5, 2009
- Messages
- 35
Yes I have to agree with you rx kid, when I first came onto this forum the first thing that hit me was"wow alot of people dont like this awsome sled" sure it over heats every once and a while, and darts preety good. But I have 7500 miles in 2 seasons without any breakdowns, so im more than happy.
Well we do not have a lot of miles on our 08's yet...as we are allways so busy in the shop and have little time to ride....but the miles the wife and I have put on have been Great ones! Granted you do not get the " Pull your arms off"Feeling when you nail it like I did with my ZRT800 and I am no longer the first one and the end of the lake when you have to cross it...but you know I can Ride and Play...and I MEAN PLAY with that little Phazer all day get home hop off and Hmmmm....I can walk...not stiff sore or hurtin. I have never had such a FUN sled to PLAY with...it is by FAR the best machine I have owned for the type of riding we like to do...which is play in the powder. If you are looking for a lake runner or a machine to do 80 MPH down a trail all the time...then this is more than likely not the machine for you. But if you want a sled that you can have fun in the powder with and carve around then give one a try...and remember it is a FOUR STROKE Not a Two Stroke it is different power and takes some getting use to.
Just my 2 cents.
Just my 2 cents.
soul_hammer
Expert
i love the phazer so much i dont miss the top end at all. the damn thing is just so fun. ill be keeping it for a long time.
sledhead_dan
Extreme
Good input guys, I was thinking of buying one as a second sled ( retire the old xlt) now I am convinced. 
08RTX
Extreme
Loving my Phazer here also. Only about 1,400 miles due to the snow disappearing. Closed both holes to get rid of snow/ ice build up, but other than that I had zero issues. I plan to have this sled for at least 10 years, but probably more
prozac500
Expert
Same thing here I haven't had a Problem with my 07 phazer and I have just have over 1000 miles on it. I love all the low end power. It is Prefect for playing in the Powder. I did the same thing with the tunnel, but I only closed the back hole and I haven't had ice on my running Boards yet.
phzmtnlite
Pro
4700 miles and no issues, great sled but cannot climb larger hills, gonna mod out my mtn max, My Phazer mtn is for sale in classifieds
phazertp
Veteran
Phazer = Fun
Had mine out riding ditches today and fell in love with it all over again.
Had mine out riding ditches today and fell in love with it all over again.
RX-Kid
Veteran
The radiator saved my sled a couple times this winter
I forgot to mention that my sled did not overheat, even though I had a couple of rides that were not ideal (too warm, icy - no snow kicking up, or stretches of bare road). With the Phazer's combination: heat exchanger/radiator/fan the little sled just kept on chuggin'!!! NOTE: I did close off the back hole in the tunnel before ever riding the sled (thanks to the great tips from this message board). It would seem to me that closing the tunnel would allow more snow to hit the heat exchanger (which is a good thing).
I was riding with a Polaris X-Edge 800, 2 Vectors, and an RX-1 during one of my "not ideal conditions" rides. The overheat light came on for every sled except my Phazer
You might ask why I went from an RX-1 back to the little Phazer. It really had everything to do with weight. I only weigh 152 lbs, and it felt like the RX-1 was in control and not me. Plus, have you ever tried to get an RX-1 unstuck! Back breaking work I tell ya
Don't get me wrong, I loved cracking the throttle on the RX-1 and leaving all sleds in my wake. 
However, the Phazer lets me play around, have fun, and I can move it around WHERE I WANT IT TO GO. The Phazer just fits me perfect. There is no one perfect sled for all riders, so everyone just needs to find the model that suits them best. I highly recommend hitting a demo ride like up at Old Forge this weekend.
I forgot to mention that my sled did not overheat, even though I had a couple of rides that were not ideal (too warm, icy - no snow kicking up, or stretches of bare road). With the Phazer's combination: heat exchanger/radiator/fan the little sled just kept on chuggin'!!! NOTE: I did close off the back hole in the tunnel before ever riding the sled (thanks to the great tips from this message board). It would seem to me that closing the tunnel would allow more snow to hit the heat exchanger (which is a good thing).
I was riding with a Polaris X-Edge 800, 2 Vectors, and an RX-1 during one of my "not ideal conditions" rides. The overheat light came on for every sled except my Phazer
You might ask why I went from an RX-1 back to the little Phazer. It really had everything to do with weight. I only weigh 152 lbs, and it felt like the RX-1 was in control and not me. Plus, have you ever tried to get an RX-1 unstuck! Back breaking work I tell ya
Don't get me wrong, I loved cracking the throttle on the RX-1 and leaving all sleds in my wake. However, the Phazer lets me play around, have fun, and I can move it around WHERE I WANT IT TO GO. The Phazer just fits me perfect. There is no one perfect sled for all riders, so everyone just needs to find the model that suits them best. I highly recommend hitting a demo ride like up at Old Forge this weekend. big_red1a
Expert
I agree the phazer got a bad rap I have a 07 for the wife, although I like to dance with it in the deep stuff once in a while. It is light fun and fast enough for entry level or layed back rider. This thing had a few issues to clear up when new (ecu, tunel fill in, rad fan,ect) But I have done nothing but change the oil grease and put gas in since. Nice to not have to worry about high maintenance on the wife's ride to. Once these Updates are complete this is the least expensive sled to own and operate long term.
