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was stoked about 09 apex rtx

indica44

Veteran
Joined
Mar 19, 2008
Messages
32
Location
Maple Leaf Ontario
After reading here about donut and y pipe and suspension problems I dont know what to think about my decision about a 09 rtx apex. I just went through a season with 05 900 fusion 3000 miles and not one problem. All of the issues iam reading about with less than 5000 miles on apex's limter straps breaking bogey wheels disingrating muffelers going to #*$&@ skid frames cracking. I ride groomed trails and stick to them if they are not groomed that is about as rough as it gets for me. Will this 09 apex get at least 5000 miles with little or know problems. I do not plan on any upgrades becuase at list price I cannot afford any upgrades. Will I enjoy the ride or am I making a 15000 dollar mistake canadian. Is there not one person who got on a apex an liked the ride right out of the box? I went for a 10 mile ride on a 08 gt and that is what sold me on the apex but after reading here I just dont know :o|
 

the only regret u will have is not buying 1 sooner. apex's are if not the best sled on snow right now. trouble free riding is all u will have to look forward too.
 
My buddy has a 2007 Apex with 11,000 miles, with not a single problem. No bad wheels, no bad donuts, no bad y-pipes, nothing. The problems you hear don't happen to everyone, probably very few, you just read about them because everyone that does has a problem with something posts it and that gets everyone worried. This is a great sled and i'm sure you wont have any troubles with it. 1800 miles on mine so far and i don't have 1 complaint other then the floor board paint coming off easy. I just went over the sled the other day and the wheels are like brand new, everything else looks like it is still brand new. The best thing i like about my Apex is the suspension, works great, shocks are awsome, engine is unreal. Overall this is the best sled i have even owned and driven, far better then my MXZ REV.
 
I second the above opinions, for trail riding there is not a better sled on snow than an apex, preferably a ltx for me....
 
Apex RTX is not a a GT just be aware of that since you only rode the GT. My bud rides an 08MXZXPX & I ride an 07 Attack GT & there is little difference in ride quality & handling between the 2 even with longer track on GT. The RTX will be more harsh suspension thus the RTX name.

Don't over react to things said on here not everyone has these problems that you read here. Some of this stuff can scare the heck out of you like chains breaking at high speed. I run my Attack WOT or very high speed for miles non stop in UP & my chain & oil level was fine & is fine & will continue to be fine. But if you search that topic you would think chains pops on every sled. So just weed it out & keep the faith with your dealer.
 
Sounds like with your riding style you need a LTX or GT. I agree with everyone above. The problems you read about are genuine problems but not everyone has them and I believe its how hard you ride your sled.

06 Attak - 6000 miles. I just bought it from a friend who is not an agressive rider.

Replaced donuts...only 1 was missing, other 3 were 95% there. Y-pipes fine.
On second set of sliders...
Speedo bearing looks perfect with no regreasing. (I will still replace it)
Track looks new.
Motor is flawless.

Every sled has issues!
 
I too have a 900fuze that I ride alot.I have close to 1500miles on my 08ltx and 1000miles on the fuze this year also.I would buy an apex in a second over any other sled right now for your type of riding.The 2 sleds are totally different and for groomed trails the apex is like riding a cadillac when setup it just floats and the soft seat is awesome also.Power wise I would say a very good running fuze would be right with an apex but there aren't alot around.I ride alot with my gf and she rides the apex ltx all the time and when I go out with the guys to ride I take the apex and can't ever see myself riding the 900 again.The 4 stroke motor is unreal.I haven't had a problem with my apex at all just gas and go with no stinky gas smell.With a 2 stroke there is always something wrong and around here there has been atleast 15 2 strokes blow up this winter and ski-doo's had the majority.I have a 1.5 intense on my ltx and can run 105mph on a good day and many stock fuzes can't run that.Go buy the apex you won't regret it.
 
the apex could easily go 5000 miles without a problem

Ive never had a Break down.. that left me stranded

Really these are minor things, that with our help you will be able to find and fix before they become a problem
 
indica44 said:
After reading here about donut and y pipe and suspension problems I dont know what to think about my decision about a 09 rtx apex. I just went through a season with 05 900 fusion 3000 miles and not one problem. All of the issues iam reading about with less than 5000 miles on apex's limter straps breaking bogey wheels disingrating muffelers going to poop skid frames cracking. I ride groomed trails and stick to them if they are not groomed that is about as rough as it gets for me. Will this 09 apex get at least 5000 miles with little or know problems. I do not plan on any upgrades becuase at list price I cannot afford any upgrades. Will I enjoy the ride or am I making a 15000 dollar mistake canadian. Is there not one person who got on a apex an liked the ride right out of the box? I went for a 10 mile ride on a 08 gt and that is what sold me on the apex but after reading here I just dont know :o|

There are issues with these sleds and for anyone to tell you with certainty you won't have any issues in 5000 miles, they either ride their sleds very, very easily or haven't put 5000 miles on their own sled yet.

5000 miles is a lot of miles to expect no problems at all. If I was to put money on it, I would bet you will have some issues in 5000 miles, hopefully minor - most likely with any sled and any manufacturer though.

I think the 07/08 Apex RTX has been a disappointment to many owners as well as Yamaha dealers. The ride is harsh, but in stock form it really doesn't handle big bumps much better than the regular Apex. It also kicks back over bumps further taking away from the ride quality. On top of that several owners complained of track ratcheting (including me). Maybe the 09 will be better, maybe it won't be. I have spoken to many 07/08 RTX owners on the trails and I have yet to find one who really likes the stock ride. I have finally got mine working well, but it took revalving the shocks and reinforcing the pivot arms. Keep in mind I was looking for a rough trail sled though that I could ride aggressively (with MXZs - REVs and REV-XPs). In stock form the RTX's rear suspension is more durable than the monoshock found on the other Apex, but it still isn't up to the "rough trail extreme" standards of the competition.

The regular Apex, GT, LTX, etc. on the other hand is a very good fit for a regular, less aggressive trail rider. The ride is extremely comfortable in stock form as long as the bumps aren't too big. With a "big boy" spring and inexpensive shock revalve (if required), they ride extremely well even on medium sized bumps (as well as smaller bumps and stutter bumps). The problem with these is if you ride them hard and/or for a high number of miles the suspensions often fail one way or another (with the front pivot arm failing most often). Yamaha has been constantly updating the monoshock suspension every year and the 08s were more durable with their further reinforced front pivot arm (reinforced in 06 and then reinforced even more in 08). I have spoken to many, many Apex ER, Apex GT & Apex LTX owners who absolutely love the way their sleds ride. On the other hand I've also spoken to many who ride a little harder and have been constantly breaking the suspensions. All of my riding buddies have given up on these sleds because they couldn't keep the suspensions together, but none of them have broken a REV or REV-XP suspension (and they are pretty much all on REV-XPs now). They all ride aggressively and all put on high miles (6000-8000 miles per year typically).

As far as the drivetrain goes these sleds are very impressive. They always run like a top, always start right away (in my experience anyway), don't vibrate, don't stink, don't burn oil, have incredible throttle response and even get reasonable fuel economy (could be a little better though IMO). The only real issue is the exhaust donut leaks. The riding position is also excellent and even though they are heavier than the competition I personally can ride more miles per day on an Apex than any 2-stroke. Most owners will say the same.

Yamaha has also been making significant improvements each year to these sleds. For 09 the only issues that "might" not be fixed are really the exhaust donuts and the shock valving on the RTX. These even might be improved, but I haven't heard confirmation on this. For certain you will get the updated chaincase cover (no leaks), and reinforced radiator (mounts won't crack). If you were getting a non-RTX Apex, you'd also be getting the reinforced pivot arm (2nd gen), reinforced slide rails and very likely a fairly well valved shock (for regular trail use).

My advice is if you are not a very aggressive rider, don't get the Apex RTX; get any other Apex instead and you will probably love it. If you are an aggressive rider, I don't think any of the Apex is really ideal in stock form, but the best is (IMO) a modified RTX (revalving the shocks and reinforcing the pivot arms yourself). Yamaha's overall best rough trail sled is the FX-Nytro, but it is down to under 140 hp (vs 150 for the Apex) and it probably still won't ride all that well until you revalve the shocks either (at least compared to a REV-XP MXZ). A bigger concern with the FX-Nytro is quite a few owners have been complaining about tweaking the front end geometry.

If you are willing to put up with the harsher ride, but don't intend to ride aggressively, the Apex RTX will be as durable as any Apex (in stock form the RTX suspension is stronger than the monoshock - except for the front limiter straps that break until you revalve the center shock). Its just - why put up with a harsher ride if you don't ride aggressively, especially considering it still bottoms out easily like the more comfortable trail cruising Apex?
 
Is it going to break? No, not likely, not stock anyway. Are you going to like the ride? Much of that answer depends on your experience, and what you expect from this sled. My bet is no. Anyone laying this kind of money down expects, and deserves, more than what this machine can deliver in stock form. It is not capable of delivering on the rough trail capabilities claims that Yammi makes for it. They're barely even average (when compared to competitors sleds) as received.

Other than the rear suspension, the rest of the machine can't be beaten. There isn't another sled out there I'd rather have - even if I did have to sink a bunch more into it to get it right for me. That's not unusual either. Aftermarket skis are considered a necessity by many. Oversize swaybars are right up there too.

Monoshock riders really have nothing to form an accurate opinion on when it comes to the CK. They're on something not even close. My opinion.
 
Thanks once again for the advice. I put the sprincheck $500 down on the apex rtx I need a good yamaha jacket haha. I ride with one friend who has a 08 800 xp he rides hard and I try my damdest to keep up. I will just do what it takes to get it dialed in so I can give him a good run through the twisties. I just hope they have done some upgrades to the 09 ck rear end
 
indica44 said:
Thanks once again for the advice. I put the sprincheck $500 down on the apex rtx I need a good yamaha jacket haha. I ride with one friend who has a 08 800 xp he rides hard and I try my damdest to keep up. I will just do what it takes to get it dialed in so I can give him a good run through the twisties. I just hope they have done some upgrades to the 09 ck rear end

Now you've got the right approach! Good sled, just needs a dedicated owner and some tweaking. What irks me is they have that twin shock suspension available.......
 
I can not answer on the RTX but I love my 06 Apex ER and I have not had any problems with it. I even have the origional slides. I do not know anyone that rides more agressively than I do and I love the sled. It is not a 3 ft mogal masher though but I have not ridden a sled that you can pound 3 foot mogals on all day long. The only things I didn't like about it were the wind protection and the handwarmers. I purchased a taller windshield that works great (cobra) and bring a set of gauntlets with me if the temp is going to be cold. Everyone posts their problems on here because they are looking for help so it seems like everyone is having problems. The good thing is you have this awsome site with thousands of people that will help you figure out any problems or questions you have.

Good luck i think you will love the sled...
 
Here's another point. That 900 Fusion you had. I bought one that same yar. Read all the horror stories about it on the net and sold it with 7 miles on it. EVERY ONE I have run into with that sled here in Maine has had nothing but good things to say about it. Those 900's are getting 6-7-8k on em with no problems. Lesson learned..............don't let these forums turn you away, I mad that mistake. I have an 08 LTX now and love it, wish I still ahd the Fusion 900 too. My 2 cents
 


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