2011 yami's

[polarisrider1]

Since it was a Yamaha thread I thought you meant Yamaha sleds. I agree I don't know how AC, Poo & Doo can compete with Yamaha 4 year warranty. Doo could up warranty on 4s maybe etek too but Poo having all kinds of problems with engines & AC ok on 4s side but way behind the EPA ball on 2s engines. It will be difficult to hold new sled prices down eat warranty costs & spend on R&D. Maybe best to stay with platforms much longer & make them bullet proof as only way to make money & satisfy buyers.

I have to agree. Sled prices have gone out of control as the Big 4 try to please us. Look back at the sleds of the 90's. Most were Bullet proof. Five grand bought you a lot of sled. Shouldn't ten grand get you twice as much sled and fun. I resorted to buying carry overs since 06 to get around this some. Those are going up to as supply runs lower. I could only imagine how many units of a new sled has to be sold to break even. Yamaha does build a very nice product. It is getting to the point of how much can or will a person spend on a toy that gets ridden very little during an entire yr. Rentals are looking better all the time.

 

[G]

The single biggest driver of increased sled prices is the EPA. It is true that we had decent sleds to ride in the 90's that were basically all the same except for different colors and everybody had a little different take on suspensions. This all changed in the last decade when the EPA mandated cleaner engine tech. Think of the $ it took to develop E-Tec. Think of the $ it took to try out engines that none of us ever heard about that didn't pan out. Yami went the four stroke route early and 4's are always more expensive to build than 2's. The sled companies are not getting rich off their offerings. Pol makes its $ on 4 wheelers. The Japanese economy is more screwed than our own. Nobody has spent more $ on R@D since 2003 than 'Doo. How AC can even continue is a mystery.

 

[600hoic]

Since it was a Yamaha thread I thought you meant Yamaha sleds. I agree I don't know how AC, Poo & Doo can compete with Yamaha 4 year warranty. Doo could up warranty on 4s maybe etek too but Poo having all kinds of problems with engines & AC ok on 4s side but way behind the EPA ball on 2s engines. It will be difficult to hold new sled prices down eat warranty costs & spend on R&D. Maybe best to stay with platforms much longer & make them bullet proof as only way to make money & satisfy buyers.

Your right, I was taking this thread the wrong way. I appologize. I am not the biggest fan of four strokes for a sled. I love my 4 stroke motocross bikes, both Yamaha's. The same debate exsisted when motocross bikes changed over to 2 stroke so we'll see with the sleds. Maybe a new chasis with power assisted steering would help Yamaha get a sled to handle the tight twisty trails at high speed. If they could get one to feel as light and nimble AND skip over deep moguls without pounding thru it I would be all over one. I would love the reliablity of the 4stroke engine. But if the price continues to go up I would without a doubt be out of the sport. Sleds are just getting too expensive and the cost of fuel, lodging, food, and maintennace are going to quickly drive me out. There are too many summer sports that have three times the season to enjoy and at half the cost.