What maintenence is needed or what to look for in a used 4 stroke

[Garrett]

Given all of the feedback I was given on switching from a 2 stroke to a 4 stroke, I may try to pick up a used four stroke at season-end if I find one with a great price because the seller does not want to hold it over until next winter.

So looking at say a 2005 to 2007 Yamaha Vector, with say 5,000 to 8,000 miles - what type of maintenance/repair would I be looking at for a sled like this? For this post, I am assuming the seller only did the basic maintenance. I would like to understand is there some common things inherently that will need to be fixed on these types of sleds given the range of mileage as indicated.

Thanks as always.

 

[sjb]

As with any four stroke, motor oil and filters are key. Most yamaha's have PM's on jackshafts, exhaust donuts and bushings.

 

[mrbb]

honestly IMO< there isn't a lot of difference in what to look for on a used 4 stroke as to a used 2 stroke
as honestly your at the mercy of previous/'s owners IF they did what ever was needed to be done till the point they are now selling it

your not going to be able to really tell how often oil changes and chain case changed have taken place, or any other basic PM

NOW Things you MIGHT be able to tell is, say Valves a tapping loudly? maybe saying they either need adjusting or??
rough idle? could be from a few reasons, but again, this would also be sort of a red flag on ANY used sled, 2-4 stroke

the main goal IMO when buying used is, to really spend time looking things over, check all wheels /bearings, look for anything bent or that seems OFF
if on level ground, see if one side sits higher than another
HOW clean the overall sled is and not just the easy places most folks clean to sell, look deeper inside motor area and under seat/in tunnel,
as many folks don't clean these places and you can see how much crap is built up in them or not
rather anal owners are more prone to clean better and well do PM's more often IMO, so, cleaner the better in these places

I'd also maybe check the exhaust tips, for excessive oil build up, a good running 4 stroke should have very little if any there, so if you find a lot???? maybe avoid things
if you can tilt sled on its side and check each side of front end for wear and tear,tie rods, bushings and such/

but again, basic things you would look at on any used sled still apply more or less to either 2-4 stroke sleds to me!

 

[byr 13]

Given all of the feedback I was given on switching from a 2 stroke to a 4 stroke, I may try to pick up a used four stroke at season-end if I find one with a great price because the seller does not want to hold it over until next winter.

So looking at say a 2005 to 2007 Yamaha Vector, with say 5,000 to 8,000 miles - what type of maintenance/repair would I be looking at for a sled like this? For this post, I am assuming the seller only did the basic maintenance. I would like to understand is there some common things inherently that will need to be fixed on these types of sleds given the range of mileage as indicated.

Thanks as always.

not much :_)

 

[ragex2]

I had 3 4stk Yamahas . They were good dependable sleds overall. Here's what I know. That vintage had a few with questionable oil pumps, yam fixed on 08 modeles and up. The skis suck. I replaced all of mine with skidoo pilots, BIG improvement. Exhaust donuts about 4000 miles, aftermarket copper donuts fix it, but is a big job. Monoshock is vavled soft, if you are big you will want it revalved and maybe a HD spring. If you insist on a Yamaha I would find a vector 2008 or newer. I liked them when I had them but have moved on to skidoo 1200s. Much less updating of things the factory should have done better on in the first place. They started for 2009 and can be found for reasonable prices too

 

[snobuilder]

Exhaust gaskets on the Yamahas is the only thing different from 2 to 4 stroke as far as routine maintenance. And of course yearly oil changes which is still less $$ than 2 stroke oils on a daily basis.

 

[wiharley02]

The 2005-2007 timeframe 4 stroke 3 cylinder yamaha's (RS Chassis: Vector, Nytro), the original revision timing chain tensioner can fail, and the camshafts/valves get out of timing, and the valves crash into the pistons, basically junking the motor, especially since the sled is old enough and a "lower" value, not really worth fixing then. Some tensioners can last forever, but some can let go with little or no warning. There is a newer revision tensioner, yamaha started building engines with them around 07 and marks them with different color paint dot than the original, for traceability. I updated them on an 05 vector and an 06 nytro, for peace of mind. At the same time, I did the exhaust donuts since it was pretty much that far apart. Other issues I've had and read others had, the starter solenoid can stick, causing the starter to keep spinning while the engine is running. The design of the one-way starter gear is such that you really can't hear that the starter is running while under way, and it doesn't damage the starter or gearing by spinning while running. The damage comes in when the starter keeps spinning long enough, that it generates a lot of heat, and eventually just melts internally and fuses the rotor to the can, and continues to draw current, generating heat, and eventually runs the battery down to a low enough voltage that the ECM cuts spark and shuts the engine down.

Another issue that happened on both my sleds, right around the 10,000 mile mark, the exhaust pipe develops a crack, eventually all the way around the circumference, where the end of the single pipe that is the 3 into 1 assembly, plugs into the pipe that is leading to the muffler, about 1/2 to 3/4 of the way back to the rear of the sled. Also a pain to fix, you basically have to strip the seat and tank back down to the point of replacing the exhaust donuts. Couple hour job. Obnoxiously loud if not fixed.

Other than that, most yamaha 3 cylinder 4 stroke maintenance items will be just like any other high mileage sled! Suspension bushings start getting loose all the way around, bogey wheel bearings, shock rebuilds, clutch maintenance/rebuilds, etc.

The yamaha 4 stroke engines are really dependable. Just heavy. But for on trail riding, weight is a bit less of a concern.

I'm happy with the stock skis and handling on the vector and nytro, running 6" dooly's. Primarily its about having the suspension set-up and adjusted right for the driver. Skis do help, but suspension has to be set in the right ballpark first.

 

[cmharcou]

The three cyclinder yamaha vectors have had their problems over the years. I have 2 4 stroke yamaha's. A 2006 Attak and a 2011 Apex XTX I bought brand new. BOth have been very reliable and haven't done anything but grease suspension, oil changes, batteries, and thats about it. I did have the 06 Attak driveshaft bearing wen out and took the speedo cable out. That is a common problem. The driveshaft bearing on the secondary side doesn't get any grease or lube. Its a $35 bearing, easy fix, and I would suggest replacing it every couple years. The machines are really heavy, but if your just trail riding, I can't imagine a better sled. Super reliable, and fast! I think the Apex XTX honestly is the ultimate trail sled.

 

[ragex2]

My bad. I meant cam chain tensioner. No oil pump failures that I ever heard of. Been a while! I did try doolies bars but hated them....poor handling, junked them at 300 miles

 

[1fujifilm]

Given all of the feedback I was given on switching from a 2 stroke to a 4 stroke, I may try to pick up a used four stroke at season-end if I find one with a great price because the seller does not want to hold it over until next winter.

So looking at say a 2005 to 2007 Yamaha Vector, with say 5,000 to 8,000 miles - what type of maintenance/repair would I be looking at for a sled like this? For this post, I am assuming the seller only did the basic maintenance. I would like to understand is there some common things inherently that will need to be fixed on these types of sleds given the range of mileage as indicated.

Thanks as always.

This guy is trolling us big time! DO NOT RESPOND.

Bear

 

[G]

Make sure it is a Vector GT. The base model Vectors came with horrible shocks. I know. I had one. They are not a rider forward sled. They will not go 100 mph. They are lighter than an Apex but not much. And they are obsolete. A 2005 - 2007 should be super cheap.

 

[whitedust]

Save yourself some time and pain shorten your Vector search by contacting Kip at Pat’s. Tell him what you are looking for and will either be in the used lot or Kip will call you when a cherry comes thru used. Pat’s changes oil on all used 4s and goes thru them well before they hit the lot. The era you are considering I would hold out for mono RA and possibly the Apex chassis as early Vectors were sit in. I wouldn’t worry about engine failures at all and never seen a Vector drop below 18 mpg. Buying used prior owner probably used dualiies or better yet Snow Trackers to fix darting. Use from purchase should be hyfax , oil change, change chain case oil then gas and go and have fun.

- - - Updated - - -

This guy is trolling us big time! DO NOT RESPOND.

Bear

Ya agree seems that way to me too. Garrett buy something if you are real. Lol

 

[Garrett]

Whats your problem Bear??

I am not trolling. I have not bought a snowmobile in approximately 10 years (until recently, a used 2 stroke). Lots of things have changed since then and there is a lot of good information on this board.

Can you please explain what you think I am trying to do jerk off? If you see my previous posts, I have been looking for a lot of information on the 2 stroke vs 4 stroke comparison. The responses received so far have been great except yours.

So please explain to everyone what you think I am trying to do? I'm waiting.

 

[1fujifilm]

Whats your problem Bear??

I am not trolling. I have not bought a snowmobile in approximately 10 years (until recently, a used 2 stroke). Lots of things have changed since then and there is a lot of good information on this board.

Can you please explain what you think I am trying to do jerk off? If you see my previous posts, I have been looking for a lot of information on the 2 stroke vs 4 stroke comparison. The responses received so far have been great except yours.

So please explain to everyone what you think I am trying to do? I'm waiting.

Unless you are 12 years old your questions are quite juvenile in context, OR are intended to send posters into oblivion with millions of answers to a question that an 18 year old that took shop class could answer.

I tried to help with your last post but you did not take anyone's advice, winter will be over soon.

Bear

 

[Garrett]

Apparently numerous other posters disagreed and responded with good information. Your one of these guys that thinks they know everything and what they say is gospel. Here's is an idea. How about not responding if you don't like the post! Get a life dude and move on.

 

[1fujifilm]

Apparently numerous other posters disagreed and responded with good information. Your one of these guys that thinks they know everything and what they say is gospel. Here's is an idea. How about not responding if you don't like the post! Get a life dude and move on.

Ok, I will behave.



Bear

 

[snobuilder]

I initially got a slight vibe of what Fugi is saying , but I've been told that not everyone who snowmobiles is a www sled forum daily user.
I thought for a while about the 75,000 collective miles I have on my Yamaha 4 strokes as well as the maintenance i have needed on my latest sleds that are 2 strokes and in fact the only thing that stands apart maintenance wise is the exhaust donuts on the 4 strokes....never had one go bad on a 2 stroke.
Everything else with bearings, bogies, bushings etc., is common to both....Here is the big difference.....most 2 strokes of the past never lasted long enough for some of these maintenance issues to ever become a problem.

 

[Garrett]

Maybe this example will help. I was reading up on some Arctic Cat 4 strokes (not sure if universal on all years and models) but the poster indicated it was a pure pain in the *** to change out spark plugs on the dam thing. That you had to remove a bunch of other stuff just to get at the plugs. I normally do not do my own maintenance on the sleds so sounds like I would have a labor charge for something that would seem so simple (as it is on 2 strokes). This was my point, are there other issues on 4 strokes that are much more in labor charges per se, than you would see on 2 strokes.

 

[xcsp]

Maybe this example will help. I was reading up on some Arctic Cat 4 strokes (not sure if universal on all years and models) but the poster indicated it was a pure pain in the *** to change out spark plugs on the dam thing. That you had to remove a bunch of other stuff just to get at the plugs. I normally do not do my own maintenance on the sleds so sounds like I would have a labor charge for something that would seem so simple (as it is on 2 strokes). This was my point, are there other issues on 4 strokes that are much more in labor charges per se, than you would see on 2 strokes.

Not sure on plug changes on Cats-guess that depends on one's opinon of being a pain to get at, but fairly easy to change on Yamaha & Ski Doo 4-strokes. (Would want to do in the garage, not trailside of course due to removing items to access the plugs.)

Spark plug changes on a 4s aren't all too frequent.

If you wouldn't do the oil & filter changes yourself and will have that done at a shop take that into consideration.

 

[united]

Don't really think he is trolling. Plus joined JD in 2013.