Yamaha Brand Identification

blu2u2

New member
I just don't get why guys that ride other iron feel a compelling need to rag on Yamaha. Compensating for "shortcomings" in other areas?

That said, we're all snowmobiliers. Who's to say you can't just ride what you enjoy and enjoy who you ride with regardless of what steed they ride?

X2...

I have owned all brands except the yellow one and I am not going to try to tell you which one is the best. I do like blue Kool-Aid however!
 

polarisrider1

New member
X2...

I have owned all brands except the yellow one and I am not going to try to tell you which one is the best. I do like blue Kool-Aid however!

X3 all Current brands except the green one. I think I like 2 strokes because the smell of burning Amsoil takes me to my "Happy Place". Going to snocheck a 2015 RMK Pro 800. I will sell my 2012 to anyone of you with the original pistons still in it! :) Next year!

On the lighter side, Buy Klim gear in black. goes with everything!

- - - Updated - - -

I hope Yamaha comes out with a 4 stroke Ovation with power steering. I see one in my future in about 20 years. Heated everything and turn signals.
 

Attak man

New member
I disagree momoney.....after a yamaha (insert any brand here really) beats you across the lake...are you sitting on your bar stool telling everybody.."yeah he beat me...but ski-doo is number one in sales"....and "mines lighter and rides better" (actually had a doo guy tell me that..after smoking him on the lake 5 times)?? COME ON MAN.....that's not being competitive.....some could say you are a sheep for buying what's popular.

It honestly doesn't matter to me...there are only 4 brands...each have their pluses, and negatives...you buy what fits you best...not what sells....who does that??
 
L

lenny

Guest
there are many ways to look at this but brand loyalty causes blindness. There is a reason why doo is in 3rd place (in Mtn sleds) out of 4 and it's because there priority is not about the Mtn segment, just like Yamaha, (last place.) Doo could be but they are building awesome trail sleds and it's hard to do everything perfect. At some point Doo owners are going to deal with the sealed crank bearing situation and that will be lots of money. Most will loose the crank before they ever realize they have to do something about lub on a few mains. Most people don't realize they have sealed bearing on crankshaft. Give the e-tec 10 years and we'll be reading loads of failures and at that time the blue's will still be heavy but rolling down the trail, along with doo 4s and cat 4s.

We replace sealed bearing all the time in chain cases, wheels and I am sure the crank bearing will last longer but friction is friction and that grease will not last forever. I do know know Doo has been using isoflex in bearing since 01 but we'll see how it works out in the etec

But hey, most people sell the sled before they rack up serious miles so you'll probably be fine.
 
Last edited:

whitedust

Well-known member
I hear ya Lenny....Every blown doo 2s crank = 4s any brand. It won't happen to me didn't work out very well. LOL :D Forgot to add but doos are light.
 

momoney2123

New member
I disagree momoney.....after a yamaha (insert any brand here really) beats you across the lake...are you sitting on your bar stool telling everybody.."yeah he beat me...but ski-doo is number one in sales"....and "mines lighter and rides better" (actually had a doo guy tell me that..after smoking him on the lake 5 times)?? COME ON MAN.....that's not being competitive.....some could say you are a sheep for buying what's popular.

It honestly doesn't matter to me...there are only 4 brands...each have their pluses, and negatives...you buy what fits you best...not what sells....who does that??

Attack man you missed my point. # 1 just isnt a label,must mean they are making money , which in turn is beneficial in many ways, inlcuding making the product better...not to win an argument after a losing a drag race. BUt Ive been in your shoes in those types of conversations....always classic even tho u beat a doo

Lenny when I first found out that the cranks were sealed i thought the same thing and i would obviously assume that ski-doo engineers knew that before designing it. It is definantaly a concern for the long miles of me personaly. They have to have a plan, whether they know something about the crank that we dont and truly believe it will last a ton of miles or they have an alternative. And if they all fail in 10 more years they could have a problem. time will tell. Seen an e-tec in quebec for sale this year with 19k on it. I wonder how long the average snowmobile takes to get to 20K miles, if ski-doo knows they can do 20k+ with the updated cranks, majority of the sleds may be so old that a new engine with that many miles is expected...i duno...i can say one thing im fortunate enough im not going to own my e-tec when it gets to 20K to find out.
 
Last edited:
L

lenny

Guest
Attack man you missed my point. # 1 just isnt a label,must mean they are making money , which in turn is beneficial in many ways, inlcuding making the product better...not to win an argument after a losing a drag race. BUt Ive been in your shoes in those types of conversations....always classic even tho u beat a doo

Lenny when I first found out that the cranks were sealed i thought the same thing and i would obviously assume that ski-doo engineers knew that before designing it. It is definantaly a concern for the long miles of me personaly. They have to have a plan, whether they know something about the crank that we dont and truly believe it will last a ton of miles or they have an alternative. And if they all fail in 10 more years they could have a problem. time will tell. Seen an e-tec in quebec for sale this year with 19k on it. I wonder how long the average snowmobile takes to get to 20K miles, if ski-doo knows they can do 20k+ with the updated cranks, majority of the sleds may be so old that a new engine with that many miles is expected...i duno...i can say one thing im fortunate enough im not going to own my e-tec when it gets to 20K to find out.

I totally agree most will never experience an issue and with that said they are meeting emissions and that's a good thing. You could probably rack up serious miles in a relative short period of time. Still, a sealed bearing is just that, it will need grease at some point. Does doo have a maintenance program for this bearing?
 

whitedust

Well-known member
Sealed means sealed not going to get better with age friction is friction as well. Crank no lube go boom just a matter of time & miles.
 
L

lenny

Guest
Sealed means sealed not going to get better with age friction is friction as well. Crank no lube go boom just a matter of time & miles.

I have looked and looked for an answer to isoflex longevity and the best answer I have found, IMO, is concerning heat. If the motor runs hot the grease can seap out of seal. I have not seen an official statement from Doo but there was a good post from a guy you seems to know his stuff, IMO, and said min of 300 hr and max of 600 hrs. IMO, that seems reasonable and with a 2s a complete tear down would be well worth while. Probably spend a grand in parts and virtually new motor. If you have a e-tec with 6-7000 miles I'd seriously consider checking the bearings seals. If you pull the primary and see leakage you know you are on borrowed time. Not trying to dis doo but inspection can save you tall stacks of green.
 

momoney2123

New member
I totally agree most will never experience an issue and with that said they are meeting emissions and that's a good thing. You could probably rack up serious miles in a relative short period of time. Still, a sealed bearing is just that, it will need grease at some point. Does doo have a maintenance program for this bearing?

There is no maintanece program that I know of. I am going to have a conversation about this with people that will def know all the answers here in the next week. If they stay sealed most of us will probably be dead by the time they fail, and supposedly that problem was addressed with the update and why some needed a crank replaced and some didnt.

Whitedust thanks for the flintstone evaluation of a sealed crank, i know your rooting for them to fail as you mention in every other thread how your 800 failed in like 03(over ten years ago). There is one downfall of having that much product on the snow. Cant keep everyone happy.
 
Last edited:
T

Team Elkhorn

Guest
That is one downfall of having the most product on the snow. Cant keep everyone happy.

Exactly. Thats why I laugh when someone brings sales numbers into a discussion like this. Why someone would let sales figures decide what they should buy is beyond me. If everyone did, we'd all be sheeple driving F150s, Camrys and SkiDoos. I couldn't imagine a more boring existence. Besides, what would we all argue about then? ;)
 
L

lenny

Guest
My buddy OMDave has an 09 summit 146 600 etec with close to 10,000 and he takes very good care of his machines. Maybe he'll decide to tear it down in the spring and have a looksee. Does Doo have an hr meter on their sleds?

- - - Updated - - -

when thr EPA says you MUST meet regulations, you find a way to do it. The etec has proven to be as reliable as any other 2s IMO and most will never see an issue with sealed bearings. There are some that keep machines a long time, run 10-20k but than again we cave grown accustomed to rebuilding at that point anyways. Over on Doo talk some guys are replacing the grease every year, way overkill IMO unless you are puling super long runs in the Mtn and motor running higher temps often.

I am riding an 2001 sled so I could never own a doo with sealed bearings, plus until the T-motion they were hard to hard to side hill and carve.
 
Last edited:

polarisrider1

New member
My buddy OMDave has an 09 summit 146 600 etec with close to 10,000 and he takes very good care of his machines. Maybe he'll decide to tear it down in the spring and have a looksee. Does Doo have an hr meter on their sleds?

- - - Updated - - -
when thr EPA says you MUST meet regulations, you find a way to do it. The etec has proven to be as reliable as any other 2s IMO and most will never see an issue with sealed bearings. There are some that keep machines a long time, run 10-20k but than again we cave grown accustomed to rebuilding at that point anyways. Over on Doo talk some guys are replacing the grease every year, way overkill IMO unless you are puling super long runs in the Mtn and motor running higher temps often.

I am riding an 2001 sled so I could never own a doo with sealed bearings, plus until the T-motion they were hard to hard to side hill and carve.

Keep in mind 99% of sled buyers have no clue what a sealed bearing is.
besides when did you start sidehilling anyways? lol.
 

momoney2123

New member
My buddy OMDave has an 09 summit 146 600 etec with close to 10,000 and he takes very good care of his machines. Maybe he'll decide to tear it down in the spring and have a looksee. Does Doo have an hr meter on their sleds?

- - - Updated - - -

when thr EPA says you MUST meet regulations, you find a way to do it. The etec has proven to be as reliable as any other 2s IMO and most will never see an issue with sealed bearings. There are some that keep machines a long time, run 10-20k but than again we cave grown accustomed to rebuilding at that point anyways. Over on Doo talk some guys are replacing the grease every year, way overkill IMO unless you are puling super long runs in the Mtn and motor running higher temps often.

I am riding an 2001 sled so I could never own a doo with sealed bearings, plus until the T-motion they were hard to hard to side hill and carve.


Yeah they have an hour meter, I hear ya on the long runs its def a gamble to keep it over 10K until we learn more about it. I guess hopefully by the time the sled gets a ton of miles the sled isnt worth much and whoever gets stuck with it doesnt have too much invested if the crank bearing fails.
 

whitedust

Well-known member
There is no maintanece program that I know of. I am going to have a conversation about this with people that will def know all the answers here in the next week. If they stay sealed most of us will probably be dead by the time they fail, and supposedly that problem was addressed with the update and why some needed a crank replaced and some didnt.

Whitedust thanks for the flintstone evaluation of a sealed crank, i know your rooting for them to fail as you mention in every other thread how your 800 failed in like 03(over ten years ago). There is one downfall of having that much product on the snow. Cant keep everyone happy.

I learn fast & still having problems 10 years later thus the recall. No thanks not for me 4s don't have those problems.
 

Attak man

New member
Yeah they have an hour meter, I hear ya on the long runs its def a gamble to keep it over 10K until we learn more about it. I guess hopefully by the time the sled gets a ton of miles the sled isnt worth much and whoever gets stuck with it doesnt have too much invested if the crank bearing fails.

I wouldn't hesitate buying a yamaha 4 stroke with 10,000 miles on it....you might need to replace the front end bushings, and skid bushings....and probably the drive line bearings...but the engine would be the least of my concerns....this brings us back to the original point...and why people are buying 4 strokes....they will pay the weight and handling penalty for reliablity.
That cat four stroke is a nice trail machine too...though the turbos seem to like belts for lunch.
If I rode ski-doo...I wouldn't touch an etec...that 1200 4 stroke is their most reliable engine...add a pipe, and a fuel controller (with a clutch kit)...and you will eat 800 etecs for lunch....fuel economy will go down abit...but man those things go with a bit of modding ....and it doesn't hurt their reliability at all...I saw a couple of these modded 1200's last winter...and they were spanking their buddies 800 etecs out on the lake...you do pay the weight penalty, and the doo guys I talked to said the handling isn't as crisp as an mzx...but the ride is very good (air ride). IMO...this is the ski-doo to own (GSX SE 1200)
It's the same thing with the Yami's...fun motor's with very good fuel economy...smooth power...guys who buy the blue sleds know they are not getting the best handling or best ride (not bad, just not as lith as a lighter 2 stroke)....but they will take that over being stranded with a broke down sled.
 

momoney2123

New member
I have raced many 1200's piped with my E-tec which is stock that has been clutched and geared, its a ok race unless its turbo'd, then it smokes me haha. The 800 E-tecs like most sleds from the factory come clutched and geared not for drag racing.A piped 1200 will not eat a 800 e-tec for lunch....not one thats running right. And if the sleds u seen happened to be a 2012 800 e-tec with the old program they are really slow, just need the program update. Have a 1200 turbo in our group that runs strong, trail rides it at about 250hp, if he dials up the boost can go to 350hp. runs at 10-12lbs of boost. Raced a RX-1 on the lake last year with 400hp and 25lbs of boost all lowered and it was a damn good run, the yamaha guy was actually really impressed how well it ran with that low if boost. The guy in our group has had it since 2011 with the turbo, zero problems tho. Its a bada$$ trail sled......excpet hes got about 20K in it.
 
Top