REAL WEIGHT COMPARISON: Yamaha Viper vs RMK vs XM! (Video W/Ryan Harris from SnoWest)

christopher · Mar 14, 2014

Published on Mar 14, 2014
See how the new Yamaha SR Viper MTX stacks up against the competition in real-world riding conditions -- both in terms of weight and power to weight.
The results may surprise you!

#1 question about the new SRViper M-TX is how much it weighs.
atch this video and see just how close we really are to those so-called lightweight mountain buggies, even with an accessory turbo kit installed!
Please be sure to share this with your friends!

2015 Yamaha SR Viper M-TX: A New Contender

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christopher · Mar 14, 2014

I think hoisting the sleds up to be weighed on the mountain when fully loaded with snow was brilliant. Anything we can do to get more REAL-WORLD numbers injected into this discussion is worthwhile.

I might as well admit it.
There is a NEW YAMAHA in my future!!

Only question is WHICH Color?

sidehil · Mar 14, 2014

It'll be blue for me

Thundy · Mar 14, 2014

Well another BS video. You cant tell me the yamaha skid doesnt get packed like the other two. Also whats with 6 inches of snow the skis, I've never seen that before.

yzviper366 · Mar 14, 2014

Can you tell me why does the snow stick to the doo tho it has painted tunnel and skid. But it doesnt stick to the yamaha which does have a powder coated tunnel but not a coated skid? Really dont make sense to me.

Im coming off a modded nytro and yes powder coating works wonders for sticking snow. But if the skid is not coated the the snow will collect there a lot more than what is shown on the video. This is coming from life experiences. Im coming off a nytro going to a doo.

The video just seems quite bias to me which I suppose it has to be being to was made by yamaha.

christopher · Mar 14, 2014

yzviper366 said:
Can you tell me why does the snow stick to the doo tho it has painted tunnel and skid. But it doesnt stick to the yamaha which does have a powder coated tunnel but not a coated skid? Really dont make sense to me.

Im coming off a modded nytro and yes powder coating works wonders for sticking snow. But if the skid is not coated the the snow will collect there a lot more than what is shown on the video. This is coming from life experiences. Im coming off a nytro going to a doo.

The video just seems quite bias to me which I suppose it has to be being to was made by yamaha.

Actually it doesn't HAVE TO BE BIASED.
Its possible, they actually RODE those 3 sleds, and then lifted and weighed them.

Since Ryan Harris is no fan of 4 stroke sleds, nor a big Yamaha supporter, I fired off a note to him asking how that actually went down.
he was there.
I have invited him to jump into this discussion and post his comments as an UN-BIASED observer/participant.

Note.
Unlike Ryan, I AM BIASED.
But I make that very clear and do not try to feign being unbiased or objective.

rmscustom · Mar 14, 2014

christopher said:
Actually it doesn't HAVE TO BE BIASED.
Its possible, they actually RODE those 3 sleds, and then lifted and weighed them.

That video is about as unbiased as you are Christopher. lol

yzviper366 · Mar 14, 2014

Still haven't answered the question why does snow stick to one but not the other?

rmscustom · Mar 14, 2014

yzviper366 said:
Still haven't answered the question why does snow stick to one but not the other?

Doo has tunnel coolers and Yamicat doesn't would be there reasoning.

CO 2.0 · Mar 14, 2014

Does the Yammicat have the same short rear cooler like the proclimb 800's?

yzviper366 · Mar 14, 2014

The yamaha does have a cooler straight down the middle much like the doo does.

Matt@MPI · Mar 14, 2014

CO 2.0 said:
Does the Yammicat have the same short rear cooler like the proclimb 800's?

No tunnel cooler of any kind. Just the radiator and bulkhead cooler.

LuckydawgAK · Mar 14, 2014

My AC PC limited is the sAME way. No tunnel cooler, no build up. It does overheat on an icy road though (unlike the genesis motor which even stays cool)

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

yzviper366 · Mar 14, 2014

Matt@MPI said:
No tunnel cooler of any kind. Just the radiator and bulkhead cooler.

O ok I got ya then. I thought there was a cooler. Butbya I remember the overheat issues with my nytro till I did a under tunnel cooling system. And plus thats a ton of weight sitting as far forward as possible. Plus add a turbo up there to.

christopher · Mar 14, 2014

Matt@MPI said:
No tunnel cooler of any kind.
Just the radiator and bulkhead cooler.

No Tunnel Cooler = Less Wet Snow building up.

Matt@MPI · Mar 14, 2014

yzviper366 said:
O ok I got ya then. I thought there was a cooler. Butbya I remember the overheat issues with my nytro till I did a under tunnel cooling system. And plus thats a ton of weight sitting as far forward as possible. Plus add a turbo up there to.

The good new is the Viper runs COLD unlike the nytro! You right about the weight up front. We're testing tunnel cooler options right now to move some of the weight to the back.

rmscustom · Mar 14, 2014

I'd like to know where they found the 27 extra lbs on the Pro and the 18 extra lbs on the doo full of fuel before the snow weight compared to these sources?

http://www.snowmobile.com/manufactur...rt-1-1788.html

christopher · Mar 14, 2014

Looks like Ryan may be up in West Yellowstone for the SnoWest World Snowmobile Expo right now. Might be a while before he posts.

For me, my biggest question is the integrity of the in field weighing.

More than anything else, that shows the REAL WORLD WEIGHT of the three sleds in the middle of the day while they are IN USE.

If those weights are REAL and VALID, that is really the END of the whole weight controversy.

What I expected to see more of was 2 stroke fans crying FOUL because the Yami was boosted and the 2 strokers were not.

Not 100% sure HOW to resolve that difference in my head.
If the Viper was being sold, direct from Yamaha in Boosted configuration, then it would be a NON-ISSUE. But since the owner gets to choose Normally Aspirated or Boosted, I suppose that option "Does" muddy the waters some.

Though in all seriousness, the sled is simply NOT a real mountain Contender unless it has been boosted. So perhaps its just a given that it has to have it to put it into the competition to begin with?

Would be interesting to see this same comparison for factory authorized Turbos on the RMK and XM though.
Is there such a thing as a Factory Authorized Turbo on those sleds??

QUESTION:
What is the percentage of Pro-RMKs and XMs that get boosted?
What has been the percentage of MTX Nytros that have been boosted?

Anyone have any idea??

fourthmeal · Mar 14, 2014

This is legit.
But there are a few background notes that I find important to point out:

1. Both the Pro and the Summit were equipped with electric start.
That's why the wet weights are higher than what we have measured in our own testing.
The Viper is electric start, too...

2. The Summit was an SP, not an X.

3. The Viper 153 was not a Float-equipped SE version.
It was the base model with coil spring shocks.

3. The snow conditions on the day of this ride were what I would define as March snow: dense powder up high and heavy wet down low. And the tree weights were done at a lower elevation where the snow was heavier. But all three sleds were ridden for a couple hours, filled up, ridden around again and driven right to the hanging scale. In my opinion, that's why the weights on the Pro and Summit are higher than what the Cat video showed.

4. I was shocked.
As stated in the video, it still feels like you're riding a 4-stroke and it still feels heavier in the snow, but with the 180 boost kit, it was light enough to feel fun. Wasn't expecting that.

5. The results have already been pointed out to some extent in Cat's tree-weight video.
The ProClimb chassis just doesn't carry as much weight in snow.

6. It doesn't mean the Pro and Summit suddenly suck (although social media will probably take it that way anyway).
All I take it to mean is that Yamaha has made big progress toward having a 4-stroke mountain sled that is competitive with the 8s and is actually fun to ride. It is fun to ride.

That's my take. Read into it however you want.

-Ryan Harris

Here's some iphone shots I took on that ride before the weigh in up higher on the mountain.

Flame on...

yzviper366 · Mar 14, 2014

fourthmeal said:
This is legit. But there are a few background notes that I find important to point out:

1. Both the Pro and the Summit were equipped with electric start. That's why the wet weights are higher than what we have measured in our own testing. The Viper is electric start, too...

2. The Summit was an SP, not an X.

3. The Viper 153 was not a Float-equipped SE version. It was the base model with coil spring shocks.

3. The snow conditions on the day of this ride were what I would define as March snow: dense powder up high and heavy wet down low. And the tree weights were done at a lower elevation where the snow was heavier. But all three sleds were ridden for a couple hours, filled up, ridden around again and driven right to the hanging scale. In my opinion, that's why the weights on the Pro and Summit are higher than what the Cat video showed.

4. I was shocked. As stated in the video, it still feels like you're riding a 4-stroke and it still feels heavier in the snow, but with the 180 boost kit, it was light enough to feel fun. Wasn't expecting that.

5. The results have already been pointed out to some extent in Cat's tree-weight video. The ProClimb chassis just doesn't carry as much weight in snow.

6. It doesn't mean the Pro and Summit suddenly suck (although social media will probably take it that way anyway). All I take it to mean is that Yamaha has made big progress toward having a 4-stroke mountain sled that is competitive with the 8s and is actually fun to ride. It is fun to ride.

That's my take. Read into it however you want.

-Ryan Harris

Here's some iphone shots I took on that ride before the weigh in up higher on the mountain.

Flame on...

Looks like a lot less snow packed on the doo than there was in the video.

REAL WEIGHT COMPARISON: Yamaha Viper vs RMK vs XM! (Video W/Ryan Harris from SnoWest)

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