new member looking at vmax

[stain]

long time cat man, recent yamaha convert--new rx1 in 05-- have always been intrigued by the v max4 and have a chance to aquire one. It's a 96 with 5200 miles. What are they worth? Are there any things to look for? updates? must do mods, upgrades? any insight would be welcome

[Exciter570]

1996 was a good year for the vmax4. Being one of the last years they were produced the bugs had all been worked out. I would just look out for the things you would look for on any used sled.

A popular must do mod is to install quad pipes, this will add 15-20hp to sled, beware of bad fuel when running pipes though. Another popular mod is to go to a more aggresive clutch set up, Yammigod3:16 is a good guy to ask about a set up. Lastly, these are great sleds that are very reliable and turn a lot of heads on the trails, especially if you have quad pipes installed. They are not very good on fuel, best you will see is about 10mpg with these sleds but it's worth it for smile these sleds will put on your face. If the sled is in good condition and going for a reasonable price, I would pick it up. Good Luck :vmax4:

[daman]

depends on what she's worth to you,what's he asking?,5200 miles is
getting up there to asking mint price.

but @ 5200 mile's i would be thinking of a fresh'en up,(rings/mic pistons),
i bet there's alot of blow by going on.

[racerrob]

Blow by at 5500 miles??

Got 5500 miles on mine, solid, good compression across all 4 pistons, runs great. :653:

I think its just gettin broke in right now!!!:4fzfpi:

Pricing would be tied to overall condition. I see a 94 750 with 4200 miles on craigslist here in OR & he's asking $1500 with a cover.
Not bas looking per the pictures, dont know how it sounds.

Good luck on the purchase. As others have said, it's very unique sled & set up right is a blast to ride.

And when guys with new $9,000 sleds stop & ask all about the "old iron",
its pretty cool, especially when they hear the quads, they stand there scratching there heads.:vmax4:

[stain]

he is asking 1750--but I may trade my 1990 xt600 for it. claims it is ready to ride

[vmax4rules]

$1750 is not a bad price, at minimum I would upgrade the clutching so you can harness the power properly (Yamaha left alot on the table)

No updates to speak of these were very reliable sleds (I have a 1992 with more than 20,000 miles on it) if you want to add some comfort for the trails I suggest upgrading the rear suspension with a newer long travel model.

And welcome to the site!

[daman]

Blow by at 5500 miles??

Got 5500 miles on mine, solid, good compression across all 4 pistons, runs great.

yep......compression tells little about the true health of a 2-stroke engine,
just because the sled has good compression doesnt mean the rings dont need freshend up, its easy to build compression but its a whole other ballpark to hang onto that pressure(the true ability of the rings sealing),a true test to check your rings is to do a leak down test,not a comp. test.

By letting the piston start to rock back and forth in the bore by reducing stability(worn rings), this in turn leads to worn skirts on the piston, and instead of traveling straight up and down in the bore they begin to "rock" back and forth, this cracks and weaken's the skirts of the piston over
time and could lead to major engine damage(skirts breaking off).

next time you have your pipes off or carbs and reed cages out look inside and you'll see a dark stain bellow the rings,this is blow by, exhaust gasses that are partially burnt being reinhaled past the weak rings contaminating the fresh fuel/air charge below in the crankcase thus loosing power over
time.

been there seen it...i do rings every 4-5,000 miles, haven't had to repalce
a piston in a long long time due to worn/outa spec skirts.

$.02....:)

[vmax4rules]

yep......compression tells little about the true health of a 2-stroke engine,
just because the sled has good compression doesnt mean the rings dont need freshend up, its easy to build compression but its a whole other ballpark to hang onto that pressure(the true ability of the rings sealing),a true test to check your rings is to do a leak down test,not a comp. test.

By letting the piston start to rock back and forth in the bore by reducing stability(worn rings), this in turn leads to worn skirts on the piston, and instead of traveling straight up and down in the bore they begin to "rock" back and forth, this cracks and weaken's the skirts of the piston over
time and could lead to major engine damage(skirts breaking off).

next time you have your pipes off or carbs and reed cages out look inside and you'll see a dark stain bellow the rings,this is blow by, exhaust gasses that are partially burnt being reinhaled past the weak rings contaminating the fresh fuel/air charge below in the crankcase thus loosing power over
time.

been there seen it...i do rings every 4-5,000 miles, haven't had to repalce
a piston in a long long time due to worn/outa spec skirts.

$.02....:)

:agree: very good post.

And even though these are 4 cylinder engines I have found they are fairly reasonable to rebuild.
It helps if you have a dealer who is willing to give you a discount.

[racerrob]

Hey Damon:
Good information & description.

Since I have never kept a sled past 4500 miles in the past, I never worried about looking into this.

But, the Max will be in the stable a long long time so will watch for this.

Here are pictures of the pistons last Feb when I put in the new reeds.
I think they look pretty good, but, am always open to more experienced
eyes & thoughts. These pics were taken at roughly 5200 miles.
It now has 5560 on it.

Hey Stain: At $1750, thats a good price if shes solid & as rules says, clutching & fine tuning will make the sled run really good!!

Rob

[daman]

Im impressed looks very very good :),i can't see all i want to see tho(sides by the piston pin's., can i ask what type of oil it's seen in them 5200 miles?

[racerrob]

Damon:

Obviously, could not get a pic of the sides but, when it was open, I did
take my mirror & led light & examined the sides etc. & they pretty much look the same, so maybe I am fortunate at this point.
Probably will consider doing the rings next summer based on this info.


I have only owned it for 3 years so do not know the history of what was used prior to me as I purchased the sled from a guy who was going to part it out for a racing chassis & then changed his mind. So it's history is a bit cloudy other than it was never opened up & was owned I am told by 2 other people.

I have been using YammiLube ( Since my 1st Yammi in 1976!!) but am considering going to a synthetic such as Amsoil, but have not commited yet. Still have 4 gal of Yammilube in the inventory.

Rob

[daman]

Sure understandable, just cereous..

glad to hear you saved her from a part out, he must have used
synthetic's, OR did a top end rebuild and didn't tell ya cause that's
one of the cleanest 5,000 mile motor i've seen in a long time. :)

and yes definitely switch over to synthetic's Amsoil,Klotz after you do rings someday.

i use Amsoil Interceptor in every one of my sleds,Power valve's or not.

[stain]

still looking at vmaxx 4's. wasn't able to purchase last year. Just found a 1992 with 3100 alledged original miles. New comet clutch and fox shocks for $895. Problems with the 750? Should I hold out for an 800?Probaly won't see many miles, I'll use it for certain groomed trail rides, guests and maybe short locall cruises and lake runs. Good buy?

[ALLSEASONRIDER]

still looking at vmaxx 4's. wasn't able to purchase last year. Just found a 1992 with 3100 alledged original miles. New comet clutch and fox shocks for $895. Problems with the 750? Should I hold out for an 800?Probaly won't see many miles, I'll use it for certain groomed trail rides, guests and maybe short locall cruises and lake runs. Good buy?

stain, you haven't bought a Vmax4 yet? Ahh, just giving you a hard time. Yea, that 92 for under a grand sounds pretty decent. I wouldn't be afraid of a 750 at all. Just give it a good once over as you don't usually steal a clean V4 for that kind of $$$.

Good luck...

[Mad Powersports]

Problems with the 750?

Check the jackshaft by the chaincase. it's a two piece shaft with a collar and splines. The splines wear and the shaft twists inside the collar. the 800 models went to a one piece shaft.

I just got a 92 with 1,080 miles and the shaft is perfect. My other 92 the shaft was completely round where the splines were supposed to be. When I got that one the chaincase was all busted to shite and the shaft was out but what i think happenned was the stub shaft started to wobble at speed and took out the case.

[panhead]

Yup, check that jackshaft all right. Ya can just move the secondary back and forth and watch the part where the collar goes over the splined shaft at the chaincase side, if the collar moves and the chaincase short shaft doesn't, you're gonna need a jackshaft. Mine had this problem when I bought it. More updates and stuff to do on the 92 750 versus the 800s as it was the first year. I just picked mine up and am going through it. I got mine for $500, but it needed quite a bit of help such as a seat and a few other things, plus the jackshaft, and it's got 7200 miles I believe ! Had the reed cages off tho and the pistons look great and the compression is good. You are at the right site, there are lots of people here to help you out with that sled if you get it, I've already gotten a pile of info and help with mine. This site rules !

[stain]

DAMN!!! guy sold it today for $700

[ALLSEASONRIDER]

DAMN!!! guy sold it today for $700

:sheep That sounds pretty cheap!

[panhead]

Geez, ya, that's what i was thinkin'! I paid $500 but have already put about $300 into it to repair all the broken stuff. Sounds like a great deal to me. Can't believe he folded on the price that hard that fast. Oh well, I'm jealous, somebody got a great deal, at least that's what we all think until we bought it and we see all the problems, lol...!
Better luck next time !

[Robs96max4]

just picked mine up for 1800cnd with a trailer, it has 3200km's on it and it's been trail ported a little off the head and clutched,it is engaging at 4500....can't wait for the snow, but until then i might have to grassdrag it..lol lets just say i have the itch..

[jminor]

just picked mine up for 1800cnd with a trailer, it has 3200km's on it and it's been trail ported a little off the head and clutched,it is engaging at 4500....can't wait for the snow, but until then i might have to grassdrag it..lol lets just say i have the itch..


better get some gears...

[Robs96max4]

what gear ratio should i use, and what is stock

[jminor]

2:1 will get you close for drag,stock is 24\38

[vmax4rules]

2:1 will get you close for drag,stock is 24\38

Josh I think you meant 37/24.

From looking at the gearing chart the most cost effective setup would be 39/20 (1.95) that way he could use his stock 70L chain.

[jminor]

Josh I think you meant 37/24.

From looking at the gearing chart the most cost effective setup would be 39/20 (1.95) that way he could use his stock 70L chain.

Rules you are right, it has been awhile since I ran any stock gearing. Rob if you are serious about running I may have some stuff to lend you for the day, let me know..

[Robs96max4]

Rules you are right, it has been awhile since I ran any stock gearing. Rob if you are serious about running I may have some stuff to lend you for the day, let me know..what day are you running the 1st or i think the 8th and how much trouble is it to change??