Kenora
New member
I can't locate a fuel shut off valve on the sled (97 VMAX 600 XTC)..... If I have one (and yes I looked where I thought one would be)...can you either post a picture or describe where it is... 

snerkman said:This is one of those brilliant ideas from Yamaha engineers. Let's not put a fuel shut off on the sled, but a big warning in the manual not to trailer with much fuel in the tank or you might hydrolock it and ruin the motor. Smart, really f'in smart. I plan to add a shutoff to the Vmax I just bought.
We have well over 40,000 miles of trailering on our sleds. No worries, no problems. If trailered properly, ie level, you will not have any problems. If you have weak needle and seats, carbs will flood any time. I always laugh at trucks with a sled in the back and tailgate closed, the sled is now setting at a 30* angle. Why???? Heck I would think it would be a pain just to get it that high. lol. Good luck Alsnerkman said:If you're really curious and don't have a manual, here is exactly what is says:
"Transporting: Make sure that the fuel level in the fuel tank is lower than the bottom of the carburetors. Otherwise, the vibration and bumps from the road surface could make it possible for fuel to flow through the carburetors into the crankcase. This can result in "hydrostatic lock", a condition where the engine cannot rotate because of fuel accumulated in the engine. Severe engine damage can result from hydrostatic lock. When possible, the fuel tank should be empty during transportation, especially if the trip will be longer than 30 minutes."
Way to go a**hole engineers. Now the first thing I have to worry about when I get to my drop, is finding a gas station because I can't start my day out with a full tank. You don't see anything quite this dumb from the other brands.
snerkman said:For those that think my only beef with Yamaha is a lack of fuel shutoff, it's far from that. I owned a 2008 Apex GT (the sweet anniversary model). When I bought it, I was expecting an R1 for the snow. I was greatly disappointed with much of the piss-poor engineering. No grease zerks on the jack shaft and drive shaft bearings. Are you kidding me? Every sled of any other brand I've owned had greaseable bearings. Instead I'm tearing apart and replacing rusty bearings on a sled less than 2 years old and less than 3000 miles. All the overheating issues on hard pack needing to add another cooler and ice scratchers? Never had any issues like that with any other brand.
I bought the Vmax because it was too good a deal to pass up. I'm not sorry I did, I like the sled for what it is. But whose idea was it to take a reverse shift lever off a 1960's farm tractor? And you can't get the dipstick out of the chaincase without removing two springs from the muffler. Even then, the pull rope protecting sleeve is in the way for easy access. And then there's the whole suspension thing that I won't even get into since everybody already know their weakness there.
Knowing Yamaha's reputation for motorcycles, musical instruments and electronics, I just expected way more from them than what I see in the two sleds I've owned.
Nicko said:But what do I know, I am just a friggin "Mexican"![]()