Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

DOES ANYONE KNOW IF THEY WILL HAVE A NEW LINEUP FOR THEIR SNOWBLOWERS IN 2010?

I was in the dealer just the other day and I did not hear about anything new.  There is a slightly different snowblower sold in parts of Canada.  Maybe a test market for something new?   Yamaha is supposed to have an announcement this February (2010) regarding their snowblower line-up for the North American Market, but this is nothing but a rumor so far.

There's rumor that Yamaha will be introducing offering a lineup with turbo diesel option, 4x4 skid steer with individual electric traction motors, forward looking radar to prevent ingestion of frozen newspapers and squirrels buried in snow.   Just kidding.

It will be interesting if Yamaha decided to market their snowblowers in the North America.  Not sure how they would position their product since Honda is quite similar in design.  In today's economy, selling premium product line to very small customer base of Honda and Simplicity is highly risky.

I haven't seen anything new for 2010 Honda in the US.  I don't anticipate anything new other than convenience features, or "gizmos".  Even if there is anything new, Honda marketing department is only going to make a gentle splash to let us know about it anyways.

I think  Honda or Yamaha would be smart to market a blower toward people that currently shy away from a snowblower.  Something in a 2-stage but along the lines of the simplicity offered in a single stage.  It should have a joystick for controlling the direction, key start with a battery and alternator, and an oversized muffler so it runs super quite.  It should appeal to the diehard but also those that currently don't own a snowblower.  I like the idea of the twin hydro they offer in the market in japan but who knows what we'll end up with here.  No reason to compete on the low end of the market. But I'm sorry, I've wanted off the topic.  

The video is here:

http://www.yamaha-motor.jp/snowthrower/point/popup/index.html

 

Yikes!!!! That's one macho machine. Being a Yamaha, the likelihood of something going wrong is minimal. However, if it did, looks pretty complicated to fix.

I bet that machine runs more than 6k.  Honda's got a hybrid monster like that's  close to 8 grand.  I like toys but that's nuts.

nhmatt wrote:

Where is that, I do not know about it. I need toys too...

That Yamaha would be GREAT

Nice.  I like it.

Now for the price.  I'd think I'd have to get on a zero interest 120 month installment plan to park one of those cool blue things on my garage.

Rest of the lineup is here: http://www.yamaha-motor.jp/snowthrower/lineup/index.html

Honda does have a few tricks up thier sleeves:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3o5eXQMvxyc&NR=1

Here's a link  http://www.dkdods.com/hondasnowblowers.php

Honda 1336ic.  Hybrid snowblower.  Impeller is motor driven, tracs are powered by electric motors.   It has a memory, so when you back up, it will raise the bucket.  It learns how fast your turn and whatnot. 

looks more like a tank than a snowblower.   could probably do a whole street if need be

For $8500 it should be able to snowblow the street in the Winter, and pave it in the Summer.  How about a robot-vacuum brain, some servos and a camera, maybe an ultrasonic fence so it knows when to stop, and I can just let it run its path on its own!

I'm surprised how light the machine is at only 260 lbs. That's only five lbs. more than my 928 Simplicity. Considering the size of the machine, one has to wonder where the weight saving are? I was shocked with the price of the HS724 at $3000.00 USD. It's probably a couple hundred more in CDN dollars. A guy across the street bought one last year. For a 7 h.p. machine, it throw snow pretty good. However, either I know how to operate my Simplicity better than he does his Honda, or the Simplicity just moves more snow and throws it further than his Honda does. That shouldn't be too much of a surprise. With the Simplicity's 9 going on 11 h.p. engine and 4" wider intake it should move more snow. Don't know if it will last as long as the Honda. But for less than half the price and the fact that it does more work in less time, it still looks like a much better value. I sure like the quality of the Hondas but I'm not too keen on tracked machines. Too slow for my preference and a pain in the a$$ to move around when the engine is shut off.

I wouldn't spend what honda's asking.   Well, let me clarify:  I couldn't spend what honda's asking.  If I didn't have specific needs I'd look for a rusty tank from a gone by era and resurect the beast with a nice quiet OHV engine and about three coats of high gloss, jet black paint.  I'm on the edge of ATV/snowblower need, but just as I can't justify 8 grand for a snowblower I can't spend that on a quad.snowblower either.  

Now, a bobcat could have some Summer-time uses!

For that price, it should have a remote control and/or be able to learn how to do your driveway itself!

If I didnt like snowblowing so much, I would have put that $8000 towards a heated driveway.  :)