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

http://www.yamaha-motor.ca/products/comparison.php?model=3538&model2=3537&model3=3535&

Looks like the most expensive 12hp lists for  5349.oo CA. There are cheaper models in the lineup.

The 12hp model weighs 540 pounds.  It has to have steering assist because you'd have to be a gorilla to muscle that beast around.

I don't see steering assist either. That is the one thing that I was expecting that is missing. 

Without that feature its going to be hard to attract a market. 

In Japan they offer a dual hydro turning feature called  "easy turn." 

That one goes for approximately 900,000 yen in Japan...or roughly $10,000 US.

Underdog wrote:
Does Japan actually get enough snow to warrant such a machine? Here in many parts of the US we get socked in but maybe we just don't hear about the Japanese getting blizzards. I do agree that they will need to have a steering assist to beat Honda.

Steve_Cebu wrote:

Saw this from this January.

http://thenews.jang.com.pk/updates.asp?id=95400

"Japanese broadcaster TBS reported 27 centimetres (10 inches) of snow on Kushiro overnight, or more than half its monthly average for January. Japan's Meteorological agency warns of more snow in the area and even up to 80 centimetres (31 inches) in Nemuro city, on the southern tip of Hokkaido by Thursday (January 7). In the mountainous parts of the main island of Honshu, snow has piled up in the last 24 hours to nearly 129 centimetres (50 inches), TBS said. While it is usual for these parts of Japan to get heavy snow fall, locals says it's actually more than usual."

EDIT:   Other pics of massive snow here.

http://www.biwook.net/gallery/temp/snow-in-japan/

Or the base YU-240 model. :-)

http://www.yamaha-motor.jp/snowthrower/lineup/yu240/index.html

Manual  - http://www.yamaha-motor.jp/snowthrower/manual/pdf/7xk-f8199-j0.pdf

Translated page:

http://babelfish.yahoo.com/translate_url?doit=done&tt=url&intl=1&fr=bf-home&trurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.yamaha-motor.jp%2Fsnowthrower%2Flineup%2Fys1390%2Findex.html&lp=ja_en&btnTrUrl=Translate

The base YU-240 looks pretty interesting.  It has the black plates under the wheels that allow it to glide and float on deep snow without sinking and getting stuck (act like snow shoes or skis).  All this happens while the auger chews way at the snow.  Typical snowblowers would submarine under the snow and get stuck.

I'm not too fond of the color and the graphics on the side.   May appeal to the female demographics.  I'd probably paint it black and red.  :)

I hope these models make their way to the US. 

Here's a video showing how they steer.

http://www.yamaha-motor.jp/snowthrower/detail/popup/0011.html

WOW -  That's one Mutha of a snowblower!!! $ 10G's is alot of $$$ even if comparing it to a Honda HS1132TA. There are folks that would pay that kind of money but not to many (at least that I know of). I can clear my property in about 3 hours if we get an 8"  - 12" storm with my HS624WA. I think that Yamaha YT1232ED would be a bit awkward for  most property owners - looks hard to maneuver plus it's very heavy (540 lbs.). Probably be good for a large, wide open area that does not require a lot of manuevering around walk ways, stairs, etc...

I debated whether to get a larger snowblower (when I moved to my current, much larger property) but when a friend got transferred to North Carolina and offered me his slightly used (5 hours) HS928TA at a very reasonable price, I could not refuse. Looking forward to another good (translation = a lot of snow) New England winter with my new to me Honda HS928TA.