I'm not saying the 01's don't have a problem, obviously they do, but out of 25,000 bikes built, not all of them have failed. My opinion is, if you can get a 01 in excellant shape at a great price, you would be stupid not to jump on it. The trany may go out, but it may go out on a 02 also. Don't forget, some of them went bad too.

 

If its a smokin deal I'd get it...although I won't ever own another raptor...if you can put a tranny update in and still come in at a reasonable price go for it

that way you know what you are doing when the other 01 lets go

 

So was I until I read turtlers post about how his 02 tranny went. But, I still ride the crap out of it. Magnolia Yamaha on ebay has most all the parts I need for $395?? [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

Steve, It'll be a slow go up Devils Dune on a stock Raptor if it'll make it at all. Better get that cam and piston in first. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

I have a 01' raptor and it exploded and did 1500 worth of damage. Lucky i had a extended warranty and know the mechanic so he pushed it through. I got the quad back in dec. and tore the engine down in june and found two of the shift forks with wear marks on them. That was the only things that showed any potential problems. I was updating the tranny anyways but those didn't come with the update kit from alba. I use reverse but that should not have affected those shift forks because its not the low gear shift fork. I would update the tranny if you buy it because when it goes it takes other things with it. Thats my two cents.

 

My '01 is a 686 with 12:1 and still running on the stock trans. I know, I just cursed it...[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-mad.gif[/img] Now it's gonna take a dump too..... Really though I bought mine in march '01 and it's still on the stock gears. Just FYI vin in the 139XX range. Of course the starter oneway is a different story, just look in my pics. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

Steve, It'll be a slow go up Devils Dune on a stock Raptor if it'll make it at all. Better get that cam and piston in first. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img][/quote]

Yeah, the wifes stock 01 with K&N and 12-42 gearing gets me maybe halfway up. The one I'm looking at is piped and jetted, way spunkier than Val's. But, of course, the cam & piston are mandatory.

 

Garyc660r, reverse is not the sole reason of gearboxes going out. If you have taken a look at the broken gears, at least in my case, it is a brittle fracture across the entire gear. That failure usually results from metal porosity or a heat treatment problems only exacerbated by a shhitty cross section. The shop that rebuilt mine found that most of the failures occured during downshifting where the gears are heavily loaded. The guy at the shop told me verbatim how my gearbox lunched without me saying a word. Now lets hear your infinite words of wisdom. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-tongue.gif[/img]

 

I agree....some failures will be a result of defects...no doubt. The 01 Raptor, of course, is not left out of the defect circle either. So your mechanic told you the gears were more loaded upon deceleration? What's his name, location, and phone #? I would like too chat with him. PM me.

 

I have noticed alot of the 2001 failures on the downshift from 2nd to 1st. Even mine did this. I attribute it to the fact that the enagement dogs for the gear let loose but are being held there by the shiftfork. Once the shiftfork is moved out of the way it clears way for the dogs to come out and lodge in the gear mesh or fall to the crankcase floor.

I would definitely consider reverse as aggrivating the situation on the 2001 transmission. I do believe it stresses and weakens the shiftfork, 2nd gears overcut gears also stress the same shiftfork the opposite direction sooner or later the fork cant hold it together (it shouldnt have to anyway - its just a shiftfork)