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Product Review
2006 Yamaha Rhino 660 - Special Edition
DuneGuide.com Yamaha Rhino Review - A 2006 Special Edition Yamaha Rhino
**
What's new for 2008 Yamaha Rhino
700 EFI **
Cross an ATV with a pickup truck and you get an UTV. UTVs or
Side by Sides are incredibly popular in general, but in the dunes, their
popularity is off-the-charts.
On a trip to
Sand
Mountain, we had the opportunity to test out a 2006 Yamaha Rhino 660 Auto
4x4 Special Edition (specifications).
The Special Edition differs from the standard Rhino with a silver frame and
springs, steel blue bodywork with a special logo and graphics, standard LCD
gauge, special seats, sport steering wheel and cast aluminum wheels. Nice
additions for a few extra bucks.
We decided to put the Rhino through the paces on a trip around
the base of Sand Mountain. This gave us a good chance to see how it handled the
flats, whoops, side hills, and climbing with two guys in it. The Rhino has
a dry weight of 1049 lbs., but even with the a bone stock engine we were quite impressed.
The Rhino borrowed technology from Yamaha's already proven 4x4 660 Grizzly
(engine, transmission, and front and rear differentials).
The Rhino is great for cruising around the flats. Very
comfortable. Easy to start and maneuver.
The Rhino felt a bit tippy on the side hills. Definitely
should only be attempted by users that are experienced at reading dunes.
We tried to get it up to Super Bowl, but it just didn't quite
have enough to get there with two guys in it.
Although it fell just a bit short of making it up to Super
Bowl, it was able to climb out of Toyota Gulch (near the Wall).
Conclusions:
Right out of the box, the Rhino is very capable. It has decent
power and suspension. If you are a trail rider, or just want to cruise down to the
vendors or your friends camp, the Rhino is a great vehicle. It is easy to drive for the novice, but fast enough for an
experienced rider to still have fun. And since you can take a friend with you,
it is a great way for newbies to see the dunes and learn how to drive from a
more experienced rider.
The Rhino surprised us in what it could do in the dunes, but
also concerned us at the same time. If you are not an experienced duner, we could
see how you could get in over your head pretty quick out in the dunes. In our
opinion, if you want to hit the dunes hard, there are a few things that could
be done to make it a safer and more capable vehicle.
Rhino Suspension: the Rhino comes with fully independent
four-wheel suspension: Double-wishbones front and rear deliver 7.3 inches
of wheel travel and 12.1 inches of ground clearance. Decent for easy trail
rides, but with stock-width a-arms, it feels like
it could tip on side hills, or run out of suspension going through the
whoops or hitting a witches eye. So if you are serious about taking it for
more serious dune rides, either invest in some aftermarket suspension, or
know the vehicle's limits. In stock form, the Rhino has a 75"
wheelbase, and is 54.5" wide.
Seat Belts: The stock seat belts won't do well
enough in a roll-over. To keep driver and passenger in the vehicle, we'd
recommend a set of 4 point harness restraints. The stock belts can also be
pretty annoying when they lock in place and won't seem to unlock without
releasing them.
Rhino Roll Bar/Cage: If you are just using your Rhino to
cruise the flats, you are most likely good to go. It is very easy to
get in and out, and the likelihood of a rollover is slim. But out in the
dunes, we would be concerned with the strength of the roll bar and the
openness in the doorway. In a rollover, it would be human nature to
try to stop the rollover by sticking your foot out. In stock form,
there is nothing to prevent you from doing this. A door, net or additional bar
is necessary to keep your feet in the more protected cab.
- 660cc, 4-stroke single, liquid-cooled w/fan, 5-valve SOHC
- Bore x Stroke - 100mm x 84mm
- Compression Ratio - 9.1:1
Adding more power to your Rhino can always be used to get you up to places the
stock engine can't get to now (e.g. Super Bowl, the top of Sand Mountain
or racing up Oldsmobile Hill). There are options to swap out the CDI box (changes rev-limiter)
that makes the timing curve a bit more aggressive. There are also air
filters, exhaust and jetting that will help. A few companies have big bore
& stroker kits, and we've even seen a few turbos and blowers.
Yamaha Rhino Product Review
Appeared in
Sand Addiction Magazine,
December 2005
New for 2007 Yamaha Rhino models:
-
All of the Rhinos now come with digital dash and fuel gauge.
-
Silver SE - Pre-load adjustable piggy-back shocks, molded
roof, aluminum wheels.
New for 2008 Yamaha Rhino
700 EFI models:
-
All-new 686cc engine puts out plenty of broadband power. New
four-valve head with 9.2:1 compression and forged piston bumps power and efficiency.
-
Electronic fuel injection ensures peak performance in nearly
all conditions and elevations, along with instantaneous cold starts.
-
Tough, rotomolded doors keep mud, water and dirt on the
trail where they belong.
-
New four-wheel disc brakes provide unsurpassed stopping
power, and a new parking brake is super convenient.
-
Cool, comfortable new steering wheel and new passenger grab
handles.
-
Now with two cup holders for even greater creature comfort.
-
New underhood tool-free air filter is a snap to service.
-
New Stainless Steel Exhaust with Spherical joints
-
New front differential
-
Bigger CV Joints and Axles
-
Larger Radiator and Fan
-
New Brake Pad Material - Eliminates Squeaks
-
CVT filter has been redesigned
-
Exhaust pipe is supported
better to greatly reduce rattles
Midnight Armor
New Doors
Front/Rear Brakes
Cup Holder
Steering Wheel
Shifter, new Parking Brake and Passenger Grab Handle
Under Hood Air Filter
A note about fuel
injection:
In
2004-2007 Rhinos, when you make changes to your exhaust and intake, you
would need to make changes to your carburetor by "jetting" it and also
change out your CDI to allow higher speed.
Since the 2008 Yamaha Rhino 700 is fuel injected (EFI), you will need a fuel
controller if you want to add an aftermarket pipe and/or intake. In simple
terms, a fuel controller does to fuel injection what jetting does to a carburetor. Dynojet
will have a Power Commander III (see picture below) available in early 2008
and expect aftermarket exhaust manufacturers to also come out with
customized fuel controllers for their products. Expect Dobeck and Dynatek to
also have controllers for the 2008 Rhino.
Why do you need a fuel controller?
The fuel injected engine on the Rhino uses a "map" that is
built into the ECU to decide how much fuel to deliver at different points of
the RPM curve. Various sensors on different systems allow the curve/map to
be shifted up or down (richer or leaner) to compensate for altitude and air
changes. These sensors do not really change the shape of the curve they just
move it up and down a small amount.
Even if the fuel curve was perfect on a stock Rhino, once
you have altered the airflow through the engine (by changing the exhaust,
intake, etc.) the table that the ECU uses to deliver the correct amount of
fuel no longer matches the altered levels of airflow at different parts of
the RPM range. One of the things to keep in mind is that not all
modifications increase airflow throughout the RPM range. Often it is
necessary to lean out certain areas of a fuel curve for peak output.
If you have made performance improvements to your 2008 Rhino, it will not run right until add a fuel controller so you can change air/fuel ratio to match the new modifications.
Basically if you modify the engine in any way you will need a fuel
controller in order for the engine to run properly.
Choosing the right fuel controller:
Well, how much money do you want to spend? The least
expensive unit is typically one made by Dobeck. The Dobeck unit will not let
you take away fuel only add. Dobeck fuel controllers are most commonly
offered with custom mapping for a specific pipe. Dynatek makes a controller
that adds the ability to take away fuel not just add. Dynojet Power Commander is the
top of the line fuel controller for ATVs, motorcycles and UTVs. It not
only allows you to give or take away fuel and it has other add-on features
to control turbos or blowers.
Yamaha Rhino 450 Review
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