i really hate how bad of a wrap the 951 has. they're really not bad engines just like everything else they have their quirks. i'd say 89% of all 951 problems come from improper maintenance or people thinking they know what they're doing but really don't. The other 11% of the problems come from the carbs. the epa was really cracking down on 2-strokes in the late 90's early 00's and unlike kawi and Yamaha, (who's high performance motors where triples) brp's approach was great from an engineering standpoint but not an emissions stand point. we all know the 951 made 130 hp in a single pipe configuration, which at the time was unheard out of a twin cylinder engine. which was an awesome thing, make almost as much horsepower as your competitors without the extra 50-60lbs of the 3rd cylinder, plus other advantages (less rotating resistance, smaller platform giving you the ability to have a smaller overall hull size, etc) however as we all also know you have to burn fuel and air to make horsepower. something the triples excelled at. they could make 140-150 horsepower while producing less emotions and displacing heat than the 951 could cause they had that extra cylinder, extra exhaust port, extra carb, etc. so whats the easiest way to cool down a 2-stroke? fuel. and with the epa regulations brp couldn't just richen up the carbs without breaking them, thus came the carb modifications and very lean jetting that the 951 had. it created way too delicate of a balance that had to be maintained and when things where not maintained perfectly...boom. this problem was especially exposed on the rxx. those twin pipes make those pistons run HOT. the carb design just can't flow the necessary fuel, no matter how big the jetting, needed for performance applications.
anyway, there's my rant for the month. and wouldn't we all like the stash [MENTION=51824]Matt Braley[/MENTION] has? lol