Yamaha Is Killing Parts of Its Side-By-Side Business, Not Completely Axing It

Yamaha Motor Corporation (that's the big parent company in Tokyo) just announced what it terms as "record-setting figures for revenue and operating profit" for the first half of FY 2026. The thing is, if you're a company with as many segments as Yamaha Motor Corporation has, that might mean some of those segments are doing better than others. Maybe even significantly better.

Or significantly worse, which is unfortunately the case with the Outdoor Land Vehicle Business. To give you a quick overview, YMC divides its business into six segments, which I'll describe below. 

If you're reading RideApart, then chances are good that you care about some of these areas more than others. On August 4, 2026, Yamaha Motor Corporation USA said that it plans to stop producing side-by-sides at its Newnan, Georgia Yamaha Motor Manufacturing Corporation plant. That does not mean it will stop making side-by-sides entirely; however, it will no longer make them at that facility following the 2026 model year. According to Yamaha Motor Corporation USA, it plans to continue to make parts, service, and customer service for all of its SxS models (both current and legacy) available going forward.

That facility will instead reportedly be redirecting its manufacturing capacity and efforts towards making ATVs (which have been more profitable for the company), as well as its golf car and personal watercraft lines. In the press release from Yamaha Motor Corporation in Iwata (not the US subsidiary), there's a line about how it plans to "transition to a collaborative business model premised on OEM supply through partner companies." 

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Since Yamaha had, until now, manufactured its global supply of side-by-sides at the Newnan Facility, can we take this to mean that Yamaha will be rebadging entire side-by-sides made by a different supplier? That would seem to be what's implied here, but RideApart  reached out to Yamaha Motor US for comment. 

In response, RideApart was  told that "we are not able to provide any additional details on future plans or product offerings at this time," but that further information will be shared at the appropriate time. 

If that does end up being the path that Yamaha goes down, what we can say is that while we haven't seen a lot of this type of badge engineering activity in the side-by-side space, those who follow the automotive and motorcycle industries can probably tell you many stories of cars and motorcycles that are basically built by a supplier and then appropriately branded and marketed to fit whatever a particular market needs. 

Other major companion announcements that Yamaha Motor Co. made with regard to its Outdoor Land Vehicle business include a phrase dreaded by workers everywhere: Workforce Optimization. It says a review of its workforce will be global, and will include "[implementation of] workforce adjustments totaling approximately 300 positions, including a reduction of approximately 200 full-time positions and optimizing temporary staffing." It goes on to add that "the Company will also optimize personnel allocation across its development, sales, and manufacturing departments."

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