I'll add a cautionary tail to this thread, and some info/lessones I have learned throughout the process. I tried to get Yamaha to replace my transducer under warranty.
Here is my experience.
All warranty work is driven by "cases" that the dealer needs to open and not by Yamaha. You must have an active case open and they deal with them in the priority they were opened. I had 3 dealerships involved. 1 refused and argued it was not covered, even after I showed them paperwork. Dealer 2 had their certification pulled by Yamaha (or no longer wanted it), and thus no longer could servce it. Dealer 3, after being called by Yamaha, failed to file the proper "paperwork" and never got the case open. After speaking with Yamaha, who said they would indeed certify an alternate method of fixing the transducer issue with an alternate part and jumper/splice cable, I was told I'd go back to the end of the line. After a year+ of wating, I am no closer to resolution and in fact am further away trying to go the OEM replacement route.
Here is what i learned
If anyone else has this happen to them, do not go on a waiting list for the transducer. Per the statement above, I asked the yamaha rep point blank if they would cover an alternate part and they said YES! (hah..pun) We all know iIt's likely we will never see another DST 800, unless someone finds one in a dark back room somewhere. The person I spoke with last at Yamaha was WELL aware of the transducer issue and WELL aware of the fact that the part has been on backorder for a very long time. They know the deal and if that particular individual does not their manager does.
- Use my story and the story of others on this thread and press the Yamaha reps, telling them you have proof others have been waiting for months and years for a part that will never come.
- Order the 810 somewhere and have yamaha cover the costs.
- Ask the rep to speak directly with the dealer/service tech at the start. Further more, be on that call if you can because many dealers will play he/said, she/said.
- Get documentation and proof at every stage you can. Document the exact dates and what was said. Even reocrd it if you have to.
- Remember you are dealing with individual personallities. Some are good and care, others are there to collect a paycheck, so try and be kind to each person, but don't let them play pass the buck and try not to lose it after repeating yourself for the 10th time. It was my experience Yamaha will place blame on the dealer and avoid responsablity when they can. The dealer will do the same.
- Finally remember that even though you spent 10s of thousands of dollars, you are just a drop in the bucket in their total revenue. Don't expect that money to buy you anything, you spent it. It's gone.
From my research, Airmar has discontinued the DST800 in favor of the DST810, which is why there is a back order of the part. When I called Airmar, they refused to help and got pretty rude saying it was an OEM part and I had to deal with the OEM of the boat. Further reasearch leads me to believe that the DST 810 will always be a 0 degree because degree can be adjusted via bluetooth, so a 20 degree 810 is likely not a thing. If you have a boat with a 20 degree hull location for the transducer, get the 0 degree bluettoth DST 810.
I hope this helps someone down the road.