Yaesu FT-2900 Review

This is my first mobile 2M rig, and I am very pleased with my purchase of the Yaesu FT-2900.  I am running it with a Hustler MX-2 mag mounted on the roof of my Toyota Corolla, mostly talking to friends on FM simplex. I drive from the Bay Area across the San Joaquin Valley to the Sierra foothills, and regularly work stations 40-50+ miles distant. Most of my friends are running 2-meter horizontal beams for sideband, and we can make reliable contacts with my setup despite the loss with the cross polarization. Any repeaters I'd care to use are a snap, of course.

Some of the Pros (many others have mentioned):
1.)Very rugged design with a large display.
2.)Nice touch on controls.
3.)Robust, pleasing audio on both TX/RX.
4.)Very good receiver, with extended coverage for high VHF Public Service (very useful in my area), and Weather Band. I'm not sure why the one reviewer was experiencing splatter from adjacent channels, but I've heard none of that. My take is that this rig has a bullet-proof front end.
5.)Excellent value for the money. The MX-2 and the rig were about $200 out the door at HRO.
6.)I think the scan functions work adequately well for my purposes. I have about 20 channels -- a mix of simplex channels and favorite repeaters -- programmed in mine. I use the carrier mode and the mic to toggle in or out of the scan mode or step if the rig stops on a channel I'm not interested in.

Cons:
 1.)This rig gets VERY hot in the 75W mode -- it will actually burn your hand if you touch the cooling fins -- and it will eventually shut down if you are long-winded, although mine cooled down immediately when I directed my AC vents at it. Retrofitting it with a small fan would be a good idea.
2.)Recessed SO-239 connector is difficult to get at easily.
I have no bias in favor of one member of the "Big Three"; I own rigs by all of them. I may sell this rig in the near future, but only because I want to upgrade to a FT-857D or something similar so I can work 2-meter sideband and HF in my car. But if you are looking for firepower in a tough mobile 2-meter FM rig, I recommend it.

Buy. https://amzn.to/3eo1HSD