Sled Comparison: Ski-Doo 174 – Axys 155 – Pro 155
Last Saturday, I had the chance to compare three different sleds. Here are the three sleds and my feedback on them, FWIW.
- 2016 Ski-Doo Summit 174 – 3” lugs
- 2016 Polaris Pro RMK Axys 155 – 2.6” lugs
- 2012 Polaris RMK Assault 155 – Zbroz 36” A-arms, Burandt boards – 2.4” lugs
Summit – The 174” track will take you anywhere, without effort, as long as it’s in a straight line. The rider forward design, which puts the secondary clutch high in the chassis, makes it incredibly difficult to carve. I had issues with overcoming the gyro effect. It always wanted to stay in the direction it was set at. When muscled into a lean, it wanted to stay in that position until I muscled it back. Very weird feeling. In case you’re wondering, yes, you can get a 174 stuck…
Axys – That new 2.6” track is, holy crap, awesome! It hooks up way better than the older 2.4”. Other than that, it really didn’t feel much different than the 2012. It was more difficult to carve than the 2012.
Assault – The Axys could climb a bit higher with the better track, but the Assault could carve circles around the Axys. IMO, there’s no better upgrade you can do to a PRO than to put 36” a-arms on it. My buddy, that rode the Axys all week, took a spin on my Assault and said, “Wow, that’s the way a sled should handle!” I also didn’t notice much difference in engine performance between sleds. The Assault does have Wiseco forged pistons, which took away the vibration and made it much more responsive. So, I figured that’s why I didn’t notice an engine performance difference.
Conclusion: The Doo loyalists don’t know what they’re missing, the new Poo 2.6” track is awesome, and 36” a-arms are the bomb. If money were no object, I’d get the Axys with 36” a-arms. But since it is, I’ll stick with my Assault for another year or two. There’s just not enough of a difference to justify forking out more cash for a newer sled.
Last Saturday, I had the chance to compare three different sleds. Here are the three sleds and my feedback on them, FWIW.
- 2016 Ski-Doo Summit 174 – 3” lugs
- 2016 Polaris Pro RMK Axys 155 – 2.6” lugs
- 2012 Polaris RMK Assault 155 – Zbroz 36” A-arms, Burandt boards – 2.4” lugs
Summit – The 174” track will take you anywhere, without effort, as long as it’s in a straight line. The rider forward design, which puts the secondary clutch high in the chassis, makes it incredibly difficult to carve. I had issues with overcoming the gyro effect. It always wanted to stay in the direction it was set at. When muscled into a lean, it wanted to stay in that position until I muscled it back. Very weird feeling. In case you’re wondering, yes, you can get a 174 stuck…
Axys – That new 2.6” track is, holy crap, awesome! It hooks up way better than the older 2.4”. Other than that, it really didn’t feel much different than the 2012. It was more difficult to carve than the 2012.
Assault – The Axys could climb a bit higher with the better track, but the Assault could carve circles around the Axys. IMO, there’s no better upgrade you can do to a PRO than to put 36” a-arms on it. My buddy, that rode the Axys all week, took a spin on my Assault and said, “Wow, that’s the way a sled should handle!” I also didn’t notice much difference in engine performance between sleds. The Assault does have Wiseco forged pistons, which took away the vibration and made it much more responsive. So, I figured that’s why I didn’t notice an engine performance difference.
Conclusion: The Doo loyalists don’t know what they’re missing, the new Poo 2.6” track is awesome, and 36” a-arms are the bomb. If money were no object, I’d get the Axys with 36” a-arms. But since it is, I’ll stick with my Assault for another year or two. There’s just not enough of a difference to justify forking out more cash for a newer sled.
Can't speak for an Axys.
