thinking of going poo. input from those who have spent time on xm and pro

you need to ride one of each to get your choice down, i rid e acat currently and have ridden a 12 pro and 12xp with xm updates spindles and such) and a 14 xm, xp is not in the same league as xm xm is very nicleyput together sled quality is top knotch. and motor seems to be pretty good thus far. pro is a nice chassis but i think my next sled would be a doo if i had the cash.

Here's my take.

I have a 12 pro that I'm about to sell

If you intend on keeping your sled for more than 1500ish miles, do NOT get a Pro. Yes, I personally think the pro has the best chassis but it isn't in the same league as the others for long term reliability.

If you don't mind wrenching all of the time and being down in the middle of the season, go pro! If you want a pull and go sled with minimal maintenance, go Doo or Cat

I just checked a 15 Freeride and the pro is going to the shop to get whatever I can warrantied and then it's going down the road

Had a 13' pro 155 last year and liked it a lot coming off of my 09 Summit 146. Sold the pro to my brother who had a 08 summit 146 and he likes it as well. I picked up a 09 summit 154 and installed all the XM suspension upgrades (t-mo, flex edge, s-36 and the ds-II spindle and ski kit) Hands down I would much rather ride the Doo that I have now over the pro I had last year. The pro does get on top of the snow a little better due to the lighter weight but the Doo has more power and handles just as good in 95% of the same terrain as the pro IMO. This is my 09. The XM has more power and is a bit more refined. My opinion is I liked the pro but like my Doo more and would probably like the Xm more but too rich for my blood right now.

extra inch of track width, 2.5 or 3 inch lug, side hills like a dream, pulls over with ease, 163.9 horse power, fit and finish better then the rest, 4 year bumper to bumper warranty, very fuel efficient, sip oil (after break in), comes in all black, great running boards, hand warmers work so good im always turning them down, clutching is good factory but Roosterbuilt will make it scream, gauge capability is awesome, summer motor fog, anything I missed?:face-icon-small-con


ask your self......"what do I get for the money I spend?"

Ridden both.
In the tight and steep the pro shines.
Its kinda like riding a dirtbike compared to a quad.
It goes where you want without trying to right itself or turn uphill, the xm is better than my 09 xp was but those traits are still there.
When countersteering the handlebars remain up where you can keep body position in control without the off side handlebar dropping towards the seat.
The wide running boards and seat/ tunnel/ body panels all contribute to the water buffalo handling.

A friend bought a 2014 Polaris RMK Pro (800 w 155 track - pull start) this season. Since I had decided to get a new sled this year, I rode his RMK Pro 4 times back to back with my 2013 Ski Doo Summit SP 800 ETEC (154 track - electric start). It was close, but I decided to spring-order a 2015 Summit 800 ETEC "X" in a 154 and not go with a Pro. Here are my observations based on my experience with both sleds.

Fit and finish: The Summit was superior. The Pro just seemed cheaper, not as bad as Arctic Cats, but inferior to the Ski Doo. Advantage Ski Doo.

Misc. Features: The Ski Doo won. I get that the Pro is all about stripping the sled down to the lightest weight possible, but it does not come with a tether, the handlebar warmers have only 2 settings and there is no separate setting for their thumb versus hand warmer. No stock storage on the Pro. The windshield on the Ski Doo just pops off and on for when you want to roll the sled, not like that on the Pro. I liked the seat better on the Ski Doo. The controls on the Ski Doo were nicer too. Advantage Ski Doo.

Running boards: The stock Pro ones are better at staying clear than the stock Ski Doo ones. They are stiffer too with no flex. They are narrower but no issue even with my size 13 Klim Arctic boots. Advantage Pro.

Track and skid: The Pro trenched less than the Ski Doo and got on top of the snow better in all conditions. Advantage Pro.


Skis: The Polaris Grippers are better than the DSIIs. They handle better on the trail and were a little better off trail, wider, and easier to sidehill. Advantage Pro.


Weight: No contest. The Pro is lighter and I could feel it going back and forth between sleds. It made me question why Ski Doo doesn't focus more on weight loss on their mountain sleds and make us pay a lot of money to modify our sleds to bring the weigh down. Advantage Pro.

Motor: The ETEC is tough to beat. The Pro's motor was rougher and the throttle pull was harder. Down low the Pro's motor was balky. Once it got going it was much better. The belt drive on the Pro seemed to make a difference. If I could put the ETEC in the Pro chassis it would be my dream sled. Advantage Ski Doo.

Suspension: The Ski Doo handled bumps better than the Pro. The Pro as quicker and easier to maneuver than the Ski Doo off trail. The Pro was easier to sidehill and held the line better. Tie.

Spring order offers:

Warranty - The Ski Doo warranty was much better (4 yrs bumper to bumper) versus 1 year and then 2 years extended for the Pro. Advantage Ski Doo.

Options - Polaris is offering tons of customization options for free. Advantage Pro.

Price - Polaris gives you a lot more for your money in 2015 with the free options. Advantage Pro.


In the end, it was a tough call. I really liked the Pro's look and the way it handled. The snowcheck options were great and you got a lot for your money. It was light, quick and easy to sidehill. The motor just wasn't as smooth as the ETEC's and the reliability of the Polaris 800 really concerned me, as did the Polaris warranty.

I will definitely look at the Pro again in the future to see how their new 800 HO does and consider it again.

Pro has the best chassis... and horrid reliability, doo has good motor but not great(long term reliability I mean), poor clutching, and great chassis... but weak as sh** front end, cat has by far the best motor, pretty strong chassis, but a crap handling until you spend a bunch on it.
Btw, if you ride hard, the whole "sips oil" BS is just that. All 3 of mine use the same or more oil as my cats did.

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There's not a bad sled out there the quality the 4 OEMs are producing are outstanding.

DPG

For your kind of riding I would definitely go for the Pro. You won't like your uncle's Assault simply because it has a wider stance and a very stiff lug track.

What everybody told you up top is pretty much true but engine failures have declined considerably with improvements in each model year. That being said the e-tec is the better engine. The chassis, ski's, belt drive, clutching, and light weight make it a great sled otherwise. My brother has a 14 XM 163 and after riding his a few times I can say I feel a lot more confident on edge and side hilling through the trees on the Pro. I'm less fatigued as well, likely because of the weight.

With all the free extras on the 15, $1000 off a snow check 16 or 17 and the killer Assault shocks on the narrow stance Pro you get an excellent value. Improved 3 year warranty as well.

Try them all if you can. The only sled that's right is the one that feels right to you, doing what you like to do.:face-icon-small-coo

i rented a pro today and my friend has a xm so i rode both to try tp help make my choice. But honestly i liked both of them. The pro felt a bit more stable, i felt the xm diving a bit more when sidehilling, but then the pro wouldn't start for a bit lol. If i wasn't worry about the pro braking down i would go with it but because of reliability i might go with the xm t3

I have a '12 Pro that I'm trading on a '15 Pro, and it has been an extremely good running sled, no issues. I also own a '13 XM X that was only ridden once this year, and not by me. The fun to ride factor is much higher on the Pro, and I'm simply not interested in riding my XM. I will be selling it this year. BCIL's brief review is quite accurate, but I would disagree that the Pro has horrible reliability. Polaris probably has the least dependable engine of the big 3, but I really like the way mine runs. In the last 3 years of riding, we have never towed out a Pro, as they have been very trouble free. For the type of riding that you say that you do, the Polaris chassis is probably the best sled for you. I would agree that Ski Doo has a higher build quality for the most part, but they still lack in the clutching dept., whereas my Pro clutching has been spot on since new. Ski Doo claims 163.9 HP on the E-Tec, but other dyno's say it differently, more like 157ish. Add in the extra weight of the Doo chassis compared to the Pro and the HP advantage of the Doo disappears. Up until 2012, I have ridden Ski Doo exclusively for years. But until the Doo chassis allows me to do what I can do on the Pro chassis in technical riding, I will be riding a Pro.

listen to both engines idle.search forum for blown etec and poo engines..then pick.i dont care which one you buy.LOL

I'd wait till 2016 if the new 800ho poo engine put out the power I'm hearing (168hp)it is than it will be interesting, the new axys chassis has some very nice features.
The pro chassis is very efficient in moving through the snow. Belt drive issues do not seem to be as bad as 2013, my only beef with the pro was the bars they just felt weird.

The doo t3 is cool but doo dropped the ball by not offering the same package to the riders who still prefer the shorter lugged and tracked sleds. So other than the t3 the lineup remains the same since 2013, with no refinements. I disagree with Tim's beef with the doo clutching. The 2012 to current clutching is a very good setup, best the factory has put out thus far, you can still add a clutch kit and get more out of it but the gains are not as drastic as we saw in the past.


I was thinking on a t3 but I'm thinking I'm going to wait and see what 2016 actually brings. A hp boost on the etec will compliment the t3 nicely and maybe doo might bring out a t2.5 package.

As far as the engines go they both have their issues, but the lack of warranty support on the pro which is pro rated on the extended warranty btw is a turn off to me.


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snowmobiler said:

listen to both engines idle.search forum for blown etec and poo engines..then pick.i dont care which one you buy.LOL

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Engines are the easy part to rebuild, how about doing a search on bent tunnel issues between the two? I am a Polaris guy but if I get a new Polaris I will be adding some serious tunnel bracing....... Because of he light build quality, I am considering a Ski Doo for next year. I would rather have the Polaris but at $11-$13k for a sled these days, who wants to pay for disposable?

Your making a big mistake going to a Pro from a XP. The XM is much much better than both. The Pro is gutless and has junky build quality. I spanked a Silber turbo on climb 10 times in a row with my clutched 163. He blew the skid the following day. If you are 12 years old and keep a Pro for 1 season go for it. XM fit and finish much more superior than the Poo. The XM is nothing like a XP in case you r wondering.

summitboy said:

Your making a big mistake going to a Pro from a XP. The XM is much much better than both. The Pro is gutless and has junky build quality. I spanked a Silber turbo on climb 10 times in a row with my clutched 163. He blew the skid the following day. If you are 12 years old and keep a Pro for 1 season go for it. XM fit and finish much more superior than the Poo. The XM is nothing like a XP in case you r wondering.

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That had to be one ill running turbo and the dude riding it must of had zero tuning skills.
If you honestly think that you can spank a good running turbo with just clutching, well your credibility just went out the window....IMHO
Or was he running 1 lb of boost ? lol

hoov165x said:

Engines are the easy part to rebuild, how about doing a search on bent tunnel issues between the two? I am a Polaris guy but if I get a new Polaris I will be adding some serious tunnel bracing....... Because of he light build quality, I am considering a Ski Doo for next year. I would rather have the Polaris but at $11-$13k for a sled these days, who wants to pay for disposable?

Click to expand...

You choose between bracing a tunnel, and bracing a sadly weak front end on the doo...

To claim that the XM is strong while the pro is weak is seriously overlooking flaws in the doo. Both are fixable chassis wise... one has problems that go more notably beyond the chassis though.:face-icon-small-win

My buddies and I have all been waiting for my Pro to blow up as predicted on the forums. Problem is, the bugger just keeps on running and running, and running pretty freaking good. Yesterday I was riding with a '14 Cat 800 and an e-tec XP with the t-motion and flex track. The Pro gives away exactly NOTHING to these sleds riding in deep POW all day. The Doo ran out of gas in 40 miles we rode so hard. My '13 Pro has 950 miles on it now. Second drive belt, switched to the $80 048 Cat belt, and one QD belt, now holding up fine with 800 miles on it. The Pro has been flawless and rocked the woods around here. I would buy another in a second.