Sleddin' is a passion not a need. You have to pick the one you are most passionate about no matter what you think lol.
I read the answers to your post on the Cat side where I used to hang. Hmm, "under powered", "everyone I know of has had engine probs", Hmm. Sounds pretty "broken recordish" but may be the individuals truth. Just seems to me if this was reality after 5 yrs. peops would stop buying this s**t no matter what they see on u-tube.
If you really what to get analytical, make charts and plot real facts etc., you will find major issues with them all past and present. But, because it is a passion, most buy with the heart.
Engines; Because this seems to be the first finger pointed at the Pro every time.
Cat's 800 Suzuki is the only Japanese 2 stroke. Enough said there I think. It has become a screamer instead of a torquer for some reason though and they do blow up too.
Ski Doos 800 Rotax went through a decade of learning (blowing up sometimes) but the new stuff is good it seems. Definitely the best mountain powerband today. It is also the most complicated and controlled 'putor wise. That, I think, is the future and presently the Doo is the most advanced.
Poo's 800 is based off a 600 bottom. Makes it the lightest but also the snappiest. You feel it as soon as you "flick" the throttle. If you "wanna drag" it will hold it's own. It seems to do more than just OK lol in uphill gate to gate racing, so maybe you won't feel the "underpowered" thing. I can't say I feel that compared to the others.
This motor is the most "North American". That might be "nuff said" to you. It's not crap by any means but it's more like comparing Ford, Chevy, Dodge to Toyota, Volkswagen, Lexus. Higher #'s, maybe more Monday stuff. It is also the least technologically advanced at present.
There, that's the engines. Now the rest of the sled. I'm a past mechanic who has continued that passion while earning in a different trade. I've disassembled many from each brand.
Clutches (tranny in your truck?). Poo hands down. Let's put that aside. Pretty important part of a sled though.
Lets stick with your picks for purchase. If you completely disassemble each brand and line up the pieces in a large shop one beside the other. Hood above hood, panels above panels, shafts above shafts, bearings above bearings, and fasteners above fasteners and so on, then walk down and visually and tactically compare the parts, you will find every single piece of the Pro is sourced out a at higher price and quality. Each and every piece.
As a mechanic I love billet over cast, Japanese over Chinese, threaded instead of self tapping, rigid and interlocking panels that seal instead of flexy and unmatched, etc. Something as simple as how you engineer a simple oil tank impresses me because of my passion lol.
I'm a Poo fan if you can't tell. It really came after I took it apart.
One more thing you may look at is sales and figure out how you feel about them. Are they any indication of quality, durability, passion.
Which one has increased sales #'s since the original model intro? Which one hasn't? Why? Would the least durable increase sales #'s? Least quality? Least passion???
Always chuckle a bit when some one asks for help to pick a sled. It's like asking should I cheer for the Bulls, the Lakers or the Raptors lol.
How someone answers that (and you may offer your opinion in the future) is really based on how your present sled has fueled your passion not it`s performance. You really need to grasp that for your decision cause the season is too short to worry.
There are no experts on here (no matter what we think lol) on what works best. Opinion on here is based on passion not fact because that is our sport. We dream of the 4' dump on a blue sky day and you are the first one there but still have huge fun on the last ride in the rain with pine needles covering everything.
Hurry up making your decision. Winter comes this week. I'm all excited because I have the best passion oozing sled on the market lol.
