Hard Icy snow ride report
So I got to ride the 165X black version. What I liked in order of like
1- Side to side balance of the sled is a dramatic change from the XM, you find yourself riding this sled in the nutreal postition more often pulling the sled on egde is eaiser then the xm.
2- The Instantaneous GO I like to call it, no matter the traveleing speed you punch the gas and it just takes off!
3- 3.5" pitch track, it held ita own on crap hard snow but from what I have heard and what little we saw of soft snow this track pushes snow so well, its gonna be awesome in powder!
4- Primary clutch, its so small but all the moving parts are oversized and beefy, the longevity is exciting
5- The tappered tunnel, I am bow legged so this isnt a major issue but it was noticeable and helped with the home position practicality while boondocking.
6- This sled runs so much cooler in nasty icy conditions vs the xm, several times I stopped, took my glove off, put my hand on the rear head exchanger of the 17, then my xm. It felt like 50-80 degree difference throughout the day.
7-ground clearance, the skid is lower giving it more clearance in deep powder conditions which we didnt have the day we rode.
8- The spindle ski mount location makes the steering even easier in all conditions.
9- Trail manners are as good if not better then the xm, I LOVED that my knee had a place to go when cornering at high speed sitting down!
10- It looks great on the snow, the front end looks smaller, it looks very narrow from behind, it looks higher off the snow then the xm.
These are all things I liked. Some things I didnt like
1-No bogie wheels, these 3" lug tracks go through slides on days like the day we rode, no ice scratcher in the world would of prevented that, they need some bogie wheels, I suggest something like what toms snowmobile does, undersized, lightweight bogie wheels would help a lot.
2- Hand warmer toggle switch is just asking to be busted off, slim that hting down, no need for the protruding toggle on that switch.
3- For the love please discontinue your hand grips, they are awful, they are not user friendly, they are like holding on to icicles on snowy days. I got blisters, I use RSI grips and haven't had blisters in 5 yrs.
4-Skis are same as before, I dont prefer them, that's not a big issue BC they can easily be changed.
Now, we did drag race, I will get a vid as soon as I can on here. This was on icy hard snow, 9700ft elevation on a slope that climbed 500 vert and was 1/4 long pull. This what we saw after several rounds with people switching sleds. The 17 got a sled length to a half sled length holeshot everytime, didn't matter the rider on it. Once it had the holeshot the 17, 15(T3163), 16(163) and 14(154) xms all pulled the hill at the same speed, meaning nobody pulled ahead of another once holeshot was established. The 17 track has flat tipped lugs so it may of been getting a little less traction on these extreme snow conditions as well, and I was told the 17 overall has a slightly lower gear ration then the 16 and 15 T3 163's.
What impressed me the most was how fun, impressive, awesome this sled was in riding it the way I like to ride, boondocking, sidehilling, pulling difficult lines. This was all limited bc of snow conditions but because of the snow conditions we could feel how it handled in snow most of us pass on bc we want pow. It put a smile on my face. Its worth the investment.
The Polaris guys will like this sled, it holds a sidehil with similar feel to the axys. IF you can get over the steering geometry that is slightly more forward then the xm but the feel is overall the same...which I love...to each there own. If the Axys and the G4 where chicks then the Axys is the hot girl you meet at the carnival, yes she seems to have it all, just wait till you have to live together. The G4 looks like the hot girl at the carnival and then you find out she has a phD and can be your sugar daddy too, some people have mental blocks with phD, to each there own.
Finally, this motor, its foundation with the rods, oiling, crank, cylinder coats, ring holders.....This in my opinion is the game changer. It is awesome and I had the impression that with that foundation this thing is gonna be opened up yr after yr. 5 yrs from now this motor will be 20 hp higher, no question. It just has that potential. It was a very torquey motor which I cant wait to test in deep heavy powder.
Hope this helps.
