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Mini Z - what upgrades are best?

I want to upgrade the performance my son's little Ski Doo Mini-Z.

There are a few items in the Shade Tree Powersports catalog that I am considering but I don't really know how to proceed.

- Mighty Mini Gears - choice of 26 - 38 teeth listed
- Mighty Mini High Performance Clutch
- Mighty Mini Drive Hubs
- Governor By-Pass Kit

Should I buy all of these? Do they all increase performance? Are there other brands that I should look at?

Are there more reasonably affordable ways to increase the sleds performance?

I'm not trying to build him a race sled. I just want to give the Z more punch so he doesn't lose interest in riding.

By the end of this season he seemed to be getting bored with 10 mph speeds.

We are the third owners of the sled so I don't know its history or model year. There is a small yellow zip-tie on the throttle spring. I am guessing that this was installed to by-pass the governor?

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
 

Thistledoo

Well-known member
Lifetime Membership
Thats a tough call....I would recommend a snowskoot find a clean stocker and it will hold its value forever. I have freinds who have 6yr all the way to 9 yr olds riding them....even my 5yr old daughter is riding hers this season a bit and we have a mini z too....I love the skoot and we ride it together alot also.
 
T

Thunderhawk

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Sep 5, 2009
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My $.02 is not to upgrade/modify your z120.

You will not recoup the cost of the upgrades, which will get very expensive as you keep trying to maintain his interest. I agree with the idea of a Yamaha SnoScoot(80cc), or better yet the SnoSport(120cc). Those will not lose any value over your time of ownership and have substantially more capability than a stock z120.

Also, even modded he will probably outgrow the z120 in another season, as where you might get 2-3 seasons from a SnoScoot before it's time to put him on his own 340.
 
T

Thunderhawk

Member
Sep 5, 2009
189
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18
CT
I realize I'm kind of going off topic a little, but be open mined and consider a Snowhawk 120.

14hp, 35mph top speed and plenty of machine for adults to play with as well.
 
S

shredder

Member
Nov 26, 2007
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if you are going to mod your 120 , use recreational motorsports. i think its recmotor.com.
I stuck a 200 cc motor, aftermarket glutch, aftermarket skis, aftermarket quickchange gears, and an aftermarket pipe in ours and have lots of extra gears to mess around with.
plus when you buy from recmotors, you get lots of free technical help which you wont get from shade tree. (it seems you have questions what to buy, which i would direct you to ask them.)
call them up and they will set you up.
our 120 now goes 35mph no problem on the groomed trails at 6000 ft.
my son loves it. the 2 year old cant wait to ride it on its own , at which point i will gear it back down and set the governor

btw , i may not get the good resale price of a used snoscoot, but my kid sure has a lot of fun on it and i have another one that will be riding it next year.
scott
 

Kraven

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Apr 11, 2009
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if you are going to mod your 120 , use recreational motorsports. i think its recmotor.com.
I stuck a 200 cc motor, aftermarket glutch, aftermarket skis, aftermarket quickchange gears, and an aftermarket pipe in ours and have lots of extra gears to mess around with.
plus when you buy from recmotors, you get lots of free technical help which you wont get from shade tree. (it seems you have questions what to buy, which i would direct you to ask them.)
call them up and they will set you up.
our 120 now goes 35mph no problem on the groomed trails at 6000 ft.
my son loves it. the 2 year old cant wait to ride it on its own , at which point i will gear it back down and set the governor

btw , i may not get the good resale price of a used snoscoot, but my kid sure has a lot of fun on it and i have another one that will be riding it next year.
scott

My daughter's been riding her POLARIS 120 Dragon since she was 3 1/2.

Now at 5 1/2 I think she's starting to out grow it, even with the governor by-passed.

Don't get me wrong, she's still having fun with it, just not as much as before. Spends 1/2 the time riding with Dad, that's all.

And she's still too little for a 340, unless maybe if I found one of those 3/4 scale 2001-2000 POLARIS 340 Sleds or if that Made in China/Michigan 3/4 scale sled manufacturer comes up with a decent product and brings it to market.

Within reason, I wouldn't mind doing the engine upgrade, suppose I could always return it to stock if need be, and re-sell the 200cc set-up.

How much work was it to modify to accommodate the 200cc engine (exhaust, air filter, choke, throttle cable hook-up, or is it a direct bolt-in) and what else do I have to buy to complete the install??? GEARING, CLUTCHING, EXHAUST????

How much was the engine W/SHIPPING??

Thanks
 
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