Opinions needed:2004-900 1M or 2006 900 RMK?

REPO · Nov 22, 2009

Looking at buying a used sled. I have not had a snowmobile since the late '90s and don't really know what is good and what isn't. I have been reading as much as possible lately. I am considering a 2004 Arctic Cat 900 1M with a 151", the second is a 2005 Polaris 900 RMK fuel injected with a 166" I like the idea of the longer track for our mountains and deep powder, but am a little scared by all the negative posts I have read about the 2005-2006 Polaris 900s. The Arctic Cat is priced about $500 more than the RMK, but the RMK needs a rear shock, exhaust sensor, and intake boots.

I just need some real honest opinions here, try and not be biased by what you ride.

Thanks guys! (and gals!)

EDIT: Just found out its a 2005 Polaris, not a 2006.

polarisfornow · Nov 23, 2009

how much for each? miles? condition? I owned a 900 poo and I wouldn't suggest one unless you are ready to tinker a lot. I don't have any experience with the cat firsthand but I know a guy that had one and never really had any issues with it.

Idcatman3 · Nov 23, 2009

I'll admit, I'm probably biased by what I ride. But I ride what I ride for a reason...

The cat is a well known chassis with a bulletproof engine. It's got a lot of mods that are bolt-on and not many real issues with it stock. If you want a longer track, it's pretty easy to do on the Cat with all stock parts.

Dogmeat · Nov 23, 2009

Don't buy the 900 RMK unless you enjoy torturing yourself and throwing all your money away. Trust me.

justadude · Nov 23, 2009

I've heard really bad things about the doo 900!! Just my .02.

JohnnyQuestUtah · Nov 23, 2009

Give ya three guesses as to what i voted.............

peace-

johnny

m7john · Nov 23, 2009

JohnnyQuestUtah said:
Give ya three guesses as to what i voted.............

peace-

johnny

skidoo? i see one in the back.

REPO · Nov 23, 2009

Dogmeat said:
Don't buy the 900 RMK unless you enjoy torturing yourself and throwing all your money away. Trust me.

You got some stories to tell?

Ex-Member · Nov 23, 2009

I love my RMK 900.... but even as much as I love them, i'd stay the hell away from the '05s.

I wouldn't suggest either '05 or '06 RMK 900 unless you're good with a wrench or have real deep pockets. There's a -lot- of stuff wrong with them.

But when they run, they run great.

sled_guy · Nov 23, 2009

REPO said:
You got some stories to tell?

Don't get Dogmeat started... his story is a long, sad one.

sled_guy

PJ-Hunter · Nov 23, 2009

Go Dogmeat, Go!

Skinner · Nov 23, 2009

One of my riding buddies has a 04 900 151. That sled rips. He does no maintenance on it and it has run like a dream. Still rides it. I have no experience with the RMK 900 though.

Veedy · Nov 23, 2009

Even though Cpt. Ron has about 10,000 k on his 900 poo, I would still put my money on the 1M cat. Papa Veedy had one and it ripped, except it is kind of a boat, but a boat with big ballz. He had his motor come apart on him, but that was after many, many relentless miles. Great sled to mod too, lots of aftermarket goodies for it ( both ), both are big vibrators, I'd still go with the Cat.

Dogmeat · Nov 23, 2009

REPO said:
You got some stories to tell?

Do a search for my user name "Dogmeat" in the 900 forum .... it's hideous.

Boosted Brad · Nov 23, 2009

I had a900 cat that treated me well! Good luck have fun

High Velocity · Nov 24, 2009

I've got an '06 900 RMK and I'll pretty much repeat the comments already made. I love my 9 and mine has been an awesome sled (ya, I know, I've been lucky), but being a mechanic for 28 years, I've got no problem doing all the work on it myself. If you're not very mechanically inclined, I'd recommend you shy away from a Poo 900 (especially an '05). IMHO, the chassis is far, far superior to the 1M chassis but there are too many nitpicky issues that will drive the average guy insane.

Cpt.Ron · Nov 24, 2009

I own an 05 900, I had many issues with it the first two seasons, the Dealers were of little support, ..in all fairness to them though, there wasn't much they could have done, they were just as stuck with this abortion as the owner was.

A lot of electrical issues.
Plastic panels that fail and fall off.
Clutch bolt issues.
Motor mount and torque stop issues.
Belt heat issues.
fuel tank issues, cracked filler necks, disolving fuel guage floats...
weight issues
vibrations issues
VES valves breaking off
leaky chaincase issues, you need to carry a tray for the drips if you park too long..
Excessive 2 stroke oil consumption as the pump sticks wide open all the time..
TPS sensor issues

Some positives though, at least with the chaincase, you never need to change the chaincase oil, as you are always flushing the system with new oil...

The biggest bonus to owning a Polaris 05 900 RMK is that you will not require insurance, I could leave mine running in the staging area parking lot, un-attended all night long and no one would ever steal it!!!! They may come and shut it off, as the cloud of excessive exhaust smoke would be hard to miss, ..but they wouldn't steal it!!! Beyond theft insurance, if you lost it and it hit a tree, ...what are you really out???, again no insurance required!!!!

As Veedy mentioned above, mine has around 8800 MILES on it now, it is on the second crank shaft, (since 3150 miles), ..it continues to run, ..it has only left me stranded twice, however, it has pulled a lot of other sleds off the mountain over the years!!! Kind of like a good old farm tractor that never gets traded in, because it isn't worth anything and NO Dealer wants it, so it just keeps hanging around, ....still good for doing the chores....LOL

2XM3 · Nov 24, 2009

Dogmeat said:
Don't buy the 900 RMK unless you enjoy torturing yourself and throwing all your money away. Trust me.

Yup....my friend has one in mint condition for about 4500.00 with like 400 miles on it

REPO · Nov 24, 2009

WOW! There sure seems to be alot of problems being listed for the RMK. I am leaning pretty heavily to the Arctic Cat 1M right now.

What issues are there with the Arctic Cat? There has to be something that I would need to address.

Keep em coming, if nothing else, this is great info for future newbs like me! Funny part of all this is the fact that I have not owned a sled since about 1996. And that is due to the amount of problems I had with it at the time. Coincident that it was also a Polaris? (800 Storm!)

Idcatman3 · Nov 24, 2009

One issue to watch is the driveshaft bearing behind the driven clutch. Also, if it's blown a belt at high load, they can twist the crank. Some reports of electrical problems stemming from worn wires. Some have exhaust valve problems. That's all I can think of off hand, there are a couple threads that address issues in the AC 1M section.

Opinions needed:2004-900 1M or 2006 900 RMK?

What sled would you buy?

2004 Arctic Cat 900 1M 151"

2006 Polaris 900 RMK 166" Fuel Injected

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