Are Turbos worth the hassle?

[CB.8]

Let me start by saying my name is Rob and I am a recovering modder.

I bought a new m8000 in 16 and other then some clutching, skis, and lightweight can I rode it for four years with no complaints. Last year I bought a new 165 hardcore that I love and am adding an elevate kit to this fall. Previous to these two sleds I rode and built full mod sleds that I rode way past their prime.

The problem is the voice In my head keeps telling me I need more! I am not afraid of maintenance or wrenching but is a turbo really justified with how good sleds are today. I would be looking at nothing more then 5 pounds of boost. I am a boondocker and not a chute slayer.

Thanks
Rob

 

[Octanee]

My alpha is my first stock sled, been turbos and mod the whole way.... That said I'm so on the fence to turbo mine, I'm beyond done with add on control boxes, it's a ecm flash or nothing, I also think/plan low boost. but I'm leaning towards leaving it stock, she goes pretty decent already and I've actually become a better rider with no turbo, not having the sled want to launch out of a sidehill on me with the boost and such, there are times I'd love it but and I do miss boost... I have a turbo kit I got for cheap on the shelf, Ill make money selling it so I couldn't say no to not buy it anyways haha....

 

[madmax]

Depends on how you and your friends ride. I’ve modded about every sled I’ve owned over the last 20+ years. my 19’ alpha and 20’ Khaos I rode stock for the first 200 miles before putting the turbo on. They are amazing sleds in stock form, just a lot more fun turboed. You just get everywhere faster on a turbo with the skiis in the air. I have Silber kits on both sleds. Once I got the right tune (not an easy task) from Silber they have been pull and go sleds.

 

[Frostbite]

Skidoo Hill Crew, good question. I love your statement "I am a recovering modder". I think most of us who have ridden mountain sleds for decades are modders because you pretty much had to mod your sleds to make them work well in the steep and deep. I am told today's sleds are much better out of the crate but, I will have to judge that once the snow flies..
As far as turbos go. I only played with them from 2003 to 2009 when I rode my RX-1 Mountain. In fact, some days I swore we messed with turbos more then we rode. The turbos made amazing power but, at what cost? Today's turbo kits are much closer to plug and play than back in the day but, in the end, after all those years with boost under your butt, it's really up to you to determine if you can ride without one.

 

[CB.8]

I guess one of the things that I worry about is to ride the alpha to its potential, I really had to slow down. I am worried that a boosted alpha just may be too much in the trees some days.

 

[xpturbo600]

Let me start by saying my name is Rob and I am a recovering modder.

I bought a new m8000 in 16 and other then some clutching, skis, and lightweight can I rode it for four years with no complaints. Last year I bought a new 165 hardcore that I love and am adding an elevate kit to this fall. Previous to these two sleds I rode and built full mod sleds that I rode way past their prime.

The problem is the voice In my head keeps telling me I need more! I am not afraid of maintenance or wrenching but is a turbo really justified with how good sleds are today. I would be looking at nothing more then 5 pounds of boost. I am a boondocker and not a chute slayer.

Thanks
Rob

Hi Rob,

Honestly, only 5 psi max is not worth the money you will spend to get it. 2 strokes simply dont make enough power at low boost to justify the cost. Aiming for 10 psi and up is a different story, but that power is for chute climbing or racing. And, it comes at the cost of engine maintenance.

To make a low maintenance, well performing turbo you must: 1. Invest time wrenching, 2. Understand how to diagnose turbo engine issues, and 3. Have data logs. No kit manufacturer makes a flawless product, and a lot of tuning adjustments involve people guessing. There are simply too many variables for guessing to work well. However, if you have access to people with similar sleds that have invested the time, you can make headway quickly.

That said, every manufacturer has customers with good sleds and those looking to improve tunes because of hesitations or improper fueling. Most people try to pay their way out of these issues or give up in the process because it is good enough at some point. If you want a little more power, look at a big bore. If you need a lot, a turbo is the way to go.

My recommendation is to ride the sled. You may find it is awesome, or you may want to spend money on something else. The biggest problem with making more power is getting it to the ground. Then, you are talking about changing expensive suspensions components or riding characteristics you may enjoy. You probably know this at this point.

Finally, manufacturers are breaking ground on turbo sleds with warranties. Wait a few years and buy one off the shelf because sled manufactures have the tech to make these sleds run flawless under boost since they can add and modify sensors to accommodate all mass flow variances in the ecu. Unfortunately, to really make a sled run "flawless" today is with a 3k to 4k dollar standalone where you have full control. Good enough setups work, but they won't run like a stand alone.

 

[slyrydr]

i think the key that i see most about turbos is this, everyone wants a little (or a lot) more power, but not at the sacrifice of dependability and wrenching time, not to mention working out unknown problems...so everybody wants just a little boost, but not enough to cause the dependability/development issues..so 5-7 lbs of boost should fit that niche, right ?....despite what kit sellers will tell you, you will have problems and frustrations, and unless you are willing to spend the time/inconvience, stick with stock/mild mods...the new turbo doo may change that, next season will tell us more

 

[jbusch]

I put a silber turbo on my 18 and had to get the cycles and sled clutch kit and bov after messing with the kit they send with the turbo. Once I did that on 7lbs of boost it is the funnest sled I've ever owned. Its stupid fun. I ride trees all day and the ability to just hammer the throttle and have the sled jump out of the snow is amazing. I'm not sure I will ever not have a turboed sled again. I live and ride in Colorado 8k and up and has run flawless.

Sent from my SM-N970U using Tapatalk

 

[christopher]

Of course you could just buy a factory oem turbo sled with full warranty...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[CB.8]

Of course you could just buy a factory oem turbo sled with full warranty...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

About the same chance as me buying a doo as there is me voting for Creepy Joe.

 

[Frostbite]

Skidoo hill Crew, after that response! We would be great riding partners!

 

[hansenmac]

ive been riding with four silber turboed polaris sleds, two pros and two axys. they run well and are pull and go with the reflash. i think clutching is a big part of it but sounds like that wouldnt be too tough for you get right. i ride a 18 cat with a pipe and i love it. but if i was going to go bigger i would do a stage 2 or so, if i wanted more i would skip the stage 3 kits and jump to a turbo like your talking about 5-7lbs pump gas, the simplest setup possible. if it can break it will break.

 

[christopher]

About the same chance as me buying a doo as there is me voting for Creepy Joe.

You know it won't be long till your favorite brand is offering an OEM Turbo as well...

 

[madmax]

Yes, Polaris and cat will both have factory turbos next year. So just ride stock this year and buy a factory boost next year

 

[christopher]

Yes, Polaris and cat will both have factory turbos next year. So just ride stock this year and buy a factory boost next year

You just had to go and spill the beans!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[joshkoltes]

No

 

[Suzzy-Q]

Though turbos are getting better on the bottom end response. Still wish cat/speedwerx would have made a factory supercharged sled by now. Love the bottom end on those things.

 

[xpturbo600]

Every owner of a turbo kit manufacturing company just cried as their whole business model just received a terminally ill diagnosis.

 

[Octanee]

Though turbos are getting better on the bottom end response. Still wish cat/speedwerx would have made a factory supercharged sled by now. Love the bottom end on those things.

From what Ive found, the Thing with superchargers is they suck the fuel back bad Down the trail, it don't matter if your cruising or playing hard, you've got boost, so your packing fuel with you, where as a turbo I've had an increase in fuel mileage down the trails, usually not boosting but its pushing a tad bit of air, never packed fuel.

As long as it's sized correctly the lag shouldn't be noticeable and the bottom end instant. Ski doo's turbo people say is small, but it works great for what they set out to do. When you do a reflash to gain more power you have a small amount of head room, I believe they run 200hp? Ans that's about the cap for the little guy before its throwing more heat than being effecient. (can't remember its been summer not thinking sleds haha)

 

[jb800]

I purchased a new Alpha in 2019. Put 500 stock miles on it due to getting it halfway through the season. Last year I put a silber on it with C&S tuned clutching and my own BOV with a turbosmart boost controller. Running about 7lbs the thing rips. Its been pull and go for 500 boosted miles. The thing gets a bit silly! I would recomend talking to cycles and sleds when setting it up. Great guys! Just be prepared to mix 100ll when riding. Cant put a price on horsepower. With that being said, I had a ton of fun on my 2020 850 rmk last winter aswell bone stock.?‍