polaris unveils pro x race sleds

Polaris' new race manager, Tom Rager, flanked by members of Polaris' new Race Sled Development Team, pulled the cloak off of his new team's new race sled in conjunction with the International Snowmobile Racing annual press conference.

Dubbed the "Pro X," Polaris' racer has been significantly revamped from last year. "Really the only thing that's the same on this sled from last year is the skin," said Development Team manager Mike Bedard. We have changed the engine, the drivetrain, the exhaust, the steering, the font and rear suspensions, the seat, the track and the name."

Polaris has made big changes to its 440 liquid-cooled powerplant since last year. "We wanted to improve the sled's low end performance and increase its throttle response," explained Development Team member Rick Bates. To achieve this, the engine has gotten new, wider cylinders with significantly different port timing, a shorter stroke, some minor changed to the crank case and the exhaust system has been totally revamped.

"We have a completely new pipe and exhaust system," said Bates. "We don't have the resonance chamber anymore. The new pipe has a sensor installed in it to adjust the timing in accordance with pipe temperature. This will let the engine run at its peak performance level whether it's hot or cold."

On the intake side, the new, quick-removal airbox is completely empty. There are no baffles, no cones no nothing. Mikuni hot dog slide carbs handle the fuel delivery duties.

Stopping the sled won't be a problem this year. The brake system on this year's race sled is completely Wilwood. A single finger lever modulates the dual piston caliper through a steel braid line.

Clutching will be handled by the standard P-85 system, with a return to slider buttons on the secondary. "We weren't happy with the performance on the roller clutch last year," commented Bates.

The steering package has been fully modified to deliver the tight steering needed on twisty snocross tracks. "We changed everything about the steering from the handlebars on down," explained Bedard. "The bars have been raised for better driver ergonomics while standing. The geometry of the steering column has been redesigned to achieve the maximum mechanical advantage, which will make the steering effort easier and deliver sharper cornering."

The front suspension has been equipped with piggyback-style RydeFX shocks, mounted with the tubes on the downward side. The new absorbers offer nine steps of compression damping via external clicker knobs. "We had to mount the shocks upside-down from the more traditional position because of the piggyback shock configuration," explained Bates. "We looked at using a remote reservoir and a steel line configuration, but felt that the piggyback shock gave more durability in the race application." Bates also explained that on a consumer model, the upside-down mounting position would cause some snowmobility concerns with the additional bulk of the shock tube hanging out.

"But on a race sled," he explained it does not concern us very much. The vast majority of track surfaces are not deep enough to float the bellypan. Even if snocross tracks get sugary, they're typically not deep enough to raise snowmobility concerns."

The shock towers are located three inches higher than the consumer sleds. To shore up the new extruded bulkhead, Polaris engineers use a cross member, which spans the two towers.

Additionally, the Race Sled Development team opted to incorporate dual coil-over springs. "With the two separate springs, we have found a whole new level of front suspension adjustability," said Bedard. "This setup will allow our racers to even more precisely tune their sled's to handling to their liking."

The rear skid has also been modified from last year. "Most notably we have added a torque link to the front torque arm," said Bedard. "You can't see it when the suspension is in place, but you'll be able to tell it's there when you're turning on the track." The front torque link creates a more progressive rate on the front arm. This allows racers to let their limiter straps out more and still be able to corner. On last year's sleds, racers had to suck the limiters up to allow the sled to turn quickly, with the new setup, they'll be able to utilize the full suspension travel and keep the inside line.

Other changes to the rear suspension include a new rail extrusion, new mounting locations for the torque arms, more progressive rear shock linkage, externally adjustable remote reservoir RydeFX shocks and a new 1.25-inch Shockwave pattern track.

There are a number of ergonomic changes on the Pro X chassis from last year's Edge racer. As we mentioned before, the handlebars are up higher. Polaris designed a new seat, which is narrower and taller than the standard racer seat. The runningboards are wider at the front and middle of the tunnel. Both design features were implemented specifically for stand-up snocrossers.

Polaris plans to offer the Pro X in three engine configurations: 440 liquid-cooled, 440 fan-cooled and 600 liquid-cooled. The 600 Pro X uses the same 600 variable exhaust engine found in the 600 XC SP. The 440 XCF SP is identical to the liquid-cooled Pro X sleds, except that it will not have externally adjustable shocks on the spindles and front torque arm. Instead, it will have standard aluminum-bodied RydeFX shocks.

Both 440 and 600 liquid-cooled packages tip the scales at 479 factory pounds. The XCF weighs in at 469 factory pounds.