12) Storage—Since both Ski-Doo and Polaris does a great job with their accessory bags, they have designed very little on-sled storage. You basically have a glove box in front of your gauges and a place to store a spare belt and maybe spare plugs. When it comes to the glove box, the only thing you can fit in the Polaris is a pair of gloves. The Ski-Doo storage box is large enough for gloves and goggles … but not much more. In the spare belt compartment, you need to fold your Polaris belt and squeeze it into its holder, and then tuck the holder into the engine compartment. With the Ski-Doo you just need to tuck it in the space designed on the clutch guard, keeping your belt in a more natural shape.
13) Ice Scratchers—Although both the designs do an adequate job in generating an icy spray into the track area and support the cooling process of the sled, the Ski-Doo design is much more durable. It is designed to work whether you are moving forward or backward. The Polaris design, on the other hand, only works in the forward direction. If you forget your scratchers are down and go in reverse (even you just roll back a foot or so on a slope, you will likely bend the scratcher arm. This will weaken the steel. Then it’s very likely the next times you use them they will break at that bend.
14) Reverse—Both Polaris and Ski-Doo use an electronic reverse (stops and reverses the engine). Both work well. However, there is a negative unintended consequence to each model’s design. On the Ski-Doo, the snow flap tends to get in the way and gets sucked up under the track. This is particularly noticeable when you are backing out of a trailer or in deep snow. On the Polaris, there is no reverse beeping noise to let you know you are in the reverse mode. Sometimes you may press the button and think the engine has shifted directions … but when you are wrong, you either end up with the handlebars in your chest or having the sled jump out from under you.
15) Bumpers—The main purpose of the front bumper is to fold down little trees and protect the nose of your sled from minor objects. In that design, Polaris offers a little more strength. The purpose of the rear bumper is mostly for lifting with an occasional need for towing. For that, Ski-Doo offers a little more strength. The rear bumper on the Ski-Doo tends to conform to your grip better … and has plenty of room for a second set of helping hands. This is not so much on the Polaris because it is just a straight tube (great if you are directly behind it but not so good if you are off to the side).