2013 demo ride-my review

[highmark289]

today was great, got to ride with some great people from BRP and locally in Seeley lake MT. when we showed up they had 2 2013 summit x's sitting there i of course run over and get pics of the sled and compare it to the 12 800x sitting beside it, after talking to the brp guys we go over safety about the ride and new stuff about the 13's vs. the 12's. i deside to ride the 2012 800x 163" up the trail and at the first play ride area and then swap to the 13 to see the improvement between 12 and 13. the snow conditions were about 8" of fresh with average snow and a good base.

2012 800x 163"- this sled is a big improvement over my 08 with the 36" stance and updated skid, great power, and the sled sidehills with ease and is agile with downhill turns and boondocking, definitely a good sled

2013 800x 154" one word to discribe this sled, AWESOME! the sled is a 100% comfidence builder, u can do everything the 2012 with half the effort, i know the 4 degree flex in the skid sounds meniscal but between the skid, narrower panels, and narrow fiberglass rods in the track the old xp chassis turns into a dominating machine. the flotation on the new sled is great and jumps on top of the snow like the rmk pro, the 154" sled we had would out climb the 12 x163" hands down. On the trail the sled takes more effort to control then the xp chassis, which is fine with me cause i would sacrifice trail proformance anyday for off trail proformance. if i had to complain about anything is the tether cord is on the right side so when you go to start the sled u rip the tether off, which is more my fault then anything

both sleds are great and would keep me happy with either one but of course i want i want the 13

 

[kbl6z]

Thanks for the report. Hoping to see one this weekend.

 

[Demo250]

Sounds good! Thanks for the review. (Hope it isn't tooooo good though, can't afford new sleds every year. Every second year is good for me )

 

[highmark289]

lol i bet, i would start a new sled fund

 

[goforbroke]

Why do you think it outclimbed the 2012. not lighter, similar track and rear suspension. I'm just a little surprised that was your finding. Awesome, that it did, just don't see why. any ideas?

 

[highmark289]

I was riding the sled.... That's how I know it out climbed the 12, we noticed that the track has a new attack angle, so I figure new skid geometry, that's my guess, you have to ride one its impressive

 

[winter brew]

Just looking at the skid geometry it should do much better on the hills and in the deep...shallower approach and rear scissor position should keep the nose down better.

How was the bump ride compared to the 12?
Did it seem darty on the road? If there was a road-

 

[ak]

Have u rode a pro rmk? If so how does it compare? Can you hang the sled out on a steep side hill and ride it like Brandt and Rasmussen do.

I do believe you when you say it climbs better than the 12 xp with the new skid angle it should climb really good.

 

[highmark289]

Brew- the sled was darty, and tippy with off camber whoops on the trail, had to keep a good grip on the bars, but if u went slow down the trail it did fine, but with the 12 u can rip up the trail

Ak- I have limited time on a pro, the sled could be rode burandt style, my skill level of course isn't anywhere as good as burandt but I noticed the harder u pushed the sled the more fun it got

 

[winter brew]

Hmmm.... Hopefully they nail a good bump ride calibration, thats one of the XP's strengths.

 

[McTwist700]

Thanks for the review makes me even more excited to be buying one. I am enjoying watching as the reviews come in and the good things being said will shut some of the nay sayers up.

 

[Carramrod]

Excellent news im signed up for sunday so it will be fun to try out the new 13's. cant wait.

 

[PJ-Hunter]

What was the weight like? Noticeable or not?

 

[highmark289]

Brew- I hope so, but at the same time its a mountain sled so I don't except trail performance out of it, at least it wasn't like my m7 I had that would ride like a board

Mctwist700- thanks, ya I'm calling on prices today

Carramrod- dude u will have a blast on ur demo ride

Pj-hunter- the guys at brp said its the same weight of a 2012 x, I couldn't feel a wieght difference while riding either. The sleds r light anyway so ur good to go

 

[Jaynelson]

Good review! Glad to hear its a big improvement over the current model! Sounds like they have followed the Polaris in sacrificing some on-trail performance for deep snow/off trail performance. If you've had an m7 you already know what that's about! Personally wouldn't bother me either....trail manners are definetly not the pros strong suit....it's a 2 handed affair at any "higher" speeds and likes to lift the inside ski in any aggressive cornering.

 

[liebherrcraneguy]

Man....I don't know what to do now. I'm really liking a lot of things about the '13, but whatever I'm riding will have a turbo on it next year. If that new skid would handle a turbo in 163" form then I think I'll go that route. If it will wheelie too much I'll have to throw a timbersled under my '11. I can ride my '11 just fine and I'm sure much better with a timbersled mountain tamer, but.... Why don't you guys start telling me the '13 sucks lol. Decisions, decisions....

 

[highmark289]

They r making a t-motion kit for the xp's for around 400 bucks is what the brp guy told me, can't say the 13s suck though

 

[liebherrcraneguy]

They r making a t-motion kit for the xp's for around 400 bucks is what the brp guy told me, can't say the 13s suck though

I know there is a conversion kit, but my first concern is having a skid that will keep the front end under control with turbo power. Im liking the features and ergos on the '13 though, but not worth it to me if I have to swap the rear skid for a mountain tamer right away... there is more to the equation than that such as if aerocharger will make a retrofit kit to transfer a turbo onto the new chassis or not etc. Thanks for your review, and I hope I didn't hijack too bad with all the turbo talk. I'm just torn on what to do. The good news is the SP looks like the way I would go anyway, so I don't have to worry about snow check deadlines.

 

[fredw]

a asked andrew that yesterday, and his reply was he thinks we can transfer to the 13 model, but there will be a few parts that need to be swaped out... i would guess maybe a different hot pipe, and maybe a different turbo brace.. might be room for the c3 belt drive as well now

 

[liebherrcraneguy]

a asked andrew that yesterday, and his reply was he thinks we can transfer to the 13 model, but there will be a few parts that need to be swaped out... i would guess maybe a different hot pipe, and maybe a different turbo brace.. might be room for the c3 belt drive as well now

Thanks fred. I talked to Tyler the other day and he said they were looking into it but couldn't say whether or not they would do it. Time will tell I guess.