Turbos

[digger18]

Hey turbo guys and girls. Have a question for ya. I want to get a turbo sled. One that is already set up. Been looking at a few on here. My question is how reliable are they? Keep up on the maintenance of them are they pretty reliable? Dont need boost thats to extreme ,well yet anyways. They look like so much fun. Thanks

 

[Dogmeat]

Hey turbo guys and girls. Have a question for ya. I want to get a turbo sled. One that is already set up. Been looking at a few on here. My question is how reliable are they? Keep up on the maintenance of them are they pretty reliable? Dont need boost thats to extreme ,well yet anyways. They look like so much fun. Thanks

I've only had m PGT for a few rides now, but they are a lot more involved than a N/A close-to-stock sled.

If you do the install yourself, they are not as "bolt-on" and "pull the rope and go" as they are advertised. There are a lot of tricks to installing them nicley and getting the right fit and finish on the whole setup.

It does take some time to dial them in as well it seems.

I think I've pretty well got mine dialed in right now, but I'm still going to be pulling it into the garage and checking it out after every weekend ride.

When you're adding 100+ horsepower to the same motor, stuff tends to wear out a lot faster ... its bound to happen.

 

[backcountryislife]

I've had the exact opposite experience than dogmeat & I run almost double the boost.

I've got a Cutler stage II kit, professionally installed. 7-15 psi.

got 2000+ on it now. Jumping, dropping, crashing, rolling, climbing, hitting trees... RIDING HARD. Haven't had to do anything other than change the turbo oil & install some updates that Cutler sent us for free.

We had a problem on it once last year... the post that got bent in a crash had rubbed into a ground... pretty complex. took approx 7" of electrical tape... Whoo, that was tough!

Gonna toss some pistons in it finally... I keep looking at the rings & skirts expecting to see cracks or wear... got some blowby, but no big deal.

All in all, this sled has been the most reliable sled I've ever owned, period.
That said, this is why I'm buying another one of these kits & having it installed by cutler.


I feel strongly that the installer is the most important thing in the equation. Find a good one, WHICHEVER kit he installs (unless it's got a BD box attached to it... ) and have him do the install right & get it tuned.

 

[Sparx]

I agree 100% with BIL cept I only have 150 miles on mine so far.

Key item he mentioned is the professional install, it will go a long way in preventing any further repairs or tweaks. On my very first 3 day trip the sled ran awesome from the truck to the cabin. I pulled the steering post up (my PL box was mounted on the handlebars) & pinched a wire messing up the box to only idle with no power. By the time I figured out what was going on the day was pretty much done.

The next day I made a few adjustments to the fuel pressure, boost pressure & hit a few buttons on the fuel controller since I messed it up royally the day before in my troubleshooting. All this time the sled ran great but was simply tuning in the A/F ratio gauge for hard pulls, never sputtering or running that rough at all. It was super easy to tune and I had it dialed in like a rocket by the 3rd day pulling 12-12.5 on the A/F gauge on hard pulls catwalking everywhere.

I came home feeling I had nothing to do to my sled at all, weirdest feeling ever in 7 years of mountain riding. How can that be right when riding a Turbo sled? I give credit to that PL box over the Boondocker on my M1000, I hate that box now and dread to ever have to touch one again.

This all came from a dealer who installs Boondocker setups and just did his first OVS setup. With my numbers as experience we could together initially setup someone's sled for the same parameters and he would have yet again even less to adjust than I did. That's the benefit of a professional installer who installs and rides those kits!

I'm coming from having stock sleds, to my last sled an '07 M1000 with a Boondocker control box with pipe and intake. It ran great, but I was always making adjustments and it never felt nowhere near as good running as my brand new 2010 M8 on boost. Pretty sad, I got 2400 miles on that sled and only 150 on the M8

 

[camodoo]

I have a 2010 m8 be race gas. Been riding it for a month now every weekend. From 8000-12000 feet. No problems at all. Am running 10-12. Lbs. All I do is pull the rope and ride and fill it with gas and oil. Most reliable sled I have had so far. Never go back after boost.

 

[Dogmeat]

I've had the exact opposite experience than dogmeat & I run almost double the boost.

I've got a Cutler stage II kit, professionally installed. 7-15 psi.

got 2000+ on it now. Jumping, dropping, crashing, rolling, climbing, hitting trees... RIDING HARD. Haven't had to do anything other than change the turbo oil & install some updates that Cutler sent us for free.

We had a problem on it once last year... the post that got bent in a crash had rubbed into a ground... pretty complex. took approx 7" of electrical tape... Whoo, that was tough!

Gonna toss some pistons in it finally... I keep looking at the rings & skirts expecting to see cracks or wear... got some blowby, but no big deal.

All in all, this sled has been the most reliable sled I've ever owned, period.
That said, this is why I'm buying another one of these kits & having it installed by cutler.


I feel strongly that the installer is the most important thing in the equation. Find a good one, WHICHEVER kit he installs (unless it's got a BD box attached to it... ) and have him do the install right & get it tuned.

Eh, I think I've got mine running pretty good right now ..

But, there is a difference between doing the install yourself and having the guy who designed the kit do it for you

There are advantages to both IMO, the only real disadvantage to having a professional turbo shop do it is the cost .... Although, doesn't sound like Cutler's rapes you on the install cost at all if you buy the kit from them.

Either way, regardless of who does your install or what kit you run, they are still a lot more involved to ride and maintain than a N/A sled is, I don't see how they aren't ... But then again, I've only got about 3 weeks of rideing in on mine and this is also the first turbo I've ever owned, so hopefully now that I have it dialed in I'll be pleseantly surprised by it not breaking on me the rest of the season

 

[backcountryislife]

I ain't jokin man... been stock reliable! Fer serious!

Oh, and it was raced for a season by Zollingers... so it hasn't been babied!

Cutlers is fair, but not "cheap" really. For install (which includes clutching, vents & the oil delete he's doing for me), it's $1100. I'm not bichn, but it's not a case of beer and a couple evenings either!!! It's pricey... but it's all part of me being able to trust the thing... and I really like that.

 

[WyoBoy1000]

I like the twisted kits, Cutler would be my second choice, not for any reason just preference. But unless you know how to tune and know how everything works I would go with what ever your dealer uses, (dealer, as in one that rides turbo sleds) The lastest of all the kits are all working well this year. I would not own a 1 year or older BD kit. And would update any kit if bought used to the latest stuff.

 

[youd47]

Make sure if you get a STOCK RELIABLE two stroke turbo that you pick up one of the new Diesels "any brand" getting 20+mpg to pull it to the hill. Maybe both are out there, I've never seen one. I wouldn't give up the turbo but I would never classify one pull the rope and go. Maybe low boost is much easier to deal with. I think I'd plan on doing some trouble shooting on the hill, in the cold, somewhere you can't walk out of. In my opinion nothing comes free, if you want light weight, high power you'll pay with some reliability.

 

[kraftymike]

I've only had m PGT for a few rides now, but they are a lot more involved than a N/A close-to-stock sled.

If you do the install yourself, they are not as "bolt-on" and "pull the rope and go" as they are advertised. There are a lot of tricks to installing them nicley and getting the right fit and finish on the whole setup.

It does take some time to dial them in as well it seems.

I think I've pretty well got mine dialed in right now, but I'm still going to be pulling it into the garage and checking it out after every weekend ride.

When you're adding 100+ horsepower to the same motor, stuff tends to wear out a lot faster ... its bound to happen.

I think this is a pretty fair assesment. It is not like jumping on a stock rental and taking off. The ridder needs to have a basic understanding of how the turbo the functions and how to make adjustments in your fuel box. No matter what kit you buy, you will still need make adjustments from the manufacturers starting numbers and set-up (unless your installer spends some actual seat time at alttitude) because no two sleds are the same. Once a kit is tuned to your liking the maintanance is minimal. The performance and reliability will be a direct reflection of how well the kit was installed.

 

[backcountryislife]

Make sure if you get a STOCK RELIABLE two stroke turbo that you pick up one of the new Diesels "any brand" getting 20+mpg to pull it to the hill. Maybe both are out there, I've never seen one. Maybe low boost is much easier to deal with.

Maybe you need to switch to a more reliable setup!!!
15psi, stock reliable (we don't ride it at 15 all the time though to be honest, usually about 10-12 with a few 15 pulls a day. I don't ride for Cutler, Have no ties or reason to talk him up whatsoever. Trust me, I'm paying enough for the new kit to be reminded that I'm not dealing with a shop that I have a big relationship with!

I actually could have gotten any brand but twisted cheaper than this one, and I chose to get another one for exactly this reason. I fully expect for the next sled to not be quite as friendly... but hell, I have yet to meet another turbo rider that's had the same luck as we have.

I'm not shy about cutting on a poor product, if I wasn't 100% pleased as peach with this thing I'd say so.

I think a big factor for us though, is our altitude (that's what I'm telling myself anyhow), I think the high altitude creating less load is a big part of why we don't tear up reeds & pistons like some people do. 2k miles without dicking with the box though... I'd love to hear someone else who HONESTLY has had that kind of smoothness, and that I do credit to cutler.

Btw, when bought this it had been running at 7k, I brough it to 11, added 2pts to the boost fuel for safety & never touched it again.

 

[knzee]

I am going to have to agree more with Tyler (youd47) on this one. started riding a turbo this year and have had good luck with it so far....but adding and extra 100 horse to anything will stress stuff. I think the best thing to do would be to buy one from a dealer so it is set up right. Being able to ride with someone who knows all the little quirks that come up is a big help too. Best thing to understand is what controls what on the system then you will know what to look for. Like if a boost line comes apart or cracks, what is it going to and what does it control.

We were riding in some pretty deep powder this weekend and sucked in enough snow dust to freeze the boost line to the wastegate. Pretty hard to troubeshoot that one if you have never been around them. Could not find a leak in the line and I could pressure up the waste gate actuator with my fox shock pump, so it was working... Called Travis with OVS on Monday and he had it figured out in minutes.

I think they are as reliable as any mod sled on the hill but you will have some days with head scratching until you get everything figured out.

 

[smv sledhead]

There are some good points brought up here. I also am on my first turbo sled ever, but I'm also on my third season. There have been a few quirky things come up with it, and I have even burned it down. I was somewhat turbo clueless when I first bought it, but I actually did some research on how stuff works, and though I'm no professional by any means, I do feel more proficient. All I know is that the turbo has been the best thing to ever be installed on a snowmobile. Years ago on the carbed motors, I would have said no thanks, but now it's a new deal, and these electronic machines are miracles. Jump in, have a pro install it while you are there, learn a bit, and go have fun. No regrets.

 

[digger18]

Thanks guys for all the input. My goal is to have one within 2 years. Ever since i started going to the mountains 4 years ago i have been addicted to it. Im getting into it pretty heavy. I want to move out there. Any jobs? lol thanks again

 

[backcountryislife]

Ever since i started going to the mountains 4 years ago i have been addicted to it. Im getting into it pretty heavy. I want to move out there. Any jobs?

Habla usted español?

Sabe usted cómo se estructura metálica? Tengo trabajos si eres un buen mexicano!!

(can you you speak spanish or frame metal? I've got jobs for good mexicans!!)

 

[Dano702]

I have had a really good experience with my first one. I did buy the sled new, and I broke it in stock. Babied on the trail for the first tank of premixed fuel. And then race gas after about 300 miles. Rock solid reliability, and belt life better than I ever imagined.

I have to bump the red mode one or two lights most of the time. But I always fatten up the top on the way back to the truck. I can't ride a N/A sled any more, if I don't get of shaking its no good.

Buy a new sled, and have a race gas kit installed. You will be ruined for life.

 

[knzee]

LMAO...Isn't that the truth though.

Habla usted español?

Sabe usted cómo se estructura metálica? Tengo trabajos si eres un buen mexicano!!

(can you you speak spanish or frame metal? I've got jobs for good mexicans!!)

 

[bigdogsummit800]

I have had a really good experience with my first one. I did buy the sled new, and I broke it in stock. Babied on the trail for the first tank of premixed fuel. And then race gas after about 300 miles. Rock solid reliability, and belt life better than I ever imagined.

I have to bump the red mode one or two lights most of the time. But I always fatten up the top on the way back to the truck. I can't ride a N/A sled any more, if I don't get of shaking its no good.

Buy a new sled, and have a race gas kit installed. You will be ruined for life.

I am LOVING my first turbo sled. I am no expert at all. I had my brother install it who is a mechanic and played alot with turbos on cars when he was younger. Went with the boondocker pump gas kit. I too like everyone else was worried about having to mess with it all the time or have days where it wouldn't run right. Pulled the trigger anyway and my only regret is not going full race gas kit! We installed the boondocker kit following the instructions to the T. I havn't had to tune or touch a single thing. Right from the factory the starting #'s have been working excellent for me. 0 spudering 0 loading up 0 hesitation 0 problems. The motor runs so kick a**! Checked the plugs and they just are a tick rich. I am just leaving the starting #'s that came in the box. I cant find any spot where they need to be tweaked. Been riding it every weekend so far this year with 0 problems. I know I don't have a ton of time with it but man I am very impressed. All my riding buddies have been so impressed also they are all saving to get boondocker turbos themselves. So far my experience with the new boondocker pump gas kit has been 100% plug and play.