In the last few years the mountain snowmobiles have changed significantly. The sleds of the past were merely short track machines with slightly longer tracks, but as the popularity of mountain riding has grown, the manufacturers are now building mountain-specific snowmobiles.

It makes sense that these snowmobiles are so much different than their trail cousins because, aside from the common attribute of running in snow, the two different types of riding are very different. The biggest difference obviously between the trail machines and mountain is the length of the track. Track length is one area that has increased over the last few years but now seems to have maxxed out at about 162”. To accommodate the longer track the tunnels are also longer. Front suspension is narrower to make sidehilling and boondocking easier and handlebars are taller for the same reasons.

We rode a selection of the mountain machines at Snowshoot in Grand Lake Colorado where the base elevation is over 8000 ft and some mountains are higher than 10,000ft. With lots of fresh snow it made for excellent test conditions for these sleds.

Arctic Cat

The Cat M-series chassis has been around since 2005 making it the oldest chassis in this class but for 2009 Cat has gone through these machines in detail, improving many key areas. Last year, Ski-Doo set a new standard for weight in the mountain class with the Rev-XP and Arctic Cat responded by shaving about 20 lbs from the M sleds. According to Arctic Cat this takes the LE model with accessories to within three lbs of the Rev-XP, not too bad for the oldest chassis in the class.

The Fox Float rear suspension on the M sleds has been refined for 09 with new machined rails and two rear idler wheels instead of the previous years three. The tunnel has been revised with different running boards and a totally new rear tunnel section. The back section of the tunnel now has an LED taillight and grab bar. This change not only saves weight but also makes the sled look much cleaner. We were really impressed with the improvements Cat made to the tunnel as well. The previous year M sleds plastic rear grab bar was uncomfortable to lift, but the new aluminum grab bar is comfortable and stylish - good news for those of us who have the bad habit of getting stuck.

There are three engine choices for the 09 M sleds all of them fuel injected twin cylinder two-strokes. The smallest is the fuel-efficient easy starting 120hp 600cc M6. Next and our favorite of the three is the 800cc M8. And for those who think there is no such thing as too much power the 1000cc M1000. The M8 and M1000 have been changed this year with an electronic reverse system, this replaces the previous years ACT reverse and saves 7.5lbs. Our favorite of the three engines is the 800 it has good power and although the 1000 have more torque we thought the 800 was more fun to ride.

Arctic Cat released a new track for 2009 the Power Claw. This track uses new single-ply technology that takes less power to turn therefore resulting in better power to the ground. It has a 3.00” pitch, 2.25” lugs, 15” wide and is available in 153” and 162” lengths. The profile is an interesting mix with large paddles from the Attack 20 and fingers on the edges.
Cat really surprised us this year with all the updates they did to the M sleds. Our favorite feature is the VSB telescoping handlebars. It allows the rider to change the height of the handlebars for different riding conditions. We expected there to be additional slop in the steering post with this system but really didn’t notice much difference when riding. Another cool feature is a lightweight Boss seat that is available on spring order machines.

Polaris

Polaris released the Cleanfire 800 in the Dragon RMK mountain sleds last year. These machines are an absolute blast to ride and were our favorite last sleds at last years Snowshoot. Our only complaint was that the 800s were only available with the top-of-the-line Dragon package and not in the Shift or base RMK trims. Thankfully for '09, Polaris has increased the use of this spectacular engine to the Shift, RMK and the new Assault.

The Assault is a backcountry freeride sled that features upgraded parts to withstand the abuse of big hits. It’s a brave move for Polaris building a machine for a segment within the mountain segment but one that we are very excited about. All of us on the test crew enjoy freeriding and think its really cool that a manufacturer is stepping up and supporting this part of the sport. One thing that is interesting about the Assault though is that Polaris present it as a backcountry freeride machine (Slednecks) but many dealers we have spoken to out West see the machine as a hillclimb race sled. Apparently the rules for hillclimbs such as Jackson Hole, now state the stock class machines must be completely stock and the set-up on the Assualt (track, wide front end, handlebars, suspension and chassis strengthening) make it ideally suited to this type of competition. The rules also state that there must be a minimum number of units produced. So it could be that Polaris is using the freeride backcountry thing as a cover sell more of these race machines or maybe its just a coincidence and they are killing two birds with the one stone. Either way, the idea is still cool.

The Assault as with all new RMK’s features the new RAW front bumper and nose cone that is sleeker to improve the way the machine handles in deep snow and it looks great too. The RMK’s also get new lightweight rails and premium models get lighter spindles and front a-arms. Suspension on the Assault well configured for big jumps and drops with burly adjustable Walker Evans remote reservoir air shocks. Randy Sherman has been out hucking some huge jumps on a stock Assault and seems really pleased with it. Another feature that we are pretty excited about on the Dragon and Assault sleds is the Pro-Taper handlebars that come stock. If you followed our build on the Nytro this year you will remember we installed after-market handlebars, so when we see a machine that comes stock with aftermarket bars that we wouldn’t need to do any wrenching on, it makes us smile.

Although we love the 800 RMKs we can’t forget about the 600 and 700 machines that Polaris offers in the RMK chassis. Polaris seemed to really jump around with their engine sizes a few years ago. It was the 800 then 900 and back down to 750 and 700 for a few years and now back to 800. There is only machine available with 700 Cleanfire this year with five different 800s available.

Ski-Doo

This last year in the West it seemed like the majority of new machines on the snow were the new Rev-XP from Ski-Doo. Mountain riders are all obsessed with weight and the XP leads the class in with the lightest sleds. But although the XPs would win on the scales every time, the reliability of the '08 machines left little to be desired. There were many problems with motor mounts, shafts, clutches/belts and electrical systems. Speaking to some of the reps from Ski-Doo they stated that many of these reliability issues have been resolved on the '09 machines and we really hope they are correct, because the Summit Rev-XPs are very capable machines and our favorites to ride in the mountain class.

The biggest change to Ski-Doo Summits for 09 is the new 600 E-Tec direct injected engine. This engine is environmentally friendly, fuel and oil efficient and zippy. It is very unique as it runs rough at low rpm using minimal fuel and oil but then revs out like the other two-strokes. The key to this is the voice coil injector that injects different quantities of fuel for different engine load conditions. We are a little disappointed that Ski-Doo decided not to put the 4-Tec engine into a mountain chassis. This is probably due to the added weight of the four stroke engine.

The 800 Summit machines remain relatively unchanged for '09 aside from the previously mentioned fixes to problematic areas. Our test riders found the weight of the Summit to be a big advantage in maneuvering on steep inclines. We all loved the handling and suspension too. It would be nice to see the 800 sleds going to electronic fuel injection. Maybe if the E-Tec is a success we will see the 800 switched to E-Tec in a few years.

Yamaha

The other manufacturers are starting to get into the fourstroke market but Yamaha is still the only manufacturer offering four stroke mountain machines. The Phazer, Nytro and Apex are available in a MTX (mountain) configuration. The Yamaha machines are definitely good in stock form but it has become very common for mountain riders to add boost in the form of either a supercharger or turbo. These types of modifications have become so common that Yamaha actually invited some aftermarket companies to their Western dealer meeting to educate the dealers about the aftermarket potential of the Yamaha mountain sleds.

New last year the Nytro fits into the line just below the Apex in terms of horsepower but although the power output is less than the Apex, it is much lighter and therefore a better mountain machine in our eyes. All three Yamaha mountain Yamaha sleds get a new CK dual shock rear suspension with clicker shocks. One of our complaints with the '08 Nytro MTX was how soft the rear suspension was - but it is now much better with the clicker shocks. It also allows riders to adjust the suspension without tools. Aside from the new suspension and color options, the mountain sleds remain fairly unchanged. We are a little bummed that the Nytro MTX doesn’t get the new geometry front suspension like the other Nytros or the new tunnel and running boards from the Nytro XTX. But really can’t complain too much because the Nytro is an excellent machine the way it is and we really enjoyed the '08 Nytro MTX we had as a project sled this year.