Blue/White RTX SE or Axys Pro S Switchback 800

[BFS]

Need real world help deciding which to buy. Guys/Girls going on a trip next week and before I go picking up one or the other, which would you buy.

 

[Thinice7]

Your asking this question on a yamaha forum?

 

[Thinice7]

Seems like your mind is already made. Lol.

 

[BFS]

No not really, come here to read the good and not so good reviews of the viper. Some of you have ridden both looking for honest opinions, that's all.

 

[Thinice7]

I like my viper only had one issue with a hose clamp being damaged from the factory was leaking coolant replaced it and it's fine now. Can't comment on power as I turboed mine before I even rode it. Had to play with the suspension to get it where I want but that's any machine. All I can say is it's hard to wipe the smirk off your face when you ride one with a turbo I've ony got 280 or so miles on it right now but it has yet to skip a beat. Starts up on the first turn of the key every time. I'm personally not a fan of polaris but to each his own. Have a couple guys I ride with that swear by them.

 

[sixstringorsnow]

I drove my buddy's Axys and it is really cold. It is light weight, powerful and flickable. After blowing up my 2012 pro r 800 I am glad I have the reliability of the viper, 4900 miles of smiles. If you are the type of guy that needs to kick your buddy #*$&@ all the time then don't buy the viper, you will need to do a lot of work to keep up in a drag race. The viper is good in deep snow, but the front is a little heavy. When your trying to carve and let off the gas it will dive. Out in the trail you can crest hills and give it gas and the front end will lift like the old 2 smokes. It will stay with most 800 from 0 to 70 once you do some clutching. It is a really fun snowmobile with the torque. Its my first 4 stroke and will not be my last now. My seasonal maintenance is much easier too. Oh and get some good warranty if you get the Poo. My buddy went through 7 motors with 2012 assault and the guy that bought mine blew up as well. I hope they fixed there 800 engine issue, as they claim they said. We have also been told that since the storm days. lol Either way it all come down to what you really want. Reliability or plane out fast with knowing if you hold it to long you may be getting towed out. I love my viper, but I do miss the top end of the 800.

 

[sixstringorsnow]

Oh and unless you are a ditch banger don't get the SE, get a DX. I ride hard but do a lot of groomed trails now and I have my SE on the softest settings, its just a little to harsh for me on a #*$&@ trail. I bought the SE on looks. You can alway cool up your sled with a wrap or something. It would be cheaper than redoing the shocks and buying new springs, just to have the nicest sled that everyone else has. Im 220 with gear and would have gone the DX route if I known what I know now. You can alway make the DX stiffer for the days you want to get crazy.

 

[cannondale27]

X2 Or if you plan to buy shocks anyway. Take the nice windshield,bag and seat heater. That all black looks awesome to me!

 

[cacsrx1]

If you are the type to mod...Viper. If you want something that works really good out of the box....Poo.

 

[SRXracer]

Honestly, if I were back standing in the dealership with 13k to spend, and no sled on the trailer - i'd buy the switchback (i bought the '15 ltx se instead) - especially if your riding with other 800's. It's an incredibly fun sled to ride, the motor is incredibly powerful, throttle response is instant, and it's the lightest sled out there. Cold? Ride that ltx-se with the worthless blue windshield. I rode with a axys on single digit day, and while I was freezing cold to the point I was ready to turn around, the axys rider was fine. If you want a sled that you need to tweak, and apply mods to get to run with the faster stock stuff, but the viper - and there's always the turbo, but then you put another 4k into it. If you want to ride something as is, not have to mod it, etc, just throw your leg over it and be at the front of the pack, go with the polaris. I say all this as a loyal yamaha guy, but after this year, my brand blinders are off!

 

[Yamadog]

I have a 13 Pro R 800, a 15 Pro S 800 SB and a 14 Viper XTX. Right now hands down the viper is the favorite....But I have MPI turbo with 12#'s of boost, Axis Shocks all the way around, coupled rear suspension and a year and a half in getting it to the place it is today. Clutching and suspension on the vipers take a bit of time to work out for some of us others have like them out of the box.

The Axis is easy just check the pre loads on the 4 shocks to the manual cause they were screwed up at the factory and go ride. This season I have 600 miles on the Pro S, 300 on teh Pro R and about 600 on my Viper which will now blow the S away. I ride all 3 cause they are all different and are better on different types of terrain. But hands down for adrenaline the viper now is the ticket and I could never make the Polaris do that.

 

[millstreet]

my sled;

my son's sled;

4200 miles on mine, 800 miles on his - both are great sleds
Viper is alot slower & takes some fooling with
Pro S is fast, light, works right out of the box
time will tell on the "new" 800 motor (we bought 2 addtl. years of warranty!)
everything posted above is accurate, just depends on what you're looking for

 

[TD Max]

Polaris is my closest dealer. I thought pretty hard about a Polaris, but I could not stand the "just got rear ended" look and all the external linkage. Then there are the models with a rear exchanger and hoses that flex constantly with the suspension cycling.

My final sled before taking 15 yrs off was a 2000 XC 500 SP. Not a bad sled, but nothing to write home about either. Plenty of vibration and noise. Nothing refined about it.

 

[Nytro40th]

If you want to do rebuilds, buy injection oil, buy 91 octane fuel or switch sleds every couple years go POO and need super light. If you want no rebuilds, just oil changes, 3 year warranty and run 87 octane all day get the YAM. I like the Axys chassis as well but the 2 stroke engine holds me back. With a bit of clutching on the viper it will spank a lot of sleds and few more mods non turbo it will compete with 800's. If your looking for top end get the POO, the viper or the sled it replaced (fx nytro) were never designed to be lake racers. Either way they are both great sleds but your comparing apples and oranges IMHO. Good luck and ride safe.

 

[BFS]

Thanks for all the input, that's what I was looking for. Nytro40th, I guess my issue is whether or not I'm ready to sit back and cruise on the viper or still want that top end speed of the Axys. Again thanks for your input.