Whats to many miles?

[edgeracer1]

So you guys convinced me to go the sidewinder route instead of the turbo viper and I’m curious what is to many miles or what I should be looking for. I’m in upstate ny and a lot of the sleds I’m finding have 5-7 thousand miles due to Canada riding and I know the 4 stroke will go a while but components wear. Any input would be great looking at xtx

 

[Big_Phil]

Its all how the sled is taken care of. The engine will be fine with lots of miles, so obviously don't worry about that. At 5-7k miles the sled will need a new track, all the driveline bearings replaced, shocks rebuilt, etc.

My buddy has a 2012 cat 1100 with over 30000kms on it, TD tunes from about 5000kms onwards. All about proper maintenance and you're good.

 

[cannondale27]

At 15000 mi the chassis itself is going to show signs of stress depending on how it was ridden. Look for loose rivets,cracks at all suspension mounting points and suspension itself. This is in addition to all BigPhil said.

 

[DVW]

The short answer is 15,000 miles useful life but not because of the chassis. I rolled up 25,000 miles on the Arctic Cat version of the Viper. Major engine and drivetrain problems occurred at the 15,000 mile mark. After cylinder head replacement the valves got tight again 10,000 miles later. Before that machine I had another 4-stroke that had turbo failure (Suzuki motor) at the 15,000 mile mark. Most of the parts that failed on the 4-stroke do not even exist on the 2-stroke. I loved the sound and torque curve of the 4-strokes but last winter I switched to a 2-stroke for longevity. I only have 5000 miles on that machine so we will see. On my old machine all of the bushings in the steering, skid frame and front suspension felt as tight as my newer machine. No loose rivets or elongated bolt holes. The chassis was solid. The track looked good at 25,000 miles. What is most amazing is the original belt lasted 15,000 miles.

 

[WinterWolf]

The short answer is 15,000 miles useful life but not because of the chassis. I rolled up 25,000 miles on the Arctic Cat version of the Viper. Major engine and drivetrain problems occurred at the 15,000 mile mark. After cylinder head replacement the valves got tight again 10,000 miles later. Before that machine I had another 4-stroke that had turbo failure (Suzuki motor) at the 15,000 mile mark. Most of the parts that failed on the 4-stroke do not even exist on the 2-stroke. I loved the sound and torque curve of the 4-strokes but last winter I switched to a 2-stroke for longevity. I only have 5000 miles on that machine so we will see. On my old machine all of the bushings in the steering, skid frame and front suspension felt as tight as my newer machine. No loose rivets or elongated bolt holes. The chassis was solid. The track looked good at 25,000 miles. What is most amazing is the original belt lasted 15,000 miles.

25,000 miles on a track?? 15,000 on a belt?? Are you kidding? You must have drove that thing at 30 mph the whole time....

I had to read those numbers 3 times, to make sure I was seeing them right, and I still can’t believe it?

 

[snobill]

Exactly he went through 10 motors in the two smoke before any of that happened on a four ! Lol

 

[stevewithOCD]

The short answer is 15,000 miles useful life but not because of the chassis. I rolled up 25,000 miles on the Arctic Cat version of the Viper. Major engine and drivetrain problems occurred at the 15,000 mile mark. After cylinder head replacement the valves got tight again 10,000 miles later. Before that machine I had another 4-stroke that had turbo failure (Suzuki motor) at the 15,000 mile mark. Most of the parts that failed on the 4-stroke do not even exist on the 2-stroke. I loved the sound and torque curve of the 4-strokes but last winter I switched to a 2-stroke for longevity. I only have 5000 miles on that machine so we will see. On my old machine all of the bushings in the steering, skid frame and front suspension felt as tight as my newer machine. No loose rivets or elongated bolt holes. The chassis was solid. The track looked good at 25,000 miles. What is most amazing is the original belt lasted 15,000 miles.

I think DVM is implying that the 4-stroke weight puts more stress on the chassis therefore it doesn't last as long.
15,000 miles?
25,000 miles?
Those are crazy numbers that should be marked with a TATTOO not frowned upon to justify a 2-stroke for all things.................... LONGEVITY

 

[stevewithOCD]

So you guys convinced me to go the sidewinder route instead of the turbo viper and I’m curious what is to many miles or what I should be looking for. I’m in upstate ny and a lot of the sleds I’m finding have 5-7 thousand miles due to Canada riding and I know the 4 stroke will go a while but components wear. Any input would be great looking at xtx

To answer your question, i'm not sure there is an exact answer.
"Canada miles" usually means big well maintained trails that puts less stress on the chassis, but this is sooo subjective.
I can say this. It took me 7,000 miles to get mine just right.
I believe my Winder at 10,000 miles is in better shape then my Apex was.
I'm re-building drive train, since i have to change track, with plans to sell it next year with 15,000 miles on it. I'm under the assumption the next person will have to replace most of front bushings, but over-all i'm convinced with a real good summer program it will last to 20,000 miles in good reliable shape.

AND THERE IT IS: Longevity is completely reliant on the maintenance done throughout it's life span

 

[Turboflash]

At 15000 mi the chassis itself is going to show signs of stress depending on how it was ridden. Look for loose rivets,cracks at all suspension mounting points and suspension itself. This is in addition to all BigPhil said.

X2 on rivets at that mileage. If there is gray shadow or gray marks running down or spreading out from rivets, that means they are loose!

 

[cannondale27]

The short answer is 15,000 miles useful life but not because of the chassis. I rolled up 25,000 miles on the Arctic Cat version of the Viper. Major engine and drivetrain problems occurred at the 15,000 mile mark. After cylinder head replacement the valves got tight again 10,000 miles later. Before that machine I had another 4-stroke that had turbo failure (Suzuki motor) at the 15,000 mile mark. Most of the parts that failed on the 4-stroke do not even exist on the 2-stroke. I loved the sound and torque curve of the 4-strokes but last winter I switched to a 2-stroke for longevity. I only have 5000 miles on that machine so we will see. On my old machine all of the bushings in the steering, skid frame and front suspension felt as tight as my newer machine. No loose rivets or elongated bolt holes. The chassis was solid. The track looked good at 25,000 miles. What is most amazing is the original belt lasted 15,000 miles.

You made a mistake. There is no way a 2st motor is going to outlast a Yamaha 4st. There is ALWAYS exceptions to the norm of course. You got a bad one. Sorry to hear that.

 

[Byam]

X2 on rivets at that mileage. If there is gray shadow or gray marks running down or spreading out from rivets, that means they are loose!

At 15000 mi the chassis itself is going to show signs of stress depending on how it was ridden. Look for loose rivets,cracks at all suspension mounting points and suspension itself. This is in addition to all BigPhil said.

As stated above, maintenance is the key for longevity. My 15 100km SW is probably more reliable than 2020 sled.

I have replace and add lots of rivet yesterday...lol. + BOP extra stiffner Rear bumper need better support to. I have add many rivets

 

[DVW]

25,000 miles on a track?? 15,000 on a belt?? Are you kidding? You must have drove that thing at 30 mph the whole time....

I had to read those numbers 3 times, to make sure I was seeing them right, and I still can’t believe it?

More to the story. On my high mileage snowmobile when I divide final miles by hours I get 30 mph average. Seems slow but if you want to put things into perspective do the same with your machine. My track clips only lasted 20k miles but at 25k miles the track itself looked like what I have observed on machines having only 10k miles. I admit that I have warped standards when it comes to miles. With that said the 15k mile life on the drive belt life surprised even me especially considering it was on a Arctic Cat clutch. What might explain long drive belt life is early on at the 10k mile mark the clutch was replaced while still operational. It was replaced under warrantee because Arctic Cat did not question the claim when they where told the miles. I repack skid frame bearings yearly because I do not want to go another 5k miles without service. At the 20k mark I replaced (instead of repacking) the skid frame bearings because I found one cracked seal. The drive shaft and jack shaft bearings where replaced at a 10k mile service interval. Once out the old bearings could be inspected and they all felt good. After the initial 10k service interval these ‘hard to get to bearings’ where replace in less than 10k miles do to unscheduled repair. All significant unscheduled repairs where performed by my dealer because the season is so short. I think the high miles is attributed to the fact that I am a 69 year old retired engineer who likes to get going early in the morning and does not like to stop. Also I have modified my machine to make a 300 mile day feel like a 200 mile day. The longevity is attributed to good awareness and service but also poor judgement when it comes to retiring the machine.

 

[cannondale27]

My track delaminated at 9000mi my dime. Caliper grooved out from backing plates 8000mi. Front arm rear suspension shaft tore out of tunnel at 5000mi. Upper gear bushing one season and every season after. These were all covered under warranty along with a bad throttle block first season. About 10 or 11000mi 5 exhaust valves were out of spec tighter but I honestly believe they were set wrong at factory. Also had front arm rear suspension crack around 5 or 6000mi testing new shocks so on me. Rivets and bolts loosen yearly. Lost count of them all. I replaced primary clutch with a used Apex clutch cheap at 11000mi since was wearing mid sheave. This sled with slight mods each year has honestly and documented here gotten faster every year! Not bitter is what it is. I ride way to fast through rough and know it. I also am modding all the time looking for more speed. Consider it maintenance.
Now my used 800 rr cat had reeds shot at 3500mi. Starter went same time. Not fun changing either! Driveshaft grooved bad 4000. 6500 the primary had rollers go and pretty much trashed whole clutch. New clutch. About 8000 on it now. Considering doing new pistons and rings or converting it to off trail use only so miles stay down. It’s on my mind constantly now. My Yamaha the more miles I put on in a year happier I am. Motor goes it’s a big deal. The other stuff is minor. 2st or 4.

 

[edgeracer1]

Wow I forgot how helpful this site was and think I’ve found a sled but it’s only a 137 and was really hoping for a 141 question I have is what’s the major diff from 137-141 is tunnel diff assuming not? Can I extend the rails to go to 141? Thanks in advance

 

[cannondale27]

Wow I forgot how helpful this site was and think I’ve found a sled but it’s only a 137 and was really hoping for a 141 question I have is what’s the major diff from 137-141 is tunnel diff assuming not? Can I extend the rails to go to 141? Thanks in advance

141 is uncoupled. 137 is coupled more setup for on trail use unless modded where the 141 is more geared toward off trail use un modded.