[Ranb]

My wife and I are in the market for a two seat snowmobile for short term use each winter in Minnesota. We live in western Washington State (no snow west of Puget Sound) and visit Minnesota each Christmas. We enjoy riding the Munger trail and other trails, but usually avoid the deep powder as neither one of us has much experience off the trail and want to avoid getting stuck. We tried a smaller Yamaha Phaser, easy to maneuver around the woods, but it does not hold two. We also rode a much heavier (850?) 2-seater but was difficult to handle in the fluff due to our inexperience and even harder to get unstuck due to the high weight.

The Polaris 550 Indy LXT is one we are looking at. The 467 pound dry weight and $7600 price tag are nice. In my limited experience, the two stroke engine with carburetors is less attractive. The two strokes tend to have smellier exhaust, something my wife hates. We are also looking at the Yamaha Venture MP. It is heavier at over 600 pounds and nearly $10,000 but has a four stroke fuel injected engine. We have not actually seen either of these two models yet. My wife is small and fits well in the smaller rear seats of ATV’s and sleds.

Because we are staying on the trails for the most part and MN is not mountainous, a 2-seater with a smaller engine will be just fine for us. We want to buy new and are interested in test driving one near Duluth this December. Any suggestions? Thanks.

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

I'm not aware of a Phazer 2-seater. The R-TX, M-TX and X-TX are listed as single seater only. The only Yamaha 2-seat sleds I see on their website are the Venture and Viking.

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

As in bolting on a rear seat? Is the suspension designed to take the extra weight on those sleds?

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

Wife and I bought a 2014 550 Indy LXT. While I'd rather have a water cooled fuel injected four stroke, they are thousands more and heavier. Neither one of us is an experienced rider and we will only be using it ourselves 2 weeks each year as it is kept in MN and we live in WA. We need the lightest 2-seat for when (not if) we get it stuck.

We are an hour from any snowmobile trails in western WA. We have an ATV to keep us occupied in WA.

I've been looking for oil, belts and plugs. I'm going to stick with Polaris 2-stroke oil as it is what is recommended and the only other oil I can find that meets their specifications is Amsoil Intercepter, but it is more expensive. I've yet to find a extra belt (meeting 3211154 specs) for less than $100. Any suggestions?

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

Too late, we already bought the 2-seater. We also use a 2-seat ATV and enjoy it very much. We take turns driving on the trails but are never very far from civilization. It will be the same with the snowmobile. If we ever venture far from the established trails we will go with a group. In the future we may also get a smaller machine that my wife (she is 4'8", 100 lbs) can handle more comfortably.

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

I got an Ultimax Pro 125-4240U4 belt which is supposed to be a replacement for the Polaris belt. I decided that if a gallon of 2-stroke oil will last 50 gallons and I get 10 mpg, then this equates to about 50 miles a day while on my Christmas vacation each year. This means saving a few bucks on oil each year is not something I need to do.

Anyway, Carlton County has plenty of snow right now and unless they get a warm wind/rain, it should still be there in a month.

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

We'll be inching along at a top speed of 40 mph on the trails, my wife about half that speed. I'm not sure what the most efficient speed of a 550 is, but other than the occasional hill it won't be pushed very hard at all.

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

We have the same slow speed precautions with our CVT equipped ATV. I track the mileage of all of our vehicles as it is a good way of identifying performance problems.

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

I finally got a chance to ride the sled yesterday. It filled the garage up with smoke burning the fogging oil and running the 40-1 break-in gas oil mix but it started after three brief attempts with the starter. While it sits higher than the Phazer I rode last year, it is much easier to drive than the very heavy two seat Polaris I tried out. With less than six inches of snow on the ground we won't be getting stuck. We're getting some ear plugs as the engine is very noisy.

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

Is there any reason why the sled does not like to go into reverse when warmed up? I tested the electronic reverse in the yard after starting it up and it worked fine. But out on the trail with the engine warmed up it would not go into reverse when I needed it. Any suggestions?

Ranb

Called the dealer (Duluth Lawn and Sport) I bought it from and was told I could bring it in and they would "look at it in a day or two". I've only got another week to use it prior to going home so I think I'll look for another way to fix it for now.

 

[Ranb]

I took it out on the trail for the first time, it had only a few miles on it at the time. I came to a tree fallen across the trail so I decided to back up and turn around as the brush and trees were too thick to drive around the fallen tree. It would not go into reverse so I turned the sled around by picking up the front end and turning it around. The entire time the engine was idling properly; 1500 to 1900 rpm.

After I got home I tried testing the reverse function again; this time with the engine cold. The idle was still in spec and I was able to put it in reverse twice. I went for another ride and tested the reverse function again with the engine warmed up, didn't work.

After reviewing the owner's manual I tried to go into reverse in normal and high altitude modes. The dealer is probably not going to give me same day service so I think I'll wait until I come back in the summer to bring it in. It'll be under warranty until 9/2015. I only use the sled for a few weeks each year so I don't want it sitting in the dealership for two days while they wait to take a look at it.

The battery is good. Nothing else is wrong with the sled at all.

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

The two times it did work the engine stopped briefly and restarted in reverse. I pressed the throttle enough to back the sled up then pressed the yellow button again to put it in forward.

The rest of the time I press the yellow button for a second and the "R" lights up; nothing else. The engine doesn't change speed or stop/restart. I've tried holding the button down for 1 second, 2 seconds and even long enough to watch the light flash rapid then slow as it cycles through modes. Nothing works.

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

As my winter vacation comes to a close I've been able to burn through the ten gallons of 40-1 break-in gas and had lots of fun. I can go about 130 miles on a full tank prior to the gauge showing it on reserve. Other than the failure to go into reverse the only problem I had was the engine dying in the cold weather shortly after starting.

It was about 0 degrees, I fully choked the engine and it took three attempts to start. I bumped the throttle several times until it ran without the choke. After a minute of idle I took off slowly and the engine quit after less than 100 yards. The engine started immediately after pushing the starter and I had no other problems.

My brother in-law will bring it to the dealer for me later this winter to ensure it is repaired under warranty.

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

My brother in-law took it to the dealer in Duluth today and wouldn't you now, it worked just fine. The dealer said they can't something that isn't broke. The sled is home now. I'll try it out again when I go home in July. If it doesn't work then, I'll show video of the reverse feature not working, then bring it back and demand that they do something to fix it even if it works at the dealer in Duluth.

There has to be some reason why it works in warm weather but not during the winter.

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

Tried it, didn't work in the winter. Not sure why it is working today. I'm rather disappointed that they refused to do anything after it worked for them today.

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

I figured it out. The manual says to press and hold the reverse button for a second then release. What is actually required is to press and immediately release the button; works every time now. Yeah I feel like an idiot.

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

My latest problem. The choke switch broke off. Turns out it's a tiny piece of plastic, should be metal in my opinion. To choke the engine I use some side cutters to pull out the remnant of the choke pin and hold it out with a battery charger clamp.



The starter also refuses to engage now, still need to fix the bendix spring.

 

[Ranb]

Amazon wanted $20, got one from ebay for $7 with shipping.

 

[Ranb]

The winter temperatures during xmas 2019 are 20-35 F, perfect for riding right now. With 18 inches of powder on the ground the trails are very nice.

Access to the Munger trail from my house near Olsonville was hampered by trees felled by heavy snow on the trail. My wife and I came to one we could not duck under and turning around with reverse was not an option in deep powder as the back end just digs in. We spend ten minutes lifting and turning the sled around to get back home. My wife said she was ready to collapse after that effort.

My brother and I went out with a chain saw to clear the trail. With over 400 pounds of people and chainsaw on the sled it handles differently to say the least. Even with the rear suspension lifted all the way up, the skis do not grab very well. We got stuck twice while sliding off the trail. This is why I bought the lightest 2-seater on the market. At under 500 pounds, it can be lifted much easier. The day they make a 2-seater with a fuel injected 4-stroke that weighs under 500 lbs, I'll buy it.

The problem last year with the dirty bendix spring/gear was mostly resolved with a squirt of WD-40, I'll keep cleaning it each summer. My latest issue is the head lamps. They only work on high beam, low beam does not work. I still need to figure out if it is the switch or the bulbs.

Ranb

 

[Ranb]

Has anyone installed passenger grip warmers on a 550 Indy LXT? Any brands to avoid?

My granddaughter has graduated from riding in front of me to being properly seated on the rear seat and has predictably found her hands to get cold after a while.

The sled is running fine; the WD-40 fix on the starter is still working. The speedometer and odometer sometimes do not work in sub-zero weather until the engine runs for a few minutes. Possibly a relay that is slow to shut in the colder weather? Thanks for any advice.