I was on 800 Cats for years and got the 22 VR1 650 and was blown away at how nice this sled rides and handles let alone the 650 honestly has just as good of power in the low to mid-range plus the oil and fuel economy is fantastic. Your review is spot on and enjoy all the videos you guys do during the season.
Thanks Mike, we appreciate it! I'd love to try a 650 too. I know those 600r etecs are one of the best engines on snow and I'd love to see how the new 650 stacks up. Cheers, Mike
Well done unbiased review boys!! As for the pro steer skis….shimming, 6” shapers and woodys navigators….I’ve used this set up going on four years now, first on my Indy and again on my Assault and have been really impressed!
Good review gents , got my VR1 end of January and still managed to put 2600km , stock carbides are crap , seat was a little hard but has settled in nicely for my , once the suspension is set up they ride great , already looking forward to next winter, cheers guys 👍
Yup. Since the first doo I ever owned the handlebars are like off and on - the temp adjustment is terrible. Appreciate you tuning in brother! Cheers, Jesse
Great video guys! Polaris is upping its game for sure last few years.If I was in the market for a new 2 stroke powered sled I think I'd seriously consider the Indy Adventure 650 .And I'm a Skidoo guy! I did have a friend who's 19' XRS chaincase grenaded at around 1000 miles so it happens to them all and as you stated thankfully its covered under warranty.
Thanks Jason! 100% agreed. We are pretty hardcore Doo guys but this VR1 has given us a new perspective. We totally love it and its the best from Poo yet! You definitely need warranty with these things and thats one thing that we also love about Poo, is that they are still offering 4 year warranties. Cheers, Mike
Thanks for the no frill review. Very nice! I own three Ski-doos, and I strongly agree, the hand warmers suck. I have been very interested in the Polaris but in the Switchback Assault model with a 850. Not concerned about the smoke on start up, my 01 MXZ 800/DPM smokes too. I am use to it. My 14' GSX SE w/800 etec, no smoke. I also like the fact you still have a pull start as a back up. Twice this season we had 2 Ski-doos (800 & 600) batteries go bad during a ride and we had to pull the tool kit out and do the rope trick around the clutch. Sleds started on first pull, but it's a pain in the butt where if we had the pull start, no tool kit required. But yea, like the review, will look more into the Switchback.
Glad you liked the review buddy. It really is one killer sled. The Assault is also an awesome sled - our buddy had one last winter and I really liked it. Super playful. Cheers, Jesse
Great video and nice to see honest unbiased opinions. The polaris heated seat is a bit softer than the stock seat and is perfect in my opinion. I added it to my sled because I noticed my butt was getting a bit chilly on long rides.
Great video fellas. I put 1500 kms on my 2022 VR1 850 137" and overall really liked the sled. I had the same starting issue - 'turn the key twice' to fire it up, and it often backfired even after I swapped out my first set of plugs. I loved the handling and acceleration of the sled, the terrific gas mileage, and the 7s gauge was awesome, with the only exception being the odd issue with trail inaccuracy. I found the seat harder than desired as well, and the howling sound from my track was deafening from 40mph on up. I am hoping that is a quick fix as I suspect my track got a little too loose. I am looking forward to putting more miles on the VR1 next winter, as well as the 2023 BRP Expedition SE 900 Turbo R which I snow checked and will be my cottage/backwoods sled. Should be the first fella to the ice hut each morning next winter;)
Hey Mark! What you said is bang on to my thoughts. As I mentioned, trail inaccuracy on the 7s display does occur as polaris is using crowd sourced data instead of official snowmobile association data. Super weird how they sent out the wrong seats on sleds - if your seat is harder it was meant for an XCR and they just threw it on your sled because the color matched. Your track is likely loose and/or unaligned. Get that checked and you will be good to go. The expedition is a super fun sled - those things cannot get stuck lol. Have a great summer! Cheers, Jesse
On the ski issue...I think the stock carbides they put on arr just terrible. They wear out SO fast unless you are riding in optimal conditions. When I got my 21 VR1 I wore right through the left side ski inside of 800 miles. When i checked I was basically missing my right side carbide too. I ended up buying two new skis and put shaper bars on. I've got 2000 miles since then in similar conditions and the shaper bars still look great. I did shim the skis though when I put the shaper bars on...so that may help to. 👍 I agree with everything you guys say about the VR1. I've got 3200 trouble free miles on my 850 VR1 and there isn't much I'd change about the sled. Front end ride quality is phenomenal. Good review
Glad to hear this JC from someone else with experience. I had a feeling it was crappy carbides and certainly an easy fix. Thanks for watching and appreciate the advice on shimming as well! Cheers, Mike
GREAT Review, Honest NON Biased and very informative. Looking forward to the other reviews coming up. In the market for a new sled and looking at Skidoo and Polaris 850's.
Hey Dean! Thanks for the kind words. Glad you enjoyed it. Exactly what you said - we are being as honest and non biased as possible. Definitely stay tuned for the XRS review coming on Thursday, and the Mach Z video coming on Monday. Also.. most importantly for you, next Thursday there will be a battle of the 850s video - 850 polaris vs 850 skidoo. Cheers, Jesse
@@sledaddicz Jesse, thank you for the follow up and I look forward to the XRS, Mach Z and the Battle of the 850's. Again one of the BEST reviews out there!
Nice i just ordered myself a 23 indy adventure 137x15x1.352 with 7s display tounge tow hitch and a sled cover got the sled in all black to for hunting purposes
Hey Jesse! Thanks for the advice brother. Shiming is the way to go forsure - just surprised they wear so quickly! I used to run C&As in the past - great ski. You absolutely killed it this season by the way - way to go on the original content. Cheers, Jesse
Excellent comparison video guys.. It’s nice to see a couple guys that aren’t “Brand Bias” in the snowmo video reviewing two top selling sleds. Thanks BoyZ !! Cheers 🤙🏼
I'm picking up a used 21 assault 850 this winter. It'll be my first ride in 20 years. Dear lord please let it snow a lot here this winter 🙏. The previous owner geared it down, gripper skis, put a studded 1.6 Cobra track on it and some other stuff. I haven't even picked it up yet but I bought a quiet can (don't worry, I'm riding in the middle of nowhere with no neighbors) and a clutch kit.
Hey Jeff. Glad you liked it. We don't own an arctic cat so it's hard to get content on one. If you watch some of our riding videos I tried out our buddies t-cat. Cheers, Jesse
Hey Paul! Sorry for the delay in responding. Been super busy at work. Send me an email at jesse@sledaddicz.com and I can let you know pricing etc. Cheers, Jesse
If you guys want a sled that hooks up great on the trails with awesome weight transfer you should try a backcountry with a 1.6 ice cobra. Maybe even throw some real studs in it. Would be a weapon and will soak up rough trails just as good as your renegades if not better.
You make a great point. I have ridden a backcountry xrs and I loved it. The only issue is we just aren't going off trail enough to justify it. Cheers, Jesse
@@sledaddicz makes sense. We do a good bit of both. I love my backcountry xrs but you definitely have to be a pretty active rider through the corners. Would love to ride a renegade xrs or even an mxz xrs some day.
2023 VR1 850 with 600km overheated and white smoke coming out of exhaust. Most likely the head gasket. All others in my group had temperatures at 50 C. Not a happy Polaris customer now. Sled at Edge Performance to see what happened.
That's sucks and things definitely can happen. Usually if it's something major it will happen pretty quickly. Keep us posted on what's wrong with it and hopefully your not down too long. Cheers, Mike
@Sledaddicz My dealer, Edge Performance in Bradford Ontario, installed a new 850 motor that was flown up from Polaris. Failure was an "internal coolant leak", most likely the ring gaskets on the head. Sending blown motor back to Polaris USA for analysis. Love Team Polaris for getting my sled back to me in 3 days with a new motor!
What was the fuel mileage and oil consumption between the two 850's? Also, what was the difference in top end speed? How did the Patriot compare to the Mach Z in terms of acceleration and top end?
Hey Steve! We stopped tracking fuel and oil mileage a few years back, simply because we aren't really as concerned about it anymore and the sleds are very similar these days, especially between the Poo and Doo 850s. It's really more of a difference between 4 stroke and 2 stroke, as we found the Mach to be about 20% better on fuel and of course no oil. Otherwise, the 2 850s are very close on fuel consumption but the Poo does seem to burn a bit less oil. Hope this helps. Cheers, Mike
Hey John! We are using the stackable fuel caddy from Ski-Doo, the same type we use on our XRS's and mach z. We have many different Ski-Doo LinQ bags that we use, which include the medium tunnel bag, sr21 bag, trail pro bag, and 17L sport bag. Let me know if you have any other questions! Cheers, Jesse
I like arguing with you 😂 But your wrong this engine was designed going all the way back to the Johnson Evinrude joining well before BRP Bought Evinrude,Is Rotax owned by BRP??
Carbide I have a 19 a 20 a 21 and a xcr 22 no problems with Carbide or skis I love them its tells me you are riding in pore snow conditions !!! And no other problems for that matter. And the one in the blue shirt doesn't let the one in the gray finish talking wow be quite when someone else is taking. Sorry but just the truth.
Hey James. I don't know what to tell you. We were riding both the doo and the polaris in the same riding conditions and the polaris lost a carbide (which happened to me on an indy the season before). Ya I interrupted Mike a bunch Oops. We were going to re-record it but we didn't have time. Cheers, Jesse
You should have commented on the rear suspension again and how it will buck you on square bumps. Also, we have 2 guys in our group switching back to Ski Doo cause they are tired of the reliability issues that never seem to stop with Polaris. Handling and seating is a personal preference and I had my MXZ XRS set up perfect, I rode an XCR and didnt like it as much, but as I said, its a personal thing.
Hey rideswift. Thats a good point regarding the rear suspension - I have definitely had it buck me a few times. Reliability is definitely also a concern, but warranty makes it not that big of a deal. It is definitely personal preference but I much prefer the seating position with the open toe holds on my renegade XRS. Cheers, Jesse
![Lp. Сердце Вселенной #60 РОЖДЕНИЕ ЛОЛОЛОШКИ [Финал] • Майнкрафт](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/YoR0pAV9FVQ/mqdefault.jpg)
I was on 800 Cats for years and got the 22 VR1 650 and was blown away at how nice this sled rides and handles let alone the 650 honestly has just as good of power in the low to mid-range plus the oil and fuel economy is fantastic. Your review is spot on and enjoy all the videos you guys do during the season.
Thanks Mike, we appreciate it! I'd love to try a 650 too. I know those 600r etecs are one of the best engines on snow and I'd love to see how the new 650 stacks up. Cheers, Mike
@@sledaddicz if you can ride one and see what you think. Least for the way I ride don’t think I’ll purchase another big bore sled.
Well done unbiased review boys!! As for the pro steer skis….shimming, 6” shapers and woodys navigators….I’ve used this set up going on four years now, first on my Indy and again on my Assault and have been really impressed!
Thanks Mr85GT! Glad you liked it. Agreed - shimming is a necessity for sure with these flimsy pro-steer skis lol. Cheers, Jesse
Shapers yes but 9.5 inch carbides are better,it just has more carbide just lasts longer...
Picked up a XCR 850 at end of season can't wait till next season
Hey Don. You will love that sled. It is an absolute weapon. Winter can't come soon enough! Have a great summer. Cheers, Jesse
Good review gents , got my VR1 end of January and still managed to put 2600km , stock carbides are crap , seat was a little hard but has settled in nicely for my , once the suspension is set up they ride great , already looking forward to next winter, cheers guys 👍
Thanks Mike! We appreciate it and that VR1 is a stellar ride. Cheers, Mike
I’ve never had a problem with feeling a difference in the hand warmers on my Doo, very interesting. Thanks for the video
Yup. Since the first doo I ever owned the handlebars are like off and on - the temp adjustment is terrible. Appreciate you tuning in brother! Cheers, Jesse
Great video guys! Polaris is upping its game for sure last few years.If I was in the market for a new 2 stroke powered sled I think I'd seriously consider the Indy Adventure 650 .And I'm a Skidoo guy! I did have a friend who's 19' XRS chaincase grenaded at around 1000 miles so it happens to them all and as you stated thankfully its covered under warranty.
Thanks Jason! 100% agreed. We are pretty hardcore Doo guys but this VR1 has given us a new perspective. We totally love it and its the best from Poo yet! You definitely need warranty with these things and thats one thing that we also love about Poo, is that they are still offering 4 year warranties. Cheers, Mike
Thanks for the no frill review. Very nice! I own three Ski-doos, and I strongly agree, the hand warmers suck. I have been very interested in the Polaris but in the Switchback Assault model with a 850. Not concerned about the smoke on start up, my 01 MXZ 800/DPM smokes too. I am use to it. My 14' GSX SE w/800 etec, no smoke. I also like the fact you still have a pull start as a back up. Twice this season we had 2 Ski-doos (800 & 600) batteries go bad during a ride and we had to pull the tool kit out and do the rope trick around the clutch. Sleds started on first pull, but it's a pain in the butt where if we had the pull start, no tool kit required. But yea, like the review, will look more into the Switchback.
Glad you liked the review buddy. It really is one killer sled. The Assault is also an awesome sled - our buddy had one last winter and I really liked it. Super playful. Cheers, Jesse
Great video and nice to see honest unbiased opinions. The polaris heated seat is a bit softer than the stock seat and is perfect in my opinion. I added it to my sled because I noticed my butt was getting a bit chilly on long rides.
Hey Bryan. Glad you liked it! Didn't know Polaris made a heated seat - that must be nice and toasty :)
Cheers, Jesse
Great video fellas. I put 1500 kms on my 2022 VR1 850 137" and overall really liked the sled. I had the same starting issue - 'turn the key twice' to fire it up, and it often backfired even after I swapped out my first set of plugs. I loved the handling and acceleration of the sled, the terrific gas mileage, and the 7s gauge was awesome, with the only exception being the odd issue with trail inaccuracy. I found the seat harder than desired as well, and the howling sound from my track was deafening from 40mph on up. I am hoping that is a quick fix as I suspect my track got a little too loose. I am looking forward to putting more miles on the VR1 next winter, as well as the 2023 BRP Expedition SE 900 Turbo R which I snow checked and will be my cottage/backwoods sled. Should be the first fella to the ice hut each morning next winter;)
Hey Mark! What you said is bang on to my thoughts. As I mentioned, trail inaccuracy on the 7s display does occur as polaris is using crowd sourced data instead of official snowmobile association data. Super weird how they sent out the wrong seats on sleds - if your seat is harder it was meant for an XCR and they just threw it on your sled because the color matched. Your track is likely loose and/or unaligned. Get that checked and you will be good to go. The expedition is a super fun sled - those things cannot get stuck lol. Have a great summer! Cheers, Jesse
On the ski issue...I think the stock carbides they put on arr just terrible. They wear out SO fast unless you are riding in optimal conditions. When I got my 21 VR1 I wore right through the left side ski inside of 800 miles. When i checked I was basically missing my right side carbide too. I ended up buying two new skis and put shaper bars on. I've got 2000 miles since then in similar conditions and the shaper bars still look great. I did shim the skis though when I put the shaper bars on...so that may help to. 👍 I agree with everything you guys say about the VR1. I've got 3200 trouble free miles on my 850 VR1 and there isn't much I'd change about the sled. Front end ride quality is phenomenal. Good review
Glad to hear this JC from someone else with experience. I had a feeling it was crappy carbides and certainly an easy fix. Thanks for watching and appreciate the advice on shimming as well! Cheers, Mike
Have 2 x 2022 vr1 850’s. Did 3990km bassically🎉 on both not one issue. But one agree is the electric start noise and ya seat could be softer.
Yep. Great sleds for sure and I'd have no problem owning one. Cheers, Mike
GREAT Review, Honest NON Biased and very informative. Looking forward to the other reviews coming up. In the market for a new sled and looking at Skidoo and Polaris 850's.
Hey Dean! Thanks for the kind words. Glad you enjoyed it. Exactly what you said - we are being as honest and non biased as possible. Definitely stay tuned for the XRS review coming on Thursday, and the Mach Z video coming on Monday. Also.. most importantly for you, next Thursday there will be a battle of the 850s video - 850 polaris vs 850 skidoo. Cheers, Jesse
@@sledaddicz Jesse, thank you for the follow up and I look forward to the XRS, Mach Z and the Battle of the 850's. Again one of the BEST reviews out there!
Nice i just ordered myself a 23 indy adventure 137x15x1.352 with 7s display tounge tow hitch and a sled cover got the sled in all black to for hunting purposes
That's going to be a beauty of a sled! Cheers, Mike
@@sledaddicz Mike i dont need the big bore 850 as the smaller 650 will bring me every where the 850 will bring me!
Great review and very honest opinions, Well done
Thanks Nunz! We appreciate it! Cheers, Mike
Excellent review. Totally agree. I want the information center to be in my field of view when riding. Ski doo gauges are useless.
Glad you liked the review! Field of view is definitely important and top of mind! Cheers, Jesse
Hey boys!! Need to shim those skis. Will help tremendously with carbide wear. Or you can throw some C&A’s 😉😉
Hey Jesse! Thanks for the advice brother. Shiming is the way to go forsure - just surprised they wear so quickly! I used to run C&As in the past - great ski. You absolutely killed it this season by the way - way to go on the original content. Cheers, Jesse
agreed, Shimming the skiis is a must.
Excellent comparison video guys.. It’s nice to see a couple guys that aren’t “Brand Bias” in the snowmo video reviewing two top selling sleds. Thanks BoyZ !! Cheers 🤙🏼
Thanks Greg! Two more sled reviews to come :)
Cheers, Jesse
I'm picking up a used 21 assault 850 this winter. It'll be my first ride in 20 years. Dear lord please let it snow a lot here this winter 🙏. The previous owner geared it down, gripper skis, put a studded 1.6 Cobra track on it and some other stuff. I haven't even picked it up yet but I bought a quiet can (don't worry, I'm riding in the middle of nowhere with no neighbors) and a clutch kit.
Awesome! You will love that sled. The assault is wicked fun to whip around. Cheers, Jesse
Very nice review, how about checking out some Arctic Cat sleds ?
Hey Jeff. Glad you liked it. We don't own an arctic cat so it's hard to get content on one. If you watch some of our riding videos I tried out our buddies t-cat. Cheers, Jesse
Hey good review and information on this machine. What can I do to get a sledaddicz sticker for my trailer.
Hey Paul! Sorry for the delay in responding. Been super busy at work. Send me an email at jesse@sledaddicz.com and I can let you know pricing etc.
Cheers, Jesse
If you guys want a sled that hooks up great on the trails with awesome weight transfer you should try a backcountry with a 1.6 ice cobra. Maybe even throw some real studs in it. Would be a weapon and will soak up rough trails just as good as your renegades if not better.
You make a great point. I have ridden a backcountry xrs and I loved it. The only issue is we just aren't going off trail enough to justify it. Cheers, Jesse
@@sledaddicz makes sense. We do a good bit of both. I love my backcountry xrs but you definitely have to be a pretty active rider through the corners. Would love to ride a renegade xrs or even an mxz xrs some day.
2023 VR1 850 with 600km overheated and white smoke coming out of exhaust. Most likely the head gasket. All others in my group had temperatures at 50 C. Not a happy Polaris customer now. Sled at Edge Performance to see what happened.
That's sucks and things definitely can happen. Usually if it's something major it will happen pretty quickly. Keep us posted on what's wrong with it and hopefully your not down too long. Cheers, Mike
@Sledaddicz My dealer, Edge Performance in Bradford Ontario, installed a new 850 motor that was flown up from Polaris. Failure was an "internal coolant leak", most likely the ring gaskets on the head. Sending blown motor back to Polaris USA for analysis. Love Team Polaris for getting my sled back to me in 3 days with a new motor!
What was the fuel mileage and oil consumption between the two 850's? Also, what was the difference in top end speed? How did the Patriot compare to the Mach Z in terms of acceleration and top end?
Hey Steve! We stopped tracking fuel and oil mileage a few years back, simply because we aren't really as concerned about it anymore and the sleds are very similar these days, especially between the Poo and Doo 850s. It's really more of a difference between 4 stroke and 2 stroke, as we found the Mach to be about 20% better on fuel and of course no oil. Otherwise, the 2 850s are very close on fuel consumption but the Poo does seem to burn a bit less oil. Hope this helps. Cheers, Mike
Where can I get those wheels on the skis so I can ride in pavement to get fuel without destroying my carbides?
Check out our video on the product with a link in the description: ua-cam.com/video/T7Gsr0NuD3Q/v-deo.html&ab_channel=Sledaddicz
Cheers, Jesse
@@sledaddicz sweet. Thank you
The only thing keeping from buying a polaris is the engine. I like the etec better
Agreed. The E-TEC is much smoother and more reliable, but the patriot is more powerful. Cheers, Jesse
What kind of linq bag is on the seat of the MachZ that you have on the video that you're installing E linq system
That would be the combo bag for the wide body seat. GREAT bag for big trips and a favourite of mine! Cheers, Mike
What fuel tank and bag are you using on the vr1
Hey John! We are using the stackable fuel caddy from Ski-Doo, the same type we use on our XRS's and mach z. We have many different Ski-Doo LinQ bags that we use, which include the medium tunnel bag, sr21 bag, trail pro bag, and 17L sport bag. Let me know if you have any other questions! Cheers, Jesse
@@sledaddicz I’ve already got the Polaris bag is there a way too put a fuel can under it
IMO the Polaris handles better has a better clutch headlight guage. Ski doo has a better engine rear suspension
Hey David. I agree with you on all of that. Rmotion still the industry leader but Polaris is catching up quickly! Cheers, Jesse
How about adding a cat next year
Unfortunately no Cat next year. Hopefully if/when cat makes actual improvements to their lineup we will consider looking at cat. Cheers, Jesse
Brp can't even take credit for E Tech they purchased this technology from Evinrude outboards,a lot of years ago...
sure.. but its still the engine in a ski-doo. BRP has owned Evinrude outboards (now shutdown) for years. Cheers, Jesse
I like arguing with you 😂 But your wrong this engine was designed going all the way back to the Johnson Evinrude joining well before BRP Bought Evinrude,Is Rotax owned by BRP??
Carbide I have a 19 a 20 a 21 and a xcr 22 no problems with Carbide or skis I love them its tells me you are riding in pore snow conditions !!! And no other problems for that matter. And the one in the blue shirt doesn't let the one in the gray finish talking wow be quite when someone else is taking. Sorry but just the truth.
Hey James. I don't know what to tell you. We were riding both the doo and the polaris in the same riding conditions and the polaris lost a carbide (which happened to me on an indy the season before). Ya I interrupted Mike a bunch Oops. We were going to re-record it but we didn't have time. Cheers, Jesse
You should have commented on the rear suspension again and how it will buck you on square bumps. Also, we have 2 guys in our group switching back to Ski Doo cause they are tired of the reliability issues that never seem to stop with Polaris. Handling and seating is a personal preference and I had my MXZ XRS set up perfect, I rode an XCR and didnt like it as much, but as I said, its a personal thing.
Hey rideswift. Thats a good point regarding the rear suspension - I have definitely had it buck me a few times. Reliability is definitely also a concern, but warranty makes it not that big of a deal. It is definitely personal preference but I much prefer the seating position with the open toe holds on my renegade XRS. Cheers, Jesse
My 650 absolutely does NOT buck me in ANY bumps. Hmmm
Disappointed in you boys! 🤭😅
haha relax. We still love our DOOS! Another one on order for next season. Gotta be honest - this is one awesome sled! Cheers, Jesse
@@sledaddicz hahaha just joking with you guys! 🤭😊