xlt frankenstein i was wondering if i could ask your advice on a few things, you seem very informed.how good is a 95-97 xcr 600 for sno cross, suspension and power wise, i mean is that its intended purpose like the xc 600? also ive asked this question to a few people and i cant seem to form a definitive opinion, how much work is a 97-98 xcr 440, would it be more costly to race than a 600? im going to buy a used sled for local sno cross in a few months(to race next year) , and i need the most reliable race worthy machine.Any other suggestions regarding racing sled upkeep would be appreciated. i hope i didnt ask too many questions. thanks

First let me preface this with the fact that I've been to a wopping total of one snocross event in my life. I ride mostly in the mountains
with a bit of trail riding. I help out a race team that races Arctic Cats and have learned a ton about them this year, mostly suspension
stuff because I rebuild their shocks. While I'm a huge Polaris fan, 95-97 XCR's weren't the cream of the crop in their time. Arctic Cat
and Skidoo were killing them in snowcross and cross country events like the Irondog here in Alaska, which Arctic Cat began to rule
at that time. It takes an incredible amount of tuning to make a piston port triple engine jump out of the hole like even an average twin.
Holeshots and quick corner to corner acceleration are needed in snowcross and I think the XCR 600 would be a little behind in this
department. I think that if you can find a used 500 or 440 in good shape with low miles you'd be money ahead. Rebuilds cost less
due to one less cylinder. The 500 is as bullet proof of an engine that there is. However, unless you're stuck on Polaris, I'd take a
serious look around for a used ZR600. A ton of these things were sold to trail riders, so finding a good one is pretty easy.


If you can't buy what you want, BUILD IT!!

thanks xlt, i appreciate the help.