TaoTao snowmobiles?!

[culcune]

http://taotao.us/index.cfm/electric-vehicles/snow-leopard-200/

http://taotao.us/index.cfm/electric-vehicles/snowfox200/

A snow leopard AND a snow fox--now we just need enough snow!

[katoranger]

They might be okay for ulitity purposes. 170cc GY6 engine. Could tow the fish house out on the lake.

Little different then ski doo.

[Bruce's]

Has a very short track ,doubt it would be any hell as a work horse but should be a nice kids sled in the field compared to a kitty cat

[FastDoc]

Snowmobiles need a LOT of power just to get out of their own way.

Also, a snowmobile HAS to run to get you home. In some places a person could die of exposure or at best have a miserable dangerous wait for help.

I don't have a sled, but if I did I'd be inclined to get a well known brand.

For play on a property those might be a good value though.

JMHO...

[katoranger]

It comes down to the same thing as buying a new chinabike or a good used japanese machine.

Good used snowmobiles are not that expensive.

[kohburn]

I imagine part of the equation for necessary power is the type of snow in your area - soft deep powder, icy dense pack, etc.

I don't live in an area with enough snow to justify a snowmobile

[willy dog]

sleds need constant service and parts that are easy to come by 500cc is about as low i would go to get a full grown man through powder, now if we only had some snow i would be tearing up the trails

[FastDoc]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v25/maule/maule056/jan%202015%20015_zpsd4jiuyzc.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/maule/media/maule056/jan%202015%20015_zpsd4jiuyzc.jpg.html)

If Doc gets snow this winter, you can have mine.

[jct842]

I came from up north and am alergic to snow, but the snow mobiles I have seen and even had a couple offered to me had a bunch wider tracks than those do. I wonder if they would dig in instead of riding on top like snowmobiles do.

[katoranger]

They would only be good on groomed trails or in shallow snow.

[culcune]

I agree that these would probably not be he best bet for serious snowmobiling, especially out in the wild. This would probably be best for riding around one's own property. The engine should be fairly reliable, but not sure how reliable the rest of the bike would be--I imagine the typical Chinese scooter where the plastics fall off randomly, the electrics could be iffy, but the engine always turns on (unless it has sat for too long!!).

[SpudRider]

Snowmobiles need a LOT of power just to get out of their own way.

Also, a snowmobile HAS to run to get you home. In some places a person could die of exposure or at best have a miserable dangerous wait for help.

I don't have a sled, but if I did I'd be inclined to get a well known brand.

For play on a property those might be a good value though.

JMHO...

I'm with Doc on this one. ;)

However, I don't like freezing in the cold, so I don't have any desire to ride a snowmobile. I love summer, and motorcycles. :tup:

[jct842]

If I ever got a snowmobile, especially a polaris or ski do around 600cc the first thought would be how to stuff the engine into a motor scooter. I have seen them stuffed into mini sprint cars that could out run a winston cup stock car with a 350ci engine on small 1/4 mile banked ovals.

[2LZ]

Being a Nor Cal guy, there's usually lots of snow, barring the normal drought schedule. I had a chance to ride one of my buddy's sleds a few years ago. Polaris RMK 600(?) and he was riding his Arctic Cat something-er-other. That Polaris RMK was BLISTERINGLY fast. No way I could hold it wide open for more than short spurts. It accelerated like a turbo. There was a small lag....then it would pull your arms out of the sockets. Between the cold, the elevation and mountains of clothes, it was fun but I'll take motorcycles.
I also learned that a rope pull start on a huge motor at 6000 feet was torturous.

[willy dog]

winter can be long around here having a sled is fun something to ride on not in no snow at all this year at this point hope we don't get any you want to hang on i have just a 570cc fan cooled and it will snap you back when you get my age electric start is a must

[FastDoc]

Being a Nor Cal guy, there's usually lots of snow, barring the normal drought schedule. I had a chance to ride one of my buddy's sleds a few years ago. Polaris RMK 600(?) and he was riding his Arctic Cat something-er-other. That Polaris RMK was BLISTERINGLY fast. No way I could hold it wide open for more than short spurts. It accelerated like a turbo. There was a small lag....then it would pull your arms out of the sockets. Between the cold, the elevation and mountains of clothes, it was fun but I'll take motorcycles.
I also learned that a rope pull start on a huge motor at 6000 feet was torturous.

Amen to those points.

I have never owned a sled but have had the pleasure of going with people whio did and let me use one. I've ridden in Washington and the California Sierras. I rode a 900 and a 600 and they were both STUPID fast, and I mean that in a good way. I bet either one would break the ton but the fastest I went was maybe the 70's and only for moments.

I really enjoyed it, but I live about 90 minutes from the closest snow, and dark starts about 4 PM in the winter, so to drive to sled is impractical. I'll continue to ride my bikes and bicycles and enjoy winter on them.

BTW I think I was unfair in saying a small Chinese snow machine would not be a good idea. Not everyone is out trying to tame some giant Western mountain on one and just likes to tool around a neighborhood or golf course or farm on a modest amount of fluffy or compacted snow and have fun. I would truely enjoy that also, and these Chinese sleds would do fine in that regard.

Just like we can enjoy a Chinese 200 and a Japanese 400 on trails and have fun on both.

Another consideration is do they have the alternator output to power electric grips +/- clothing. That would be a major plus also.

[jimwildman]

When I was kid we had the old ski doo single cylinder, and my brother had a polaris colt 290cc I think. it was slow top speed wise, but had plenty of power, as did the old ski doo's.. those things were surprisingly robust for their simple design. and could handle most types of snow well.

170cc is small for sure but with the right design it could work.

certianly dont need a big engine if you dont want to go fast. and dont care for a ton of acceleration. Torque will get you through the snow just fine.