If it is indeed true that Polaris and others are coming out with new turbo cars, those with older cars must be allowed to retrofit a factory replacement turbo engine/belt/trans,etc. There is no way the little guy (non-factory or not wealthy) can afford to build a new car every 1 - 2 years at 60k-80k a pop. The majority of current racers would be faced with deciding among four options; (1) Build New Car, (2) Retrofit, (3) Run at the back of the pack or (4) Quit. Those that say the turbo is not an advantage....just wait and see what the extra 30-50 hp provides over an entire season. 90 mph is quite different than 75 mph.
Turbos and older cars in BITD and Score
- Thread starter Racerx932
- Start date
JoeyD23
#utvunderground
I highly disagree. Most teams in UTV would be considered "little guys" when compared to the upper classes in off-road. What makes this class so attractive is you can purchase the machine from the dealer and for around $10k-$15K still get out and be racing. No other class has that.
IF Polaris was to introduce a Turbo which so many anticipate, what the OP is presenting is a valid question. With so many Pro UTVs POTENTIALLY becoming obsolete within the next year or 2 with the inclusion of the Turbo, then I think its only fair to allow N/A 1000cc Maverick's and XP1000 RZRs the option to retrofit to FACTORY turbo power-trains.
I have the same concerns as the OP. There are many racers, and I have spoken to them, who would probably leave the class before selling off (at a loss) another UTV to once again have to build another machine to remain competitive.
Should Polaris introduce a forced induction model, I do feel the current platforms will still be highly competitive for at least 1 more season if not more as HP doesn't win races. But as more guys go to them, just like switching from 900s to 1000s, it once again forces those who want to race at a competitive level to build another machine.
Its a good discussion and its a fair one to have. Its just more of the "can of worms" I was hoping we would all avoid by allowing Turbo's into the current Pro UTV structure.
///Airdam Clutches
Active Member
if you retrofit an older 900XP with a turbo, that moves you to the unlimited class. if you want to run a turbo, you have to build a new car. i know more than one team this year, that has built (currently building) another race car after building a brand new race car for this season, because of the mid year releases. yes it puts the vast majority of the little guys, privateers, out of commission. but you can not add items from a newly released machine, to an older machine and still race the same class. just because the turbo maverick was entered into the standard class, doesnt mean you can retrofit an older NA maverick with a turbo. that gives you a free pass to the unlimited class.
JoeyD23
#utvunderground
You have to have a factory based class. To go full Unlimited will ruin this class.
If the general racer has to build a new car every 2 years the UTV class will die. The only ones racing will be factory backed teams. I have an expensive car that is less than a year old. If I can't retrofit my car for say 10k to 15k I might as well build a class 10 car that will be competitive for 5 to 10 years. The gains the manufactures are making are great, just don't make me buy a completely new car to be competitive. It's racers like me that are part of the growth. Wonder how many racers would be willing to pony up 10 to 15k to retrofit? Probably most. How many would be willing to drop another 60 to 80k now? Another 60 to 80k a year or 2 later when the belts disappear? I'm guessing not many. The rules as they are now will only benefit a limited number of racers, not the UTV racers as a group.
Bret901
Team South 1922
I think the solution is to remove the rule "engine must remain what came in it" as long as you can drop the latest engine in drivetrain in your 1-2yr old chassis most can afford that and stay competitive.
Make the rule that the engine must be available from the same manufacturer in their current UTV.
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Make the rule that the engine must be available from the same manufacturer in their current UTV.
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ssb4
Member
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