Sometimes you will need to transport your snowmobile across places where there is no snow or ice. If you own a big snowmobile trailer, then you can be sure that your snowmobile will fit in it perfectly. However, if you own a truck, you need to verify whether your snowmobile will fit in it.
An average-sized snowmobile will fit in the bed of most trucks, but most likely, some parts of the snowmobile will extend outside the back of the truck. With flags and straps, most trucks will have no problem fitting a full sized snowmobile in the bed.
While planning to transport snowmobiles with a truck, you should keep in mind that each truck has various weights and dimensions of loads that they can accommodate. Kindly read on to see the dimensions and weights of snowmobiles that different kinds of trucks can accommodate.
Average Snowmobile Length
To calculate the length of a snowmobile, you need to measure the distance between its front most point and the final rear point while the skis and tracks are in their riding positions. You can easily measure the length of a snowmobile by yourself if you have a tape measure.
- If you measure a kid-sized snowmobile, you’ll obtain a value between 72 – 73 inches.
- A youth-sized snowmobile has a value between 84 – 85 inches.
- A full-sized snowmobile, which is the average, has a value between 115 – 130 inches.
While most of the snowmobiles you see around are 115 – 130 inches long, a few ones have a length that reaches 150 – 175 inches. For instance, the Ski-Doo 850 175 Summit X is 175 inches long.
Although you can use only the length of a snowmobile to determine whether it will fit in a truck, its width will assist you in determining whether you can keep other items beside it in the truck.
Just like the length, the width comes in various sizes. While some snowmobiles are wide, others are narrow to the point that you can place two of them side by side in a truck. The width of modern snowmobiles have values between 36 – 50 inches.
Check the table below to see some examples of popular snowmobiles average length.
| Model | Length (inches) | Width (inches) |
|---|---|---|
| Ski-Doo MXZ X | 115.2 | 47.6 |
| Arctic Cat ZR 8000 ES 137 | 121 | 47.8 |
| Polaris Switchback XCR | 121 | 47 |
Will A Snowmobile Fit in A Long Bed Truck?
A long bed truck is 96 inches long, but some manufacturers can increase this length by a few inches. If you compare 96 inches to the average snowmobile length, you will see that snowmobiles are a bit longer than a long bed truck.
Let’s use Polaris Switchback XCR as an example to illustrate what will happen when you place it in a long bed truck. Since the Polaris Switchback XCR is 121 inches long, then 25 inches length of the snowmobile will hang outside the bed of the truck.
All other full-sized snowmobiles will also have a hanging length when you place them in a long bed truck, but it’s safe to transport them in that position if you use ratchet straps or something to fasten them to the truck.
Some areas also require that flags be tied onto anything hanging off the back or sides of a truck.
Although a long bed truck can safely accommodate snowmobiles that are a bit longer than 130 inches, some areas advise you not to put snowmobiles longer than 130 inches in the bed of a truck.
Here’s a video of someone loading their sled into the back of a Toyota Tundra to give you an idea of what it would look like:
Will A Snowmobile Fit in A Short Bed Truck?
Most short bed trucks are 77 inches long, but some are a few inches longer. If we put this length into consideration, a short bed truck isn’t suitable for carrying a full-sized snowmobile. However, it can safely carry kid-sized snowmobiles since their length range between 72 to 73 inches.
Short bed trucks can safely accommodate the youth-sized snowmobiles as well since their length range between 84 and 85 inches.
After placing snowmobiles in a bed truck, you should always use strong cords to fasten them to the truck. The purpose of the fastening is to prevent your snowmobiles from falling while your truck is moving.
Some examples of snowmobile models that will fit in a short bed truck are Arctic Cat ZR 120 and Arctic Cat ZR 200. These two examples are 73 and 84 inches long, respectively.
Here’s a video of someone loading a full length snowmobile into a short bed truck to show you even though it’s technically possible, it really doesn’t fit well:
Average Snowmobile Weight
Let’s cover the two weights that snowmobiles have before we talk about the average weight. Every snowmobile has both dry weight and wet weight.
The dry weight refers to the machines weight when fuel, oils, and other fluids are not in it.
The wet weight refers to the snowmobile’s weight when fuel, oils and other fluids are in the vehicle.
Kindly note that we will use only the dry weight in our measurements here. Most snowmobiles have a weight between 408 and 600 pounds, but some extra-light and extra-heavy ones have weights that are outside this range.
For instance, the Polaris Indy 12 and the Arctic Cat Pantera 7000 XT have weights of 147 pounds and 767 pounds respectively.
After we considered many popular models of snowmobiles, we found out that the average snowmobile weight is 490 pounds.
Can I Haul A Heavy Snowmobile in A Truck?
Problems can arise from truck overloading, so it’s always necessary to verify whether a truck is fit for the weight you want to carry. We’ve already seen the minimum and maximum weights of snowmobile, but we need to see the weight capacity of trucks also.
Light-duty trucks are about 1500 pounds heavy, and they can accommodate up to 3000 pounds of weight. Heavy-duty trucks are about 2500 to 3000 pounds heavy, and they can accommodate up to 6500 pounds of weight.
These weight capacities clearly indicate that both light-duty and heavy-duty trucks can safely haul a heavy snowmobile since the heaviest one is 767 pounds. Summarily, a snowmobile can’t be too heavy for a truck, but it can be too long to stay in the truck bed.
Can I Load Snowmobiles In A Truck Without Using A Ramp?
Ramps provide an easy and safe way of loading snowmobiles in a truck. Ramps will save your effort and prevent your snowmobiles from falling. However, you can still manage to load snowmobiles in a truck if you don’t have a ramp. It’s just that you will use more effort.
Kindly note that it requires a minimum of two persons to load a snowmobile in a truck when a ramp is not available.
- Two persons should lift the skis carefully and place it onto the tailgate.
- After that, these two persons should move to the back of the snowmobile while preventing it from sliding backward.
- Now at this back position, these two persons should hold the snowmobile firmly at a rigid point and lift it off the ground.
- They should give it a hard push while it is in the air until it slides into the truck.
Using A Ramp To Load Snowmobile In A Truck
Ramps are really easy to use, so it’s not compulsory to seek assistance from someone else. You should note that ramps come in various sizes, but the most popular ramps, like this Black Ice Snowmobile Loading Ramp Set (link to Amazon) will load almost any snowmobile safely.
The first step you should take is to fix the ramp to your truck. You can either use a chain or ratchet strap for the fixing. The ramps I recommended above come with the necessary straps for securing the ramp to the truck.
- After securing the ramps, you should position your snowmobile to align directly with the ramp.
- Don’t ever position the snowmobile to be at an angle with the ramp, because it might slip later on.
- After positioning your snowmobile correctly, then it’s time to ride it into the truck bed.
- Ride it confidently and do not stop until the snowmobile gets into the truck bed.
- Now the final step you should take is to remove the ramp and tie the snowmobile to the truck.
Here’s a cool video showing a ramp that’s you can drive the snowmobile onto, and tow with it in the bad of the truck.
Avoid Damage While Hauling A Snowmobile?
If you don’t take the necessary precautions, you may end up damaging your snowmobile or your truck. You must take some precautionary steps while loading the snowmobile and while driving. To avoid all forms of damage, you should do the following:
- Make sure your truck is in good condition. Check things like the brake, the signal lights, the tires, the fuel level, and other necessary things.
- Avoid placing other heavy loads in the truck to avoid overloading.
- Use only the appropriate ramp to load your snowmobile.
- Secure your snowmobile to the truck with a strong chain or ratchet.
- Don’t over speed, especially when your snowmobile is a bit longer than the truck bed.
- Don’t apply the brakes too suddenly or turn suddenly.
- Maintain a safe distance from all other vehicles on the road.