2020 Slingshot Reveal and info

    Polaris, if you are following this thread, I would like to make an offer to you to test the new Prostar engine in a cross-country trip that I would chronicle here and on whatever platforms you deem appropriate. Just ship a test unit to Polaris of Portland in Oregon state and I will drive it to Maggie Valley at the end of May, then can drop it off in Portland, Maine or anywhere you like. I'll run it hard and long and offer up my real-world, real-time experiences. I'm willing to cover my own expenses but a happy-hour allowance would allow me to interface with more people on your behalf. I'd like to say that I'm a highly attractive twenty-something female but that would be a lie. I do, however, fit the description of a 'typical' Slingshot owner as a grizzled old dude who has ridden motorcycles since age 25. I clean up OK and can be friendly when I'm in a good mood so I think I'd make an excellent ambassador for your company and the Slingshot. I have also owned and ridden Polaris off-road equipment exclusively for over 20 years and am a loyal customer. So I think that you should jump at this opportunity to validate your new engine and models in the wild with a ordinary citizen at the helm, in a highly exciting trip from coast to coast!


    I can provide my contact info and references at your request.


    Thanks! SlingLow aka Doug

    Remember folks - this isn't a rehearsal, this is The Show!8)

    Quote from SlingLow

    I ran through the specs and see that the Prostar models are limited to 125mph. Dave@DDMWorks is that a parameter that can be overridden with a tune, like when you boost?

    Most likely tuning should be able to change that limiter, it can on all the other ECM's we work with and I do not see why this would be any different.

    Justina, Athena and I just returned from a lil round robin of the local roads this afternoon and I was doing some thinking about the 2020. On one hand I believe that we would be perfectly content with the lesser torque of the 2020 where we could possibly ride it more aggressively than our 2015 with less opportunity of the rear tire breaking loose. But, I most certainly could not relate at all to it having an automatic transmission, shifting is 7/10s the fun! :thumbsup:


    Bill

    I'm thinking they changed the gearbox ratios to accommodate the automatic shift and placing less stress on the drivetrain. I would venture to say that I would put serious consideration into a new purchase if the SL was offered as an manual. As it stands with the line-up now and the price jump needed I'm thinking another year or two.

    Quote from Frankie55

    I'm thinking they changed the gearbox ratios to accommodate the automatic shift and placing less stress on the drivetrain. I would venture to say that I would put serious consideration into a new purchase if the SL was offered as an manual. As it stands with the line-up now and the price jump needed I'm thinking another year or two.

    we ran some numbers on this today actually, should have the graph finished up tomorrow to post. We have the dyno of the Ecotec 2.4, but had to extrapolate some for the new 2.0L Prostar engine. We know it’s peak torque and power and what RPM’s those are at which did help to come up with a “dyno” graph. Based on what we ran for calculations, the new one is going to be quicker almost everywhere you drive it normally.

    I notice that if you pull up the side by side comparison on their web site and look under the "Powertrain and Performance" tab they have a spec for "Peak Lateral Grip"


    Under this spec they list the 2020 models with the new motor as having 1.02g of Peak Lateral grip and the 2019 GT with the Ecotec motor as having .89g of Peak Lateral Grip


    so, am I understanding this spec correctly? are they saying that the new models will take more sideways g's before losing grip? and if so is this solely a function of the different distribution of weight caused by the lighter motor or did they make other changes I am not aware of?

    Cage Free - 2016 Pearl Red SL

    DDM Short Shifter, Sway Bar Mounts Coolant tank Master Cylinder Brace & CAI

    Twist Dynamics Sway Bar, JRI GT Coilovers, Assault Hood Vent

    OEM Double Bubble windshields & various other goodies

    Quote from Edward Neal

    I notice that if you pull up the side by side comparison on their web site and look under the "Powertrain and Performance" tab they have a spec for "Peak Lateral Grip"


    Under this spec they list the 2020 models with the new motor as having 1.02g of Peak Lateral grip and the 2019 GT with the Ecotec motor as having .89g of Peak Lateral Grip


    so, am I understanding this spec correctly? are they saying that the new models will take more sideways g's before losing grip? and if so is this solely a function of the different distribution of weight caused by the lighter motor or did they make other changes I am not aware of?

    I would guess a couple things contributed to that improvement in the base cornering -


    The shocks felt completely different than a current first gen Slingshot.


    As you mentioned the engine/transmission dropped weight, that weight may also be lower decreasing the center of gravity.


    The stock ride height is lowered overall.

    When Polaris introduced the new Prostar 2.0L engine and mentioned the horsepower numbers, they did sound really good, but we did see a reduction in peak torque from the previous 2.4L. Once the new engine specs were posted on the Polaris website after the reveal, they also posted up the new transmission gear ratios and the new final drive ratios and that's when we started to notice some important changes Polaris made.


    Once we saw these changes, it became pretty obvious to us that although the engine would make less torque, we were going to see a faster Slingshot.


    To start the comparison, we used one of the base 2.4L Ecotec dyno graphs GM has posted over the years that shows peak horsepower and torque. We put that information into a spreadsheet that multiplies the engine power by the gear ratios of the transmission, final drive and also takes into account the rear tire diameter. We plotted that information for all 5 gears on a graph, shown in red below.


    Next we needed to generate the same data for the the new Prostar 2.0L engine, but there is no actual dyno posted yet from Polaris. No problem, Polaris was good enough to give the peak torque and horsepower figure and what RPM's they occur. Knowing both of those figures, it is pretty easy to interpolate between them to make a nice smooth graph. That took care of the RPM range above peak torque, below the peak torque figure, we had to estimate the torque the engine is making. Although we did estimate the new engine torque below peak, we feel but came up with something that should be fairly accurate based on how other engines making similar Horsepower and torque behave.


    The new Prostar 2.0 engine was plotted on the graph below in black. You will see that each gear is indicated by a different line same as the Ecotec. This graph shows the 2.4L Ecotec and the 203HP Prostar -


    A couple takeaways from the graph data -


    - The new engine will not have the same torque at the wheel as the current Ecotec in the lower RPM's of 1st, 2nd and 3rd gears. However those are relatively low speeds and under full throttle, the time spent in this area of the graph will be pretty minimal. Also, typically the rear tire can not maintain traction at these speeds in these gears, so even though the Ecotec has more available power in this range, the Slingshot is typically traction limited here so even though the Ecotec has more power, the rear tire will determine the actual acceleration.


    - Once the Ecotec reaches peak torque and starts to drop off in power, the new engine keeps accelerating. Not a big surprise here since the new engine seems to be designed to make its power more in the upper RPM range.


    - Once the Slingshot is in 4th or 5th gear, because of the new transmission and final drive ratio's, the new Slingshot will out accelerate the Ecotec. Even with the engine making less torque, because of the gear multiplication, there is more power available at the actual tire than before, especially while cruising in 4th or 5th gear.


    - The new Slingshot will be electrically limited to 125mph from Polaris, but it will also have a lower actual top speed also because of the shorter gearing of around 185mph at the stock redline, compared to well over 200mph with the older gearing. Not that this really matters for most everyone, but thought it was fun to note.



    Hope that helps,

    Dave

    The 2020 with the 2.0 engine is To fast for me. My 2019 GT is more than I need. Any of the SS's will get you a ticket. I think I will hang onto my GT. Hint; Since I installed 2 oz. each, Dyna Beads in all three tires my ride is much, much smoother than before.

    Quote from canegrinder

    The 2020 with the 2.0 engine is To fast for me. My 2019 GT is more than I need. Any of the SS's will get you a ticket. I think I will hang onto my GT. Hint; Since I installed 2 oz. each, Dyna Beads in all three tires my ride is much, much smoother than before.

    I have been thinking about doing the same thing with the beads. The last rear I had mounted has the beads but I have only put about 20 miles on it. I will be putting it on Sling I in the near future

    I was in Vegas for the new-model launch and my overall takeaway is that the new machine is WAAAAAAY more refined than Gen. 1, and the higher redline should help more drivers feel as though they're on an actual two-wheeler. For example, if you know me I place a very high premium on cockpits -- I'm probably into mine for $500 or more -- and I wouldn't change one single thing about Gen 2's. The higher redline and extra zip of the R engine would be welcome too.

    Quote from canegrinder

    The 2020 with the 2.0 engine is To fast for me. My 2019 GT is more than I need. Any of the SS's will get you a ticket. I think I will hang onto my GT. Hint; Since I installed 2 oz. each, Dyna Beads in all three tires my ride is much, much smoother than before.

    I've never heard of these magical beads. Curious, knowing how the SS is inherently less than a smooth ride. Did yours have a specific shake or shimmy at a certain speed or do these things actually smooth out (to an extent) what would be the typical ride we have come to expect on the current SS.


    Also after installation did you remove the original balance weights?

    DynaBeads have been popular for years on motorcycle wheels & tires. I guess the belief behind them is there's less room to place balance weights and the beads will automatically distribute themselves each time the wheel begins spinning. I haven't used them, but have read numerous posts from users.

    Quote from Dave@DDMWorks

    Didn't try that while testing it out, but it is a manual transmission that is automatically shifted, so if you did shut off the engine, the clutch would be released by the computer and the transmission would be in 1st gear if you were at a stop.

    Had one of the drivers shut it down in drive and it locked up without applying the parking brake.

    Jamesgn

    Quote from SoCal

    Not sure if someone else has mentioned this but is the LED CENTER light bar the only "headlight" and the flat lights on each side just running lights?

    I can't answer for all states but I can tell you that in Washington State center headlights are required for all motorcycles so they must qualify as headlights. Nobody has commented on the sidelights yet.

    Remember folks - this isn't a rehearsal, this is The Show!8)