I didn’t drive my dune buggy in the rain but I drove it in snow...in the woods...
Yes.....Maybe not in Dec'Jan'Feb............But Out here in the northeast for 9 months yes it would help...
Polaris has heaters for their Side -By's........I ride all winter but thats just me i don't mind the cold, Cause i don't have a mind....Or so everyone who sees me riding in sub 25 degree temps says i must be out of my mind.......The Polaris dealer near gave up the Slingshot franchise cause he couldn't sell any in the winter.....No one would even take one out for a test ride....
quads have heaters and roofs and windshields so the can be driven in the rain and snow....all season vehicle for hard core people.
normal people are not looking for motorcycles in the middle of winter....dealers are gearing up for the sales season to start next month...I’m a fair weather rider...
I did spend about $800 on heated riding gear...for the slingshot. I still don’t like being cold....spent too many winters freezing for my job....
dealers are all about showroom floor space....slingshots take up a lot of room. Looking at my dealer I’m pretty sure polaris told dealers they needed to have a separate slingshot showroom...they could get about 7-8 in their room.....probably could get 6-7 more quads in the same space.....their quad showroom was 5-6 times bigger...
it was actually sprinkling the day I took mine for a test ride....the road was slightly wet and I wasn’t allowed to drive it...
showrooms need to be heated and cooled....this costs lots of money...
polaris has done just about everything they can to attract buyers....people are holding onto cars and trucks longer....motorcycle riders are probably doing the same.....takes a lot longer to wear out a motorcycle if you don’t or can’t drive it all year long.
I used to buy a new vehicle every few years..... my “new” truck is a 2011....with under 40,000 miles. I’m not thinking about getting rid of it. I haven’t decided what to do when I do....whether to buy a low mileage used or new...
vehicle dealers are hearing that everyday.....if you buy a low mileage lease (24 month) it will probably have under 30,000 miles on it...and you’ll save thousands...look at the price drops of used low mileage slingshots.... that’s not helping polaris... those people aren’t buying another one....because they didn’t have time to ride this one.
the same can be said for any low mileage two wheelers.....no time to ride it....an automatic or stick isn’t going to fix that problem.
I miss riding two wheelers, it’s not as free as riding in the slingshot...but it’s still fun.