A snowmobile, also known as a snowmachine (chiefly Alaskan), motor sled (chiefly Canadian), ski-doo (Ontario and Quebec, dated proprietary eponym), motor sledge, skimobile, snow scooter, or simply a sled is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow.
Their engines normally drive a continuous track at the rear, while skis at the front provide directional control. The earliest snowmobiles were powered by readily available industrial four-stroke, air-cooled engines. They were replaced in part by lighter and more powerful two-stroke gasoline internal combustion engines. Since 2003, four-stroke engines became more readily available on new snowmobiles.
The challenges of cross-country transportation in the winter led to the invention of an all-terrain vehicle specifically designed for travel across deep snow in which other vehicles foundered.
, the snowmobile market was shared between three large North American makers (Bombardier Recreational Products (Ski-Doo and Lynx), Arctic Cat, and Polaris) and some specialized makers such as the Quebec-based AD Boivin, manufacturer of the Snow Hawk and the European Alpina snowmobile. Yamaha ended their snowmobile production in 2025.Skluzacek, Josh (2023) Yamaha to stop making, selling snowmobiles after 2025 model year KSTP.com
The second half of the 20th century saw the rise of recreational snowmobiling, whose riders are called snowmobilers, sledders, or slednecks. Recreational riding is known as snowcross/racing, trail riding, freestyle, boondocking, ditchbanging and grass drags. In the summertime snowmobilers can drag race on grass, asphalt strips, or even across water (as in snowmobile skipping). Snowmobiles are sometimes modified to compete in long-distance off-road races.
History
Early designs
A patent (554.482) for the Sled-Propeller design, without a model, was submitted on Sept. 5, 1895 by inventors William J. Culman and William B. Follis of Brule, Wisconsin.Official Gazette of the United States Patent Office United States. Page 778. January 1, 1896; U.S. Patent Office.
The Lombard Steam Log Hauler (1901–1930) was a locomotive-style cargo sledge.Burnham, Emily (2025) How a Maine woodsman’s invention paved the way for snowmobiles and tanks Bangor Daily News
The American Motor Sleigh was a short-lived novelty vehicle produced in Boston in 1905. Designed for travel on snow, it consisted of a sleigh body mounted on a framework that held an engine, a drive-shaft system, and runners. Although considered an interesting novelty, sales were low and production ceased in 1906.
An Aerosledge, a propeller-driven and running on skis, was built in 1909–1910 by Russian inventor Igor Sikorsky of helicopter fame. Aerosanis were used by the Soviet Red Army during the Winter War and World War II. There is some dispute over whether Aerosanis count as snowmobiles because they were not propelled by tracks.
Adolphe Kégresse designed an original caterpillar tracks system, called the Kégresse track, while working for Tsar Nicholas II of Russia between 1906 and 1916. These used a flexible belt rather than interlocking metal segments and could be fitted to a conventional car or truck to turn it into a half-track, suitable for use over soft ground, including snow. Conventional front wheels and steering were used but the wheel could be fitted with skis as seen in the upper right image. He applied it to several cars in the Royal garage including Rolls-Royce cars and Packard trucks. Although this was not a snowmobile, it is an ancestor of the modern concept.
In 1911 a 24-year-old, Harold J. Kalenze (pronounced Collins), patented the Vehicle Propeller in Brandon, Manitoba, Canada.
In 1914, O. M. Erickson and Art Olsen of the P.N. Bushnell company in Aberdeen, South Dakota, built an open two-seater "motor-bob" out of an Indian motorcycle modified with a cowl-cover, side-by-side seating, and a set of sled-runners fore and aft. While it did not have the tracks of a true snowmobile, its appearance was otherwise similar to the modern version and is one of the earliest examples of a personal motorized snow-vehicle.Aberdeen American News 1914-02-04
In 1915 Ray H. Muscott of Waters, Michigan, received the Canadian patent for his motor sleigh, or "traineau automobile", and on June 27, 1916, he received the first United States patent for a snow-vehicle using the now recognized format of rear track(s) and front skis. Many individuals later modified Ford Model Ts with the undercarriage replaced by tracks and skis following this design. They were popular for rural mail delivery for a time. The common name for these conversion of cars and small trucks was Snowflyers."Snowflyers Replace Dogs in Frozen North" Popular Mechanics, December 1934
Development of modern designs
Carl Eliason of Sayner, Wisconsin developed the prototype of the modern snowmobile in 1924 when his Eliason Motor Toboggan mounted a two-cylinder motorcycle engine on a toboggan, steered it with skis under the front, and propelled it with single, endless track. Eliason made 40 snowmobiles, patented in 1927. Upon receiving an order for 200 from Finland, he sold his patent to the FWD Company of Clintonville. They made 300 for military use, then transferred the patent to a Canadian subsidiary which continued to produce models through 1963.
In 1917, Virgil D. White set up to create a patent for his conversion kit that changed the Ford Model T into a "snowmobile". He also trademarked the term "snowmobile". At the time, the conversion kit was expensive, costing about $395. Virgil White applied his patent in 1918 and created his own snowmobile. In 1922, his conversion kit was on the markets and available only through Ford dealerships.
The relatively dry snow conditions of the United States Midwest suited the converted Ford Model Ts and other like vehicles, but they were not suitable for humid snow areas such as southern Quebec and New England. This led Joseph-Armand Bombardier from the small town of Valcourt, Quebec, to invent a different caterpillar track system suitable for all kinds of snow conditions. Bombardier had already made some "metal" tracked vehicles since 1928, but his new revolutionary track traction system (a toothed wheel covered in rubber, and a rubber-and-cotton track that wraps around the back wheels) was his first major invention. He started production of the B-7, an enclosed, seven-passenger snowmobile, in 1937, and introduced the B-12, a twelve-passenger model, in 1942. The B-7 had a V-8 flathead engine from Ford Motor Company. The B-12 had a flathead in line six-cylinder engine from Chrysler industrial, and 2,817 units were produced until 1951. It was used in many applications, such as ambulances, Canada Post vehicles, winter "school buses", forestry machines, and even army vehicles in World War II. Bombardier had always dreamed of a smaller version, more like the size of a motor scooter.
Post-war developments
Ingham Motor Toboggan company (1950–1970) of Allister and George Ingham produced the Ski-Bee Scout.1969 Ski-Bee Scout 185 Top of the Lake Snowmobile Museum
In 1951 Fritz Riemerschmid devised what he called a snow scooter. The machine had a track mounted beneath a snowboard-like base, on top of which were an enclosed engine with motorcycle like seat and fuel tank. the vehicle was steered via a steering wheel and cables linked to two small skis on outriggers either side of the vehicle.
In the mid-1950s, a United States firm built a "snowmobile the arctic area of Alaska that had the drive train reversed of today's snowmobiles with two front wheels—the larger one behind the smaller one—with tires driving an endless loop track". Little is known about this "snowmobile" meant to haul cargo and trade goods to isolated settlements."American Snowmobile Ends Need for Dogs in Arctic." Popular Mechanics, March 1954, p. 114
Scorpion (1959–1981) of Crosby, Minnesota started as Trail-A-Sled.Scorpion Sled Magazine
An odd version of snowmobile is the Swedish Larven, made by the Lenko Company of Östersund, from the 1960s until the end of the 1980s. It was a very small and basic design, with just an engine in the rear and a track. The driver sat on it and steered using skis on his feet.
Moto-Ski (1963–1985), acquired by Bombardier Inc. in 1971.
Sweden produced the Ockelbo (1964–1989).
Yamaha (1968–2025)
Lynx (1968–1988) were produced by Finland's Velsa Oy then Nordtrac before being acquired by Bombardier Recreational Products in 1988.
John Deere snowmobiles (1972–1984)
Timbersled (2010–2025) made snow bikes and conversion kit systems. It was acquired by Polaris in 2015.Polaris Acquires Timbersled Polaris.com
Design
Most modern snowmobiles are powered by either a four- or two-stroke internal combustion engine, or are electric such as the Taiga TS2. Historically, snowmobiles used two-stroke engines because of their reduced complexity, weight and cost, compared to a similarly powered four-stroke. However, four-stroke powered snowmobiles have been gaining popularity. Yamaha only produced four-stroke snowmobiles. The Whistler Blackcomb ski resort is testing Taiga's electric snowmobiles with lower noise, and similar vehicles exist.
Early snowmobiles used simple rubber tracks, but modern snowmobiles' tracks are usually made of a Kevlar composite construction.
Older snowmobiles could generally accommodate two people; however, most snowmobiles manufactured since the 1990s have been designed to only accommodate one person. Snowmobiles built with the ability to accommodate two people are referred to as "2-up" snowmobiles or "touring" models and make up an extremely small share of the market.
Most snowmobiles do not have any enclosures, except for a windshield.
Performance
The first snowmobiles made do with as little as engines, but engine sizes and efficiency have improved drastically. In the early 1990s, the biggest engines available (typically 600 cc–800 cc displacement range) produced around . As of 2022, several snowmobiles are available with engines sizes up to 1,200 cc, producing over 150 hp, as well as several models with up to 1,000 cc engines producing closer to . Recently, some models are turbo-charged, resulting in dramatic increase of engine horsepower.
Snowmobiles are capable of moving across steep hillsides without sliding down-slope if the rider transfers their weight towards the uphill side, a process called side-hilling.
Higher-powered modern snowmobiles can achieve speeds over . Drag racing snowmobiles can reach speeds over .
Mountain sleds are made for deep snow. Their main differences compared to trail sleds are weight, weight distribution, track length, paddle depth, and power. Technology and design advances in mountain snowmobiles have improved since 2003 with Ski-Doo's introduction of the "REV" framework platform. Most two-stroke mountain snowmobiles have a top engine size of 800 cc, producing around , although some 1,000 cc factory machines have been produced.
Cornices and other kinds of jumps are sought after for aerial maneuvers. Riders often search for non-tracked, virgin terrain and are known to "trailblaze" or "boondock" deep into remote territory where there is absolutely no visible path to follow. However, this type of trailblazing is dangerous as contact with buried rocks, logs, and frozen ground can cause extensive damage and injuries. Riders look for large open fields of fresh snow where they can carve. Some riders use extensively modified snowmobiles, customized with aftermarket accessories like handle-bar risers, handguards, custom/lightweight hoods, windshields, and seats, running board supports, studs, and numerous other modifications that increase power and maneuverability.