Today, brP drivers can be transported on snow, on water, on the ground and even in the air. We are proud to be a globally recognized Canadian company. Our eight brands, Ski-Doo, Sea-Doo, Can-Am On-Road and Off-Road, Lynx, Evinrude, Rotax, Manitou and Alumacraft, are icons in the motorsports and marine industries. We are united in our passion to continue to advance in new adventures and to give our customers around the world the opportunity to create their best memories. The search for the base of the track made it possible to produce a relatively small and continuous rubber rail for the light snowmobile of one or two people that the founder of the company had dreamed of as a teenager. This led to the invention of snowmobiles. Armand dreamed of developing a fast and light snowmobile that could carry one or two people. In the early 1950s, Armand put aside his dream of focusing on developing his company`s other tracked vehicles. But by the end of the decade, smaller, more efficient engines had been developed and entered the market. Armand resumed his efforts to build a “miniature” snowmobile.
He worked with his eldest son Germain, who shared his father`s mechanical talents. Armand and Germain developed several prototypes of light snowmobiles and finally in 1959 the first Bombardier snowmobile was put on sale. On May 27, 2020, the Company announced the discontinuation of its Evinrude E-TEC and E-TEC G2 outboard engines, the reassignment of its sturtevante facility, WI, and the closure of its Alumacraft operations in Arkadelphia, AR. The company said it has signed an agreement with Mercury Marine to support boat sets and continue to supply outboard engines to BRP boat brands. [12] [13] In 2003, BRP became an independent company. We have brought with us an impressive portfolio of products that have long provided our customers with unforgettable experiences. In the 1970s and 1980s, the company diversified into rail and aerospace products, becoming a multinational company known as Bombardier Inc. Some of Ski-Doo`s sleds are Formula III, Mach 1 and Mach Z with Rotax engines. While it`s common to learn that all Ski-Doo snowmobiles were powered by rotating screws, this is not true. Only two-cylinder Rotax engines were equipped with rotary valves.
As a rule, subsequent rotary centrifuges were also liquid-cooled. Fan-cooled slides were usually piston (2-stroke) connection inductions. Sleds such as the Formula III, later the mach-1 model and the mach Z were powered by three-cylinder 2-stroke Rotax engines. In 1994, the company produced the first snowmobile specially equipped for mountain sports, the Ski-Doo Summit. Ski-Doo snowmobiles are still extremely competitive in terms of performance and in the market, winning a number of national titles at racing events ranging from Sno-X to mountaineering. In 1999, Ski-Doo introduced the ZX aluminum chassis, which was lighter with better suspension and therefore very successful in the Sno-Cross competition. In 2003, Ski-Doo introduced the REV chassis, which changed the sport and was followed by other manufacturers. In 2008, Ski-Doo introduced the XP chassis, which allowed the driver to go further with a sharp weight reduction. The XP was the lightest machine available, with a power-to-weight ratio in Summit models of less than 3 lbs per horsepower for the first time.
From the beginning, the company produced truck-sized semi-tracked vehicles, with skis at the front and tracks at the rear, designed for the worst winter conditions in the Canadian plain landscape. After producing half-chains for the Canadian Army during the Second World War, the company experimented with new forms of chain systems and developed a heavy tracked vehicle designed for logging and mining in extreme wilderness conditions such as heavy snowfall or a semi-liquid muskeg. They produced it under the name Muskeg Tractor. The Ski-Doo was originally intended to be called “Ski Dog” because it aimed to make Bombardier a practical vehicle to replace dog sledding for hunters and trappers. By chance, a printer misinterpreted the name and printed “Ski-Doo” in the first sales brochure. [4] Public interest in small snowmobiles has grown rapidly. Suddenly, a new winter sport was born, which was concentrated in Quebec. In the first year, Bombardier sold 225 Ski-Doos; Four years later, 8,210 units were sold. But Armand was reluctant to focus too much on doo skiing and move resources away from his off-road vehicles. He remembered very well his previous trade setbacks that forced him to diversify. Armand slowed down advertising for the Ski-Doo line to prevent it from dominating the company`s other products, but still dominating the entire snowmobile industry. The snowmobiles produced were of exceptional quality and performance and gained a better reputation than competing snowmobile brands Polaris and Arctic Cat.
In 1971, Bombardier completed the purchase of Moto-Ski to expand the Ski-Doo lineup and replace a competitor in the market. In 1937, Joseph-Armand Bombardier received a patent for the first vehicle capable of driving on snow, developed thanks to determination and audacity in his garage in Valcourt, Quebec. A second, larger vehicle followed, and in 1942 he founded his own company: L`Auto-Neige Bombardier Limited. Over the years, J.-A. Bombardier refined its design and launched the Ski-Doo in 1959, which was already powered by a Rotax engine. This innovative product creates a new sport. In the years that followed, always looking for innovation, every playground was explored and revolutionized the powersports industry. In September 2012, the company announced that it would be leaving the recreational craft business as global sales in the marine industry declined. This resulted in the loss of 350 jobs, most of them at a plant in Benton, Illinois. [11] Before starting the development of tracked vehicles, Joseph-Armand Bombardier experimented with propeller-driven snow vehicles (similar to Russian Aerosanis). His work with snow aircraft designs dates back to before 1920. He quickly gave up his efforts to develop a snowplane and applied his inventive skills to tracked vehicles.
As of October 6, 2009 [Update], BRP had approximately 5,500 employees; [2] Sales in 2007 exceeded $2.5 billion. BRP has manufacturing facilities in five countries: Canada, the United States (Wisconsin, Illinois, North Carolina and Arkansas), Mexico, Finland and Austria. The company`s products are sold in more than 100 countries, some of which have their own direct sales network. [3] As part of the 2003 restructuring, the original snowmobile and tracked commercial vehicle division was split into an independent corporation, with the majority stake transferred to Bain Capital. Although the company is a major manufacturer of two-stroke engines and four-stroke engines for various industries, it is best known for its recreational products. [Citation needed] The company created the snowmobile market after international competitors entered the market in the late 1960s. From the 1940s to the early 1970s, Bombardier built the most successful groomer models ever produced by a groomer manufacturer. [Citation needed] The B12 offered space for 12 people and the C18 for 18 people. Both were similar in design with long tracks at the rear and skis used to steer the vehicle. The B12 and C18 were very fast for their day, with snow speeds of over 30 miles per hour. Most historical and modern groomers have a top speed of just 20 mph. The Bombardier B12 and C18 were probably the precursors of the more modern snow buses currently used by resorts to transport tourists.
In their time, B12 and C18 vehicles were used as school buses, mail delivery and rescue vehicles in the northern United States and Canada, and were best suited for flat terrain conditions, frozen roads or frozen lakes. Although more than 3,000 Bombardier B12/C18 variants were produced, Bombardier had competitors in the North American and global markets. Most of Bombardier`s production remained in North America. The front ski design could not be used in deep snowfall and harsh ground conditions, which opened the door to the development of two- and four-lane groomers. Unfortunately, the design of the front ski was not easily adapted to other ground conditions, so although it succeeded on flat terrain, frozen lakes and snowy roads, it could not compete in difficult off-road conditions. The combination of lack of design flexibility, incompatibility with off-road conditions, and the advent of modern snow removal practices on public roads from the 1950s and in remote areas in the 1960s likely led to the decline of the B12/C18 design. .