Removed skid plate

So pulled the skid plate to clean underside! First of all there are plenty of bolts and screws holding it !!!!
Second I found a large piece of foam in front of the rear drivers side wheel basically under the drivers seat . It was covered in mud and dripping wet and the machine has been inside for over a week since I road last. Not sure who though that was a good idea

I felt it in my XP a few weeks ago and it was wet after a ride. I haven’t torn the skid plate off yet; but on my quest to quiet it down, the space between the skid plate and floor boards is on my list of places to look to apply some butyl sound deadening material.

If you look at the sound deadening materials blow up parts list on the Polaris website; that piece of foam is part of the sound deadening kit.

In their attempt to lower the noise, that void must have been one of the areas they are trying to deaden. To your point, I’m not sure a hunk of foam loaded with mud and water is a good solution. I’ll be curious to see if an aftermarket manufacturer comes up with a cover for that space.

But the spaces directly under the plastic floor and in the tunnel are my targets to reduce the noise. Finding a material that does not grow mold will be the challenge.

The more I dig into my machine the more exposed foam I find that's soaked and/or caked with mud. I can't see anything good coming from it long-term.

Sad part is they knew they had a noise problem and their failed solution was to stuff some foam in places such as this. This machine should have gone back to the drawing board for a real solution that works.