Investment in Other Affiliates - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended		1 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011 Robin Manufacturing	Nov. 30, 2012 Eicher Motors Limited	Jul. 24, 2012 Eicher Motors Limited	Jul. 31, 2012 Brammo, Inc	Oct. 31, 2011 Brammo, Inc
Investments in and Advances to Affiliates [Line Items]
Equity method investment ownership percentage		40.00%		50.00%
Investment in affiliates			$ 999,000		$ 7,000,000	$ 5,000,000
Joint venture investment				50,000,000
Joint venture description				In July 2012, Polaris announced a joint venture agreement with Eicher Motors Limited (Eicher), a leading manufacturer of commercial vehicles and motorcycles in India. Polaris and Eicher will each control 50 percent of the joint venture, Eicher-Polaris Private Limited (EPPL), which is intended to design, develop and manufacture a full range of new vehicles for India and other emerging markets. The investment in EPPL is accounted for under the equity method, with Polaris’ proportionate share of income or loss recorded within the consolidated financial statements on a one month lag due to financial information not being available timely. The overall investment is expected to be approximately $50,000,000, shared equally with Eicher over a three year period.
Investment maturity period				3 years
Equity in loss of other affiliates	$ (179,000)		$ (179,000)