I drove a Wildcat...

Unbelievable!!!

Dan wrote:

Unbelievable!!!

Yeah, I got a text from a buddy today. He said it was pretty cool.

I can see it now..........I bought a Rhino everyone gets a RZR. I buy a RZR everyone gets a Wildcat............Sheesh! It does look badass though.....

Sporto wrote:

I can see it now..........I bought a Rhino everyone gets a RZR. I buy a RZR everyone gets a Wildcat............Sheesh! It does look badass though.....

The only real question I have is, "How durable is it?"

Dan, what trails did they let you ride? How did it feel in the the slow rocky stuff?

I had the chance Saturday to take a short ride in a new Wildcat with Dan. Dan drove 1st, we were not 200 yards into the ride when Dan said I am impressed. That got my attention real quick! The suspension on this thing is UNBELIEVABLE, it didn't matter how deep the rut was or how fast you hit it, the Walker Evans shocks soaked it up and begged for More. I don't believe I have ever rode in a machine that had a more plush ride. We were taken up T22, they allowed us the freedom to try different gears and when I was behind the wheel I hit ever rock, dip, water bar, washout, and off camber I could find....Nothing seemed to faze this thing. I must say that Arctic Cat hit a home run with their entry into the Sport SXS market.

Now for the Bad...

The steering is WAY to Stiff for a unit with Power steering, this may be what is needed out west in the dunes. It steers more like a RZR with out PS that has wide off set wheels on it. Also, the steering does not come back to Zero on its own. To me this is a Safety issue that needs to be addressed before this machine is released to the public. As with all Arctic Cats that I have ever ridden this thing has a tremendous amount of engine and drive line vibration, the more you mash the skinny pedal the more you feel the vibration, you even feel it in the Steering wheel. I did also notice the lack of engine breaking, it free wheels just like my RZR did before the addition of the clutch kit. The gear shift needs more pronounced indents for gear selection. I found you could not just feel your way changing gears, you had to look at the display to see when you had it in position, otherwise it would just grind the gears. The lack of fenders on this thing means anything you run over on the trail that's not stuck to the trail is liable to wind up in the cab with you. The rep says they have a fender flare add on accessory that will greatly reduce the amount off Mud and debris that gets thrown up.

Overall I was extremely impressed with this machine. Stock for stock the XP puts out more seat of the pants performance, with the addition of an exhaust and Programmer and some clutch work it would suck an XP up and spit it out!

Here are a few shots of the Show piece they had out front....

Thanks for the write up Jodyt, it is way kewl to me that some of you guys got to try the WC out in an environment that we ride in ......something tells me that the power steering on the machine you drove was not working correctly as all of the reviews that I have read have had 0 complaints, only good things to say about it.

Stock for stock the XP puts out more seat of the pants performance, with the addition of an exhaust and Programmer and some clutch work it would suck an XP up and spit it out!


does the XP get to add exhaust, programmer, and also do some clutch work?? or do we have to run stock to modified?

I like the green, but I am not fond of that front end. It would surely need some fender flares too. Would like to take one for a spin though.

by the time we get done with modifications neither machine will be anywhere near what it was from the factory and just about the time you get your machine as awesome as it can be, BAM!! somebody comes out with one from the factory that is already better than what you have built, its a never ending cycle and it keeps us interested and our minds busy. Maybe I should just start a business building custom TRAIL machines then I could play with all of them all the time!!

Hollon wrote:

Stock for stock the XP puts out more seat of the pants performance, with the addition of an exhaust and Programmer and some clutch work it would suck an XP up and spit it out!


does the XP get to add exhaust, programmer, and also do some clutch work?? or do we have to run stock to modified?

The unit I drove would outperform the XP as is......simply because of the suspension, you can drive it harder and faster than the XP.

Now, not to say the XP is bad, but the chassis and suspension on the wildcat are just several steps abopve the 900 XP.....like was set above the steering effort was a bit to heavy, but you have to think where this unit was primarily tested at, and for the sand and desert at 60mph the steering will be be fine. It trcked really well I rode with Buck and I thought the unit would understeer or push bad with a 40/60 weight bias...It did not, it turned where you pointed it. the power feels slightly under the XP, but like I said I could ride this unit faster and harder due to the handling and suspension.

Now the negatives.....

Fit and finish I was not impressed with the shifter is loose feeling and cheap feeling. the door latches are cheap feeling, the rear diff is TINY, I question long term durability of the drivetrain. overall gear ratios are too high in both low and high range, I think this may have someting to do with the lower power feeling, clutching the unit down will help.

even though it has the centrifugal clutch duramatic CVT it appears they have removed the one way engine brake bearing, as me and Buck both noticed, below about 2000 rpm the CVT disengages and freewheels.......not good for East coast but no big deal for sand and desert, again to be fair the desert south west is what this machine is for 1st.....

Bottom line for me, I'll not be buying either one..... if I already had a 900 XP I would not trade the XP for a Wildcat......but if I didn't have either and was going to choose one over the other, it would be the Wildcat. You cannot deny the suspension, plain and simple......Horsepower is great, but you can out run a higher HP machine with a lower HP one with better suspension, and the Wildcat has better suspension no "If's" and's or buts........

So let me ask this question. If you built a set of shocks for a XP, which one would be the better machine?

DoddS wrote:

So let me ask this question. If you built a set of shocks for a XP, which one would be the better machine?

It's not just the shocks.....it is also the wheel travel and the Wildcat has 17" front and 18" rear....now add the shocks.....XP does not have this.

Hollon wrote:

Stock for stock the XP puts out more seat of the pants performance, with the addition of an exhaust and Programmer and some clutch work it would suck an XP up and spit it out!


does the XP get to add exhaust, programmer, and also do some clutch work?? or do we have to run stock to modified?

What I was trying to say was for the Wild cat to out run a stock XP in a drag race it would need a Pipe, Programer and Clutch work..IMO

on the trail with the suspension it has I think the XP would have its hand full trying to stay with the Cat...18" vs 13" is a big difference in travel

It doesnt really matter how fast either is where most on the east coast ride, it will be about which will break less and i can guarantee you, break a xp or S and get going in a 1/10th the time as a arctic cat, there dealer and parts network is nearly non extant compared to polaris. No slam, just ive owned one, and heaven forbid you need warranty work. My brand new prowler sat in the repair shop for 10 days waiting on a 4x4 actuating cable. If arctic cat is ever going to be a major sxs player it needs to concentrate on building its dealer and parts network.

I agree with the above. If you wanted to line up at the event area and do a 200 ft drag race, the XP might win. on the trails the chassis and suspension of the Wildcat would win out.

Like was said above, you can build shocks for the XP, but it doesnt have the wheel travel or chassis, or handling the Wildcat has, the longer wheelbase, the lower center of gravity, the huge wheel travel.... the XP doesn't have have it.

Bottom line is I'm not bias toward either brand and Polaris has been trumped........That's not a bad thing, it's good for competetion. you had to know that sooner or later some OEM would answer Polaris' call.......Who would have thought it would be Arctic Cat? I didn't.............

GunRunner wrote:

If arctic cat is ever going to be a major sxs player it needs to concentrate on building its dealer and parts network.

Maybe they will sell enough Wildcats to grow, thus creating American jobs. I for one am glad they are competiton and I hope they do well ( I hope the same for Polaris)

wvyankee2 wrote:

GunRunner wrote:

If arctic cat is ever going to be a major sxs player it needs to concentrate on building its dealer and parts network.

I agree with Gunny 100% here......even where I live, there are around 7 AC dealers with in 57 miles of the home 20......no one has jack when it comes to parts. I usually order all of my parts from Indiana on Michigan.....have always had them at my door in 2 days.

However............where I ride in the UP, I am friends with the 3 largest dealer this side of the Rockies.....pull into his place unload the machine and he will have me going with in hours......go figure, up in the middle of nowhere and here is this great dealer, with anything and everything for my ride.... .....but the key here is, he sells 100's of "Ditch Pickles" a year and the quads, Prowlers , and now the Wildcat just put the icing on the cake.

My next machine!!!!!!!
Biggest complaint i can see is it needs better mud protection.....and I hate losing the Rhino's bed space.

That machine is you Corey.

wvyankee2 wrote:

That machine is you Corey.

Foxfire wrote:

wvyankee2 wrote:

GunRunner wrote:

If arctic cat is ever going to be a major sxs player it needs to concentrate on building its dealer and parts network.

I agree with Gunny 100% here......even where I live, there are around 7 AC dealers with in 57 miles of the home 20......no one has jack when it comes to parts. I usually order all of my parts from Indiana on Michigan.....have always had them at my door in 2 days.

However............where I ride in the UP, I am friends with the 3 largest dealer this side of the Rockies.....pull into his place unload the machine and he will have me going with in hours......go figure, up in the middle of nowhere and here is this great dealer, with anything and everything for my ride.... .....but the key here is, he sells 100's of "Ditch Pickles" a year and the quads, Prowlers , and now the Wildcat just put the icing on the cake.

Whats a 'ditch pickle' Fox?