I saw the release confirmation last night ( 01-09-02 ) and it's coming . Along with this was the confirmation of the end of the Thundercat. I'm not sure if we should be excited or sad.

Been riding Cat since 1977, this was the last straw........
Make room Ski-Doo, here I come, unless you to are killing the triples.......
Thank you T-Cat for all the great years........

Thats sad. *I guess from now on its 4 strokes and twins. *700,800,and now a 900twin. *Theres no diffrence maybe a few more mph top end and a little better accel. *

It also seems the higher they go with the twins the more problems and non user friendly they become. *

I hope skidoo keeps the mach now. *With out the thundercat its just polaris and yamaha and I think polaris is droping out. *Maybe in a few years yamaha will have the fastest sled. *

We can still fight to try and bring it back.

all good things must come to an end, but in order for them to keep around a triple there has to be a market for it. I think that with the expensive price on a new triple and the amount of people that can afford it, its a tuff sell. I also heard rumors of them ditching the Z370 because of low sales and the fact that the sled is a slower Z440 for only change less. The Z370 was a good winner in the cheapest snowmobile category. Dont be suprised if others start to drop triples too.

Well, since A/C made their stupid decision they have just lost another customer.

Guess I'll have to buy a new Mach-z or a SRX next year.

Thanks Arctic cat.

:angry:

MachZ, it's to late their gone, people want to run around on their twins searching for more power, but really they don't want more power, otherwise the T-Cat and Mach Z would be the top selling sleds.
150 hp, big flipping deal, try 168-172 STOCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I can sympathize with the three cyl customers but have you had the chance to ride a comparable two cyl. *I have always favored 3 cyl riding zrt 600 and 800. *Bought a zr 600 in 98 was not happy so continued to ride my 96 zrt 600 because it was much smoother. *02 bought a zr 800. *Love the sled. *A little rattle at idle but as smooth as any triple when on the throttle. *The motor pulls hard and the sled is light. *Corporations are always going to lean toward what the masses want and right now it is two cyls. *Think back to the beginning of time. *It was one and two lungers. *Then became the baby triple revolution. *Then big displacement heavy triples. *Now it is trail power to weight ratio. *You can't blame them formaking things better.

Where did you get your info from Wanna Be? *If it is true I hate to see the triples decline. *My first sled was a 98 ZRT 600 and I loved it. *It rocked. *Although, if one of the major complaints about the big twins in the shake, my tip 600 rattled more than any other twin 600 I ever saw. *Go with the flow for now. *Triples will come back into style some day.

Could this 700 be the sled that the other post reported as the dealers receiving a fax of a sled producing 150 HP? *Do you think it is possible, and if so why would they build an 700 that would out perform the 800's? *Maybe next year they drop the 800 and go with the 700's and 900's? *That sounds pretty reasonable to me.

ArTeeCat. *There is no comparable twin. *My favorite part about the triple is that when you hit the 100mph zone instead of nosing over like a twin the triples just take of. *

If arctic cat is killing the triples they are ignoring a small percentage of ac riders. *I dont care how low the number of us triple riders are they are ignoring us and obvously dont care.

The saddest part is that in a few years the fastest sleds will have been made in 2001 and 02 and the new models still probably wont win.

We are supposed to have one 900 delivered to us by Jan.20th
I'm not sure who Snorat is getting his info. from , I'm just telling you what I've seen myself.

7c, I agree with you, I do not know where snowrat is getting his info, but obviously he does not know people at the factory as well as he thinks he does. *The 900ZR's will be at the dealers in 2 weeks!

Machzzzz,
my zr 800 with with tweaking I have done is ten times the sled my zrt 800 was. *The trail riding I do is 0-100 mph perfect for my sled. *People usually done ride much at 100 plus. *I would be happy to line my zr 800 against any triple you got!

Triples are great if your a lake rider, but what's the percentage? *On the trail, a triple is just heavy and sucks gas. They really don't perform the way they were designed unless your running across lakes. *Don't get me wrong, triples are nice machines but if the market isn't there then why keep producing. *Cat has been around along time, they know how to make marketing decisions. *They're not going to take something away if it's so great, nor are they going to keep something for a few(or couple).

Oh come on, what do you strap the sled on you're back and walk the trails. If thats what you do then yes the triples are probably a little heavy. I've ridden T-Cats and ZRT's on the trails, mountains, lakes, ditches and anywhere else since 95 and I wouldn't give a plug nickel for a tinny vibrating twin.
ArteeCat you got the talking part down, but it's to bad I wont ever be able to watch you with you're Ditch Pickle 800 run against a Mach or ZRT 800/T-Cat.........

Amen brother!!! ;) I don't think we'll see 160- 205 horse 800 twin mods to easily either.

My dealer hads 3 new 900's comming by Feb 1!! Arnie (my dealer) is sad to see the gino go ??? But i herd something about a new 1050 triple by Polaris in a X chasis!! :0 *Has anyone else herd this? :0

boatmaan, I own a 600 triple and get the same gas milage as the zr500 I RIDE WITH. A Little heavy but not that bad. A/C is making a big big mistake. Long live the triples[B]

This is my first year on a tripple. *I've been riding for 25 years. *I LOVE TRIPPLES!!!!!! *My buddy has a Viper. *His sled is 100 pounds lighter. *When he's in front, I'm right on him. *When I'm in front he's a few km behind!! *Long live the TRIPPLE TRIPPLE!!!!!!!!
*
*I don't want to see the tripples go, but I think Cat is comming out with an incredibly powerful 4 stroke!! *Yam has the R1, I think Cat has something better!!! *Just my opinion.

I think a 900 twin rocks!!A riding buddy of mine was a tripple ac man for years...until he rode my &#39;01 zr800.When I beat him out of the hole stock,that was all it took.He asked me if he could take &#39;er for a spin,and promptly ordered a x-country 800 over the summer.He loved it!!!Now when I order my 900,he may have to do the same.Does anyone know if a special addition 900 is on tap for a spring order??? http://www.snowmobileworld.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif

I was just at my dealers yesterday and he was saying that they are getting a 900 in hopfully next week. Worst case the week after.

long live tripples!!!!!!!!!!!!!11 http://www.snowmobileworld.com/forums/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

You people have obvioulsy not seen a mod zr 800 run. *The sled gets 15 mpg and pushes 150 hp. *These are slight trail mods. *The sled will easily run with your Mach Z or Zrt 800. *If you are interested i just got rid of my zrt 800 and my zr 800 smokes it. *Also the sled is nimble throught the trails unlike the tank triples. *I come from experience on triples so am somewhat justified. *Hope you get spanked by a big twin!!.

Like you said, ArTeeCat, you have to modify your 800 twin to stay with a stock triple/triple. During EXTREMELY hard cornering, my brothers ZR600 could pull away from my ZRT 600, but also because he is a more experienced rider. I still have a little common sense (read "fear") and have to back off some. When we hit even the shortest straightaway, I am right on him again. In heavy snow, the twins just don&#39;t have the grunt. As far as weight is concerned, the weight difference isn&#39;t as much between a twin and a triple as it is between a light and heavy rider. I outweigh my brother by 75 lbs, but my sled only weighs about 50 more than his. What do you weigh? My brother saw the light and got a 2000 ZRT 600 after I whooped him over and over. I&#39;ll put him on his 2000 triple against any other amateur on a stock 600 twin and just sit back and grin.

Well I beg to differ. *Along with the 800&#39;s I also have a 98 zr 600 and just sold my zrt 600 96. *the zrt used to be a 153 hp improved stock ice drag sled. *I switched back to trail sled after I lost interest in racing. Hooper Racing had a hand in the motor. The sled has psi pipes, slp airbox, v force reeds, advanced timing and jetted+clutched perfect. *My zr 600 has reeds, gutted airbox, zr440 carb boots, and advanced timing. Also jetted and clutched perfect. *I weight 215 and my buddy weights 150. *When I was on the zrt and him on my zr I would just stay head. *Take the pipes off of the triple and the twin rocks. *Sold the triple but kept the twin because it is quicker. *Also my zr 800 is still quicker stock than my zrt 800. *I just set the sled up like it should be from the factory i.e. clutched and jetted, reeds, timing, and air. *The motor is still reliable and under warranty so why not? *Stock sleds are for stock people. *Like I said in another post a sled has to be setup for the individual and there is a slim chance that a stock sled will be setup for every rider. *any I don&#39;t just mean the motor suspension and steering as well.

What chassis is the 900 gonna be in? Will it be the new S/P? If not I&#39;ll wait a year or two.


I have to agree with both the twin and tripple crowd, both shine in different areas. Tripples sound cool at 9000rpm, pul like crazy way up high. But around here you can very seldomly get past 60mph on the trails. A twin is fine.

I can get the 10hp out of the pipe if I wanted to run a 600 twin against a 600 tripple. *And be ahead of the game by a few bucks.

Tripples require 30% more work to rebuild. and 30% more money.

Go with the flow, If arctic cat looses in sale to Ski doo and Yamaha, I&#39;m sure they will bring them back.

But expect to see all the hot sleds to have 4cyl 4 strokes.
Which won&#39;t be bad either, They&#39;ll last two-three times as long.

Like Powerhouse said, there&#39;s good and bad to everything, and opinions will always be different...that&#39;s what&#39;s great about our society. *The fact is, businesses are in it for the money, and you can&#39;t blame them for that, as long as the service is still good. *The tripples just aren&#39;t selling like they used to...I know of at least 4 dealers that have left-over &#39;01 ZRT800&#39;s, and 2 that have &#39;00&#39;s leftover, and I&#39;m sure all of us do. *Just like the auto industry, I&#39;m sure the execs have looked at the numbers for the past few years and seen how much inventory dealers carry over to the new seasons...major contributor to the whole equation. *Really, did you ever think GM would quit making the Camaro and Firebird?http://www.snowmobileworld.com/forums/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/confused.gif? *Not me, but it&#39;s happening. *But then, there didn&#39;t used to be 4-door sport sedans producing 250-300 hp and corner like they&#39;re on rails...it&#39;s very similar to what&#39;s happening with the tripples. *I know I would much rather drive an STS than a Z28.
Personally, I just traded my ZRT800 for a ZR800. *Just put 300+ miles on the twin last week and I love it. *Could I lose a lake race to a tripple, sure....but I was never in the habit of racing the ZRT800 for money, so I&#39;m not losing anything. *95% of my riding is on trails in WI, and I will keep up with ANY tripple on the trails, if that really matters!?!
Who knows, if the numbers say so, the tripples will be back some day...but with the 4 stroke technology coming up, it&#39;s doubtfull. *If the CAT tripple lovers really switch brands to get a tripple, Cat&#39;s numbers will reflect that, and they will have to respond. *But if Doo&#39;s and Yam&#39;s tripple sales do not soar through the roof after Cat quits the trips, Cat execs will have proven their case.

Just my side,
Jim

GM is bringing the Camaro back for 2004 or 2005. I expect the Firebird to return also. They just take the cars off the market for a few years to bring back the demand. Look at the new 350Z and the RX-8. Wait till the 350Z comes out, sub $30K and 280hp. People will be all over that.

I was just on yamahas site, the rx1 is kinda cool, we&#39;ll see if cat tripple guys get interested in that. I would imagine that it is a 13000rpm motor. It sounds cool. Some say it is faster than an srx700.

All the guys I ride with this own triples (me included) and nobody would trade them for anything. It&#39;s to bad that they are becoming a thing of the past. There&#39;s just something about a stock sled that growls and produces 150+hp. One thing that was pointed out to me was that you have to take into consideration the wieght to hp ratio. I&#39;m not 100% sure on the wieght difference between the zr900 twin and the zrt800/thundercat, but I can see his point.

ZERT - fyi - Dry Weights:

2002 T-Cat - 583 lbs.
2001 ZRT800 - 576
ZR900 - 507

pretty good weight difference - BUT GIVE ME TRIPLES ANYDAY!!!

The Yamaha RX-1 is a 998cc 4cylinder 4 stroke with 4 pipes. Yamaha claims more hp than any twin, 65 % more torque than any twin, faster than the SRX 700, and weighs the same as an SRX700 with electric start. They have added a-arm front suspension. The suggested retail price is equivalent to the ZRT800. Sounds like my next sled. One thing companies don&#39;t take into consideration is the loyalty factor. Once you get discouraged with a company and switch brands, chances are you won&#39;t be back. If I were to switch to Yamaha (prior to this new sled, I had been considering a Doo), I would probably not come back to Cat.
* * Oh, and one other thing. I am not a snowmobile mechanic or racer. I buy a sled, stud it myself, take it to the dealer for a clutch, and ride it trouble free for years. I probably could get more performance from it if I were to spend weeks on end fu%$ing with clutch and carb settings, but I enjoy my family and other activities as well. My riding ability doesn&#39;t surpass my sleds performance and I doubt it ever will.

My question is why did Cat not take the T-Cat make some conceeded efforts and put her on a diet. Man 172 hp for a stock Mtn Sled kicks but.
I can&#39;t believe Cat when they say the T-Cat weights only 583, and the Mtn Cat 585, COME ON!!!!!!!!!
I havent weighed my T-Cat Mtn Cat but I have weighed my short tracks on a logging truck scale and even dry they push real close to 600lbs!!!!!!!!
But anyone who wants to by a 900 Mtn Cat and come up to AK I will show them what a heavy fat pig can do to a little light weight...

Keep in mind that Cat&#39;s have Suzuki motors and Suzuki has some mean four cyl four stroke motors. *Would be real easy to cram on into a ZR. *Although until the four stroke is proven My big twin will be fine. *Artic Dominance!. *I would have loved to have my Honda 900 RR motor put in my ZR. *What a mean sound the sled would make.

Rumor has it that this year&#39;s M1 ZR900 spring release will change for next fall, very possible to see the 900 in the newest sno pro chassis. But then again I don&#39;t work for Cat.

I have walked all over 700 and 800 power valved twins. Well it was a close run and they do seem to work just a little bit less with a lighter sled, but I love my ZRT600! My next sled will probably be the RX1 4 cylinder 4 stroke, that is the next best thing to a triple.

Personally I think the new chassis feel like a 4 wheeler.

Rumor has it that this year&#39;s M1 ZR900 spring release will change for next fall, very possible to see the 900 in the newest sno pro chassis. But then again I don&#39;t work for Cat.

I have walked all over 700 and 800 power valved twins. Well it was a close run and they do seem to work just a little bit less with a lighter sled, but I love my ZRT600! My next sled will probably be the RX1 4 cylinder 4 stroke, that is the next best thing to a triple.

Personally I think the new chassis&#39; feel like a 4 wheeler.

I really hope that Arctic Cat rethinks their decesion on the Thundercat. I know a guy by the nickname of "SKIRTBOY" who will be very upset when all his riding buddies buy up the last of the Thundercats and we leave him in our snowdust.

I weighed my buddy&#39;s &#39;00 T Cat with 192 studs, and a half a tank of gas and got about 565 lbs. No reverse, electric start or anything.

By the way, just nit-picking curiosity here (I&#39;ve got nothing better to do at the moment), but I&#39;ve noticed about a 50/50 split in the spelling of the word "triple". I just got out my Webster&#39;s dictonary and found that the word "triple" is spelled with only 1 "t". Is the 2 "t" spelling a Canadian thing?

I will miss the sound of the triple the most! nothing like the sound of one coming through the woods!!!!!!!

I AGREE: ITS SAD TO SEE THE TCAT GO. THIS MIGHT PISS SOME PEOPLE OFF BUT SOMETIMES THE TRUTH HURTS. THE THUNDER JUST HAS NOT BEEN THE POWER HOUSE IT SHOULD BE . AND YES IT DOES MAKE BIG HP. BUT IT ULTAMILY IS NOT GETTING DOWN TO THE GROUND. NOW I KNOW YOUR GOING TO START TELL ME HOW FAST THIS GUY IS AND THIS GUY AND SO ON. BUT THERE IS WORK DONE TO ACCOMPLISH THIS. USUALY THE BOTTON END *HAS BEEN PORTED. THEN THEY CAN REALLY RUN.AND THAT MEENS WITH THE MACHZ AND THE XCR. NOW EVEN THE XCR IS DROPPING OUT.MAYBE EVEN THE MACH WILL GO. IF SOMEONE SAYS THAT THE TWIN800" S DONT VIBRATE ...WELL THEY JUST DONT WANT TO SEE IT . RODE MY BOTHERS ZR 800 FOR A WHILE AND I TELL U YOUR HAND ALMOST FALL ASLEEP!.NOW THE 800 ZRT IS JUST A COMPLETE DOG.IT HAD TO GO. THE 800 TWIN WILL OUTRUN A THUNDER FOR A PEACE. *ON THE GUN AT OUR RADAR RUNS ALL STOCK NOW NOT CHEATER KITS STOCK. THE TWINS WILL RUN ABOUT 10-15 MPH SLOWER THAN THE TRIPPLES.AND THAT MIGHT BE WHAT THE GOAL IS SLOWER MACHINES. ACCELERATE JUST AS OR EVEN HARDER BUT NO SPEED. NOW AFTER THEY HAVE BEEN PLAYED WITH IM SHURE THEY WILL FLY!. BUT IF U WANT TO STAY ON A TRIPPLE BETTER HANG ON TO WHAT U HAVE CAUSE THE TWINS ARE COMMING

Just thought I&#39;d bring this one back and lob it up in the air...anyone want to take a shot???