I might be in the a minority, but I grew up with sleds from the 70s which will always have a place in my heart. I would love to see manufactures produce a line of sleds which harken back to that. Small, light weight 340s and 440s with updated suspension and nothing else. They should not update these models but once a decade to keep price down and parts interchangeable. The targe price should be in the $3500 dollor range or less if possible. One other thing manufactures could do would be to reproduce some heritage sleds with some modern updates to cash in on nostalgia as many rc car makers have been doing. Mostly though I think prices have to come down. Snowmobiles are toys for most of us, they shouldn't cost as much as an automobile.
Remember when Yamaha cancelled the Bravo? That snowmobile had barely changed in decades. I like to think that Yamaha had good reasons to discontinue the snowmobile (lack of sales, low margin) but something tells me that investor greed played its part; those sleds were built to last and that is no good for short-term profit margins.
They also kept the YZ125 unchanged for sometime. I prefer that business model because parts ahould be more readily available as opposed to something which is changing every few years.
@@gabrielrichter1795 Snowmobiles are such niche vehicles that a model should last 10 years without major updates. Instead we get new platforms every third or fourth year. It's a logistical nightmare for both the owner and the small shops that sell parts and sleds.
I love that yall got the recognition yall did on the last pod. It is going to be very cool to watch this channel grow! Loved the video today and what a good way to start Christmas eve!
In an industry that is completely controlled by the wall street profit and all these manufacturers have the mentality that they seemingly have to run the company balls to the wall, while apparently oblivious to the fact that there certainly will be bad or "no snow" winters that will have huge impacts on them financially, begs the question, are the person's at the helm mentally fit to even be running things? Common sense would dictate that right when they go balls to the wall production wise, etc is exactly the time when they should probably be throttling back a bit. Feast or famine is all some of these CEO's seem know. Look no further than Harley Davidson and ask yourself if the persons at the helm are fit to hold the job they were entrusted with. Thanks guys. Love the podcasts!
The other big problem that we aren’t talking about enough and that is PRICES! Prices are completely out of control. This was supposed to be the blue collar workers sport. How is the common guy supposed to afford 25 plus thousand dollars for a snowmobile.
When Tucker was racing snocross it was basically a Arctic Cat event! So much green hibbert carried arctic cat. I'm not an arctic cat rider either. The event still sells out in deadwood but it's less green than its heyday!
Maybe CF Moto will buy Cat. They've gathering steam the past couple years. To get on topic with making snowmbiling affordable again.......i bought my son a new 85 horse Summit Neo+. He's only 10, but this machine gives him the ability to grow into it. Priced at 10k out the door, it made perfect sense. I looked at the Arctic Cat Blast and the Yamaha Vemon, but both of those were 12k out the door and a 7/8 size machine. In my eyes, the neo line by Ski-Doo and Evo line by Polaris are as close as we're going to get to something new and affordable to get into the sport......for now. We'll see what lack luster sales do to the market in the next couple years.
My opinion, most logical buyer would be CFMoto. Just to have their ATV's/SxS's have a made in USA sticker on them to appeal to US buyers and produce a sled like a knockoff Blast at a low cost to sell a ton of them. And beat the tariff ordeal having their machines assembled here
Yeah I’ve been following the used market also. Basically brand new used sleds with under 500mi on them at basically giveaway prices aren’t moving either
That Honda rumor has been going on since the mid 80ies. It got everyone's hopes up, but it as usual, never came about. Now, you have the Honda / Nissan merge! 😏
Could be wishful thinking, but i believe a deal has already been made in regards to arctic cat. We just won't hear anything official till '25. I think the entire powersports industry as a whole is in trouble due to overproduction. Units sold like crazy when covid hit, now 3-4 years after covid, manufacturers are still producing numbers they needed in 2021. It has flooded the market and devalued the product. At the same time they offer the products at higher than ever prices
These industries have weathered multiple resections they take a dip and then it come back. People just don’t have the money to go out and buy a new sled. Might be the case for a few years.
How can a man walk with no ankles or knees? Snowmobile manufacturers have taken out the foundation of the sport for most consumers by ignoring the entry point for new riders. 120’s and 200’s are great if your 5 to ride in the fields around your farm but they shouldn’t cost $3-5 grand. The beginner sleds should cost $2,000. Youth and Teen models should cost $4-5,000. Not $9k for a 400 or 570. Then the next jump is to $14,000 for a good sport machine. So since the barrier of entry is so large, kids spend their money on Surron and other E motorcycles and get a similar adrenaline rush for way less money ($4k for a Surron)
All events are dieing. 20 years ago the only way to see fantastic things was live in person. Today you can see ten different perspectives from the couch
20 years ago top racers use to show up with a duallie pickup truck and huge trailer. Now they are in semi's. Lots of things need to go back to their roots. Get the big corporations out
Lots of problems in the 80s... history repeating, except main difference is adding a few more zeroes in the dollar amounts. Not sure how some businesses will return. If AC is in trouble, hopefully an established brand will take over.
I believe the combination of low snow in some states, and the economy, and the price of sleds has gotten ridiculous now i baught a new 850 Polaris but i work at a dealership but even so at a discount still expensive but ive seen on the repair side of it has gotten hit to taking in more junk repairs to keep us mechanics buisy but the major fall i believe is the economy
JD in the Midwest used to be primarily arctic cat dealers until textron took over. Would love to see JD pick up cat as you mentioned they have the network and would be a quick turn key. Wouldn’t be opposed to Honda either. Biggest thing I’d take away from the podcast is that most buyers today don’t research what they want, they would rather follow a trend or have someone else to tell them what to buy unfortunately.
Low snow year's, too expensive to participate in snowmobiling, there's more UTV trail permits sold in Michigan now than snow permits, even the holdover sled's are 15 to 20 grand still in Michigan, too expensive
Powersports industry is in for a desperate future, if you zoom out the problem is rather obvious. Boomers are to old to ride, and young people can't swing it financially. I have a very good job, but filling up the pick up truck hurts in this economy. Most of my friends don't even own pick up trucks, and if you don't have a truck it is basically impossible to be apart of the power sports industry.
Yes, Honda is planning to enter the snowmobile market in 2026. Honda has been considering a winter recreational product for a long time, and they believe that if their Powersports concept is successful in the Snowbelt, it will need to include a product for those dealers
John Deere could get back to their roots and release a Spitfire or a Liquifire like they had back in the 70's and 80's. I grew up on a late 70's John Deere Spitfire 340.
I am guessing a couple of things that have hurt Cat. 1: The end of Yamaha Snowmobiles and the sales of made in China 4 wheelers. Arctic Cat and Polaris biggest share holders are Blackrock and Vanguard.
Arctic Cat doesn't have any shareholders, but if you're speaking of Textron that is correct. Since they also have so much control over Polaris a Polaris-AC merger is also a strong possibility.
@@yamajammer76 Polaris was 3 Men who made Repaired and made some Farm Machinery .. One of them messed around and made a snow machine. Two of these Men were Brothers. The one Brother thought it was foolish that his Brother built a snow machine. A neighbor offered to buy the snow machine so they built and sold more of them. Eventually becoming the Polaris Snowmobile CO .One Brother wanted to make lighter more fun recreational machines. The other Brother wanted to make commercial Machines for Farmers, Trappers, and ice fisherman. So one Brother left the Partnership and founded Arctic Cat. Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) is one of the world’s best known multi-industry companies, recognized for its powerful brands such as Bell, Cessna, Beechcraft, E-Z-GO, Arctic Cat and many more. The company leverages its global network of aircraft, defense, industrial and finance businesses to provide customers with innovative products and services
Price and no rideable snow until February for 4-5 years are the problem. No need to complicate it further. Where I live we usta be riding regularly by Dec 1. That hasnt been the case for 10-15 years. Who can or wants to tie up $15k in something you can use for 2 months a year?
There has been rumors that Kawasaki has been looking at Arctic Cat. The other rumored companies are Yamaha, John Deere, Argo and CFMOTO. It’s all just rumors. If Textron can’t sell AC as a going concern it’ll be parted out. At that point, the best AC customers can hope for is that Polaris buys the brand and provides parts and service for customers. I hope this doesn’t happen because a duopoly is a terrible situation not only for pricing, but also for innovation.
Parts are already getting scarce and expensive for older sleds. I own several Arcticat sleds, my old 300hp boosted Z1 is still my favorite. I was looking for a hood and found only 1 on the Internet, their asking 1700.00 😮
I agree normal people have been priced out of a snowmobile it’s not realistic to spend that kind of money for a fun thing can buy a small car for the same price
Is it out of the question that Polaris our Ski-Doo would buy Arctic Cat? General Motors bought up a lot of car brands way back it would definitely make either one the largest snowmobile manufacturer.
@riverratt8626 I noticed that when I got into dual sports and adv riding. Although I absolutely love the norden 901, these are essentially just re-branded ktm's.
Honda will not get into snowmobiles . Kawasaki was in and is gone. Yamaha is another juggernaut and they are leaving. Sleds are too expensive for the little use . Hoping doesn’t make it so
If Yamaha wouldn't stay in the industry why do you think Honda would come into it I'm die hard but snowmobiling is dying 40 over Christmas back east 2 weeks of riding done.
No other ATV company will buy Cat. They have learned there lesson seeing what happened to KTM after they bought Huskey, Gas Gas and who ever else they bought. Also Honda does not stay with the leading edge technology, there quads and UTV's are very reliable, but there products only change up every 6 to 10 years. So this is fine for trail and trapper sleds, but they would fall behind in Mtn sleds. You guys right about Social media, when Cat and Chris Burant split ways, this was the start of Cats down fall. Now polaris is sponsering a whole bunch of mountain riders, Hill Climbers and Utube guys like Brent Turcott, Caleb (Proven Progression utube)
@AjStoffle they had a good snowmobile for the time! Early 80s when their was hardly no snow for quite a few years that's when lots of the manufacturers all went out of business and jd sold their line Polaris.
People jump on the price bandwagon every other post, that’s not all of it. We have $7300 Neo’s in stock and they sell OK. But they are never going to make a $20k sled and sell it for $9k. I can only speak for New England, but lack of good snow ..trail closings…game wardens with a chip on the shoulder and too many people with huge check books $$ and no common sense hurt the sport more than MSRP pricing.
@ i think they could bring back another product line such as Silverline fishing boats or pontoons but I think a bigger company or wealthy family that loves snowmobiling but doesn’t care about getting rich could make it work. CEO’s are getting too rich and government regulations are making it too difficult for manufacturers to make affordable products for blue collar consumers. What do you think?
Great content but the economy is screwed and needs to reset. I love trump but the industry out priced itself for the average American. Sorry but prices too damn high.
Bottom line is how manny new sleds are being sold worldwide each year around hundred thousand sleds if people are not buying new sleds each year and production numbers are not going up it’s not going to last only 2 sled manufacturers left lets be honest and the world today is different sucks but just facts people are hurting financially big time
At one time there was over 200 manufacturers for snowmobiles in the US, now there is 3 maybe polaris should buy artic cat and reunite!! Just look at atv racing it's hardy around any more, everything in the power sports is to expensive for the avg American just like the auto world , housing,food etc
There is a lot of truth to what you are saying about social media over racer/athlete status. My page Northwoods snowmobiling llc has more followers and Influence than most other pages. There aren't the Tucker Hibberts, like there used to be
I’ll be honest,I’ve been dreaming of getting a new snowmobile, and I’m partial to arctic cat because that’s what my dad had when I was growing up. This news makes me nervous to invest in an arctic cat though because I don’t know if they’ll be around to support it. If they don’t come out with some good PR news soon it’s really gonna hurt adoption of their new catalysts platform.
I remember when the Arctic cat closed the doors in the 80s couple of people I knew bought brand new cats unassembled in the box for half retail. Maybe history will repeat.😁
Oh, I guess that makes my Fathers 1976 Yamaha Exciter and my 2006 Yamaha Attack collectors items too. I have always wanted an early Yamaha SRX and an Early SRX Triple or Viper Triple too .. The 700 Triples still are very fast.. just upgrade the rear suspension.
So with Trump getting in I personally think things nationwide are going to get tougher, I think we need a change to happen. The wages haven’t kept up to life. We are just handling more money, we are not really making more.
Brp had a couple easy way bailouts. Cat came back harder than ever 2 years later in 1984 from a bankrupt. I love how everyone is shitting on this new cat. I’ve got 3 858’s and prouder than ever. Big deal there’s a couple glitches. How many glitches was with a 2017 Skidoo 850. That was a real POS. How many we seen pulled down the hills to their truck. Everyone needs to settle down and let this level out. Cats not going anywhere. All 3 manufacturers are feeling this low snow. Dealers sitting on 22/23/24’s. 🤦♂️
Definitely not shitting on the 858 really want to see them be successful the whole industry needs it to be!! Definitely expect issues out of them all the first years
Actually I did know about that textron bought them I believe in 1968 and then built them up strong and sold them in 1981 I had that same hope to happen for Arctic cat it just hasn’t seemed to go that way.
Dude. He wants to put 25 % on canadian stuff. Canada will put 25 or more on all usa goods. Thats to protect its brand brp. I dont think this ends well for any of us.
The tariffs definitely won’t help anyone. It’ll make parts harder to get for any skidoo owners in the states, and likewise for cat and Polaris owners in Canada. Nobody wins
Trump, El Niño and a killer crypto/stock market might be enough to save Cat and the whole industry. I swear by a big loop of mule tape in one of my pockets. It’s a tow rope, pull strap, repair strap for a lot of stuff and is super easy to just keep in your pocket.
All these sleds from everyone is over priced…. Can’t see paying that much for a sled that if I’m lucky the I’ll get to ride it for 3 months. Last two wave been horrible. Had maybe 1 month last winter upstate ny
I still believe if the snowmobile industry wants to survive they need to make it family affordable again.
I might be in the a minority, but I grew up with sleds from the 70s which will always have a place in my heart. I would love to see manufactures produce a line of sleds which harken back to that. Small, light weight 340s and 440s with updated suspension and nothing else. They should not update these models but once a decade to keep price down and parts interchangeable. The targe price should be in the $3500 dollor range or less if possible. One other thing manufactures could do would be to reproduce some heritage sleds with some modern updates to cash in on nostalgia as many rc car makers have been doing. Mostly though I think prices have to come down. Snowmobiles are toys for most of us, they shouldn't cost as much as an automobile.
Remember when Yamaha cancelled the Bravo? That snowmobile had barely changed in decades. I like to think that Yamaha had good reasons to discontinue the snowmobile (lack of sales, low margin) but something tells me that investor greed played its part; those sleds were built to last and that is no good for short-term profit margins.
They also kept the YZ125 unchanged for sometime. I prefer that business model because parts ahould be more readily available as opposed to something which is changing every few years.
@@gabrielrichter1795 Snowmobiles are such niche vehicles that a model should last 10 years without major updates. Instead we get new platforms every third or fourth year. It's a logistical nightmare for both the owner and the small shops that sell parts and sleds.
“Insane” snowmobiles, in every sense, is a big reason why the industry is in the state it is.
The prices definitely are some of that issue!
I love that yall got the recognition yall did on the last pod. It is going to be very cool to watch this channel grow! Loved the video today and what a good way to start Christmas eve!
Thank you appreciate the support!
In an industry that is completely controlled by the wall street profit and all these manufacturers have the mentality that they seemingly have to run the company balls to the wall, while apparently oblivious to the fact that there certainly will be bad or "no snow" winters that will have huge impacts on them financially, begs the question, are the person's at the helm mentally fit to even be running things? Common sense would dictate that right when they go balls to the wall production wise, etc is exactly the time when they should probably be throttling back a bit. Feast or famine is all some of these CEO's seem know. Look no further than Harley Davidson and ask yourself if the persons at the helm are fit to hold the job they were entrusted with. Thanks guys. Love the podcasts!
Thank you! And Great comments!
You can't let bean counters run a company,they just don't understand what manufacturing is all about.
The other big problem that we aren’t talking about enough and that is PRICES! Prices are completely out of control. This was supposed to be the blue collar workers sport. How is the common guy supposed to afford 25 plus thousand dollars for a snowmobile.
Prices is definitely a huge part of it! We discussed this in depth on our last podcast!
When Tucker was racing snocross it was basically a Arctic Cat event! So much green hibbert carried arctic cat. I'm not an arctic cat rider either. The event still sells out in deadwood but it's less green than its heyday!
True - but when Tucker was invincible in the snowcross circuit, sales didn't skyrocket as a result of Tuckers dominance.
Miss having Tucker on the track he was Greta for the sport
great event but the size oh hs gym
The Manufacturers have priced themselves out of Business.
Agreed!!
What track would you recommend for deep back country switch back road riding with an occasional hard clime to ridge lines?
Love the pod. Found you guys about a month ago. Won't be Caleb this lifetime, but for sure next. Keep it coming.
Thank you!! Appreciate the support
Maybe CF Moto will buy Cat. They've gathering steam the past couple years. To get on topic with making snowmbiling affordable again.......i bought my son a new 85 horse Summit Neo+. He's only 10, but this machine gives him the ability to grow into it. Priced at 10k out the door, it made perfect sense. I looked at the Arctic Cat Blast and the Yamaha Vemon, but both of those were 12k out the door and a 7/8 size machine. In my eyes, the neo line by Ski-Doo and Evo line by Polaris are as close as we're going to get to something new and affordable to get into the sport......for now. We'll see what lack luster sales do to the market in the next couple years.
My opinion, most logical buyer would be CFMoto. Just to have their ATV's/SxS's have a made in USA sticker on them to appeal to US buyers and produce a sled like a knockoff Blast at a low cost to sell a ton of them. And beat the tariff ordeal having their machines assembled here
Definitely have heard this tossed around a lot!
Anyone notice sled prices crashing in their area? We got dealers with still some brand new unsold 23s and the 24s are on sale
Yup got a brand new 23 khaos for 11,500 usd out the door including a taxes and fees
Is that new? I've always bought new last year sleds because they're cheap
@@gcow8328yep brand new 23 holdover
@ also seen 24’s for the same price at the same dealer but I wanted a 165 so I got the 23.
Yeah I’ve been following the used market also. Basically brand new used sleds with under 500mi on them at basically giveaway prices aren’t moving either
That Honda rumor has been going on since the mid 80ies. It got everyone's hopes up, but it as usual, never came about. Now, you have the Honda / Nissan merge! 😏
Yes sadly only ever a rumor!! Maybe we will see that new Nissan snowmobile now haha
Could be wishful thinking, but i believe a deal has already been made in regards to arctic cat. We just won't hear anything official till '25.
I think the entire powersports industry as a whole is in trouble due to overproduction. Units sold like crazy when covid hit, now 3-4 years after covid, manufacturers are still producing numbers they needed in 2021. It has flooded the market and devalued the product. At the same time they offer the products at higher than ever prices
That feels all to real for what’s happening I think you nailed it!
These industries have weathered multiple resections they take a dip and then it come back. People just don’t have the money to go out and buy a new sled. Might be the case for a few years.
Agreed hopefully they can weather this storm!
Argo from what I've been told is the front runner for the parent company of cat!
Very interesting! Thank you
How can a man walk with no ankles or knees? Snowmobile manufacturers have taken out the foundation of the sport for most consumers by ignoring the entry point for new riders. 120’s and 200’s are great if your 5 to ride in the fields around your farm but they shouldn’t cost $3-5 grand. The beginner sleds should cost $2,000. Youth and Teen models should cost $4-5,000. Not $9k for a 400 or 570. Then the next jump is to $14,000 for a good sport machine. So since the barrier of entry is so large, kids spend their money on Surron and other E motorcycles and get a similar adrenaline rush for way less money ($4k for a Surron)
How can I contact you directly to discuss a few items you may be interested in with this topic… lmk
All events are dieing. 20 years ago the only way to see fantastic things was live in person.
Today you can see ten different perspectives from the couch
20 years ago top racers use to show up with a duallie pickup truck and huge trailer. Now they are in semi's. Lots of things need to go back to their roots. Get the big corporations out
This is super true social media has taken the wow factor out of all events!
Arctic cat. Had troubles in 1980 also. 😊
Lots of problems in the 80s... history repeating, except main difference is adding a few more zeroes in the dollar amounts.
Not sure how some businesses will return. If AC is in trouble, hopefully an established brand will take over.
Hopefully they can weather this storm as well
I believe the combination of low snow in some states, and the economy, and the price of sleds has gotten ridiculous now i baught a new 850 Polaris but i work at a dealership but even so at a discount still expensive but ive seen on the repair side of it has gotten hit to taking in more junk repairs to keep us mechanics buisy but the major fall i believe is the economy
Definitely a great comment on this agreed
JD in the Midwest used to be primarily arctic cat dealers until textron took over. Would love to see JD pick up cat as you mentioned they have the network and would be a quick turn key. Wouldn’t be opposed to Honda either.
Biggest thing I’d take away from the podcast is that most buyers today don’t research what they want, they would rather follow a trend or have someone else to tell them what to buy unfortunately.
Thanks for the comment and support most definitely crazy how people spend money these days!
Low snow year's, too expensive to participate in snowmobiling, there's more UTV trail permits sold in Michigan now than snow permits, even the holdover sled's are 15 to 20 grand still in Michigan, too expensive
Crazy how expensive they are…. UTV has most definitely blown up
UTVs are crazy expensive
Powersports industry is in for a desperate future, if you zoom out the problem is rather obvious. Boomers are to old to ride, and young people can't swing it financially. I have a very good job, but filling up the pick up truck hurts in this economy. Most of my friends don't even own pick up trucks, and if you don't have a truck it is basically impossible to be apart of the power sports industry.
St Cloud is only engines
Thank you this is good to know!
Yes, Honda is planning to enter the snowmobile market in 2026. Honda has been considering a winter recreational product for a long time, and they believe that if their Powersports concept is successful in the Snowbelt, it will need to include a product for those dealers
Nice Troll there. Honda did actually have concept drawings for Snowmobiles for Decades ago .
@mikeskidmore6754 well it's not a troll when you ask Google and that's the answer it gives. But please enlightened us all .
@@briandhoward6137it was literally a April fools joke posted by snowest magazine teasing about a 2026 entry followed by #aprilfools 😂😂
Electric, I bet
John Deere could get back to their roots and release a Spitfire or a Liquifire like they had back in the 70's and 80's. I grew up on a late 70's John Deere Spitfire 340.
I am guessing a couple of things that have hurt Cat. 1: The end of Yamaha Snowmobiles and the sales of made in China 4 wheelers.
Arctic Cat and Polaris biggest share holders are Blackrock and Vanguard.
Arctic Cat doesn't have any shareholders, but if you're speaking of Textron that is correct. Since they also have so much control over Polaris a Polaris-AC merger is also a strong possibility.
@@yamajammer76 Polaris was 3 Men who made Repaired and made some Farm Machinery .. One of them messed around and made a snow machine. Two of these Men were Brothers. The one Brother thought it was foolish that his Brother built a snow machine. A neighbor offered to buy the snow machine so they built and sold more of them. Eventually becoming the Polaris Snowmobile CO .One Brother wanted to make lighter more fun recreational machines. The other Brother wanted to make commercial Machines for Farmers, Trappers, and ice fisherman. So one Brother left the Partnership and founded Arctic Cat.
Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) is one of the world’s best known multi-industry companies, recognized for its powerful brands such as Bell, Cessna, Beechcraft, E-Z-GO, Arctic Cat and many more. The company leverages its global network of aircraft, defense, industrial and finance businesses to provide customers with innovative products and services
Polaris will be fine as long as they have them government/military contracts
@@440tomcat I read that Polaris Partnered with Zero for EV technology and they build some practical Electric Military & Commercial use EV's
Price and no rideable snow until February for 4-5 years are the problem. No need to complicate it further.
Where I live we usta be riding regularly by Dec 1. That hasnt been the case for 10-15 years. Who can or wants to tie up $15k in something you can use for 2 months a year?
There has been rumors that Kawasaki has been looking at Arctic Cat. The other rumored companies are Yamaha, John Deere, Argo and CFMOTO. It’s all just rumors. If Textron can’t sell AC as a going concern it’ll be parted out. At that point, the best AC customers can hope for is that Polaris buys the brand and provides parts and service for customers. I hope this doesn’t happen because a duopoly is a terrible situation not only for pricing, but also for innovation.
We have heard the same… that’s interesting for sure would keep parts and service but agreed stood the pushing of the sport
Whats the handle on spotify?
Parts are already getting scarce and expensive for older sleds. I own several Arcticat sleds, my old 300hp boosted Z1 is still my favorite. I was looking for a hood and found only 1 on the Internet, their asking 1700.00 😮
Yikes hate to hear this!!
I have now problem finding parts for older cats, mid 70's on up
I agree normal people have been priced out of a snowmobile it’s not realistic to spend that kind of money for a fun thing can buy a small car for the same price
Is it out of the question that Polaris our Ski-Doo would buy Arctic Cat? General Motors bought up a lot of car brands way back it would definitely make either one the largest snowmobile manufacturer.
Unlikely. Makes more sense with doo cuz then they wouldn't hafta deal with tarrifs. But unlikely because doo and polaris have cut back too.
Look what happened to KTM after buying up other dirt bike companies', now there going broke.
@riverratt8626 I noticed that when I got into dual sports and adv riding. Although I absolutely love the norden 901, these are essentially just re-branded ktm's.
Not the craziest idea for sure!!!
Honda will not get into snowmobiles . Kawasaki was in and is gone. Yamaha is another juggernaut and they are leaving. Sleds are too expensive for the little use . Hoping doesn’t make it so
Suzuki made sleds for a long time too, Harley even sold sleds for a while
A agree I don’t see any big dirt bike companies getting into snowmobiles….
If Yamaha wouldn't stay in the industry why do you think Honda would come into it I'm die hard but snowmobiling is dying 40 over Christmas back east 2 weeks of riding done.
Unfortunately we agree but would be cool to see someone new step into the space to push it further.
Maybe yamaha will buy it from textron, in thief river falls mn....
Would be a wild turn of events!
@AjStoffle before textron arctic cat had a great working relationship already with yamaha.... so... it would make sense
Price isn't the problem , the weather is , no snow , no ride , take a look at the price of new boats, people still buy em ,
No other ATV company will buy Cat. They have learned there lesson seeing what happened to KTM after they bought Huskey, Gas Gas and who ever else they bought. Also Honda does not stay with the leading edge technology, there quads and UTV's are very reliable, but there products only change up every 6 to 10 years. So this is fine for trail and trapper sleds, but they would fall behind in Mtn sleds. You guys right about Social media, when Cat and Chris Burant split ways, this was the start of Cats down fall. Now polaris is sponsering a whole bunch of mountain riders, Hill Climbers and Utube guys like Brent Turcott, Caleb (Proven Progression utube)
Thank you for the comment! But agreed the dirt industry isn’t thriving… crazy how the sport has changes
John Deere that would be interesting! Back in it for a second time! Last time they quit they sold their line to Polaris
That’s interesting I didn’t know that’s how they exited very cool
@AjStoffle they had a good snowmobile for the time! Early 80s when their was hardly no snow for quite a few years that's when lots of the manufacturers all went out of business and jd sold their line Polaris.
People jump on the price bandwagon every other post, that’s not all of it. We have $7300 Neo’s in stock and they sell OK.
But they are never going to make a $20k sled and sell it for $9k.
I can only speak for New England, but lack of good snow ..trail closings…game wardens with a chip on the shoulder and too many people with huge check books $$ and no common sense hurt the sport more than MSRP pricing.
snowmobiles NEED ! snow. every year every year. mountain sleds only carry you so far
Couldn’t agree more Midwest is where the snowmobile industry still thrives and they need snow
Honda would be awesome! Might sound crazy but Tesla or Ford Motor Company are other possibilities.
Love the ideas would be cool to see someone of that size come into the market
@ i think they could bring back another product line such as Silverline fishing boats or pontoons but I think a bigger company or wealthy family that loves snowmobiling but doesn’t care about getting rich could make it work. CEO’s are getting too rich and government regulations are making it too difficult for manufacturers to make affordable products for blue collar consumers. What do you think?
The beginning of the drop in popularity in Snocross started when Tucker Hibbert retired.
Couple years prior
Definitely didn’t help
Great content but the economy is screwed and needs to reset. I love trump but the industry out priced itself for the average American. Sorry but prices too damn high.
Thank you!! And yes prices have to get better first!
@bc What rider/riders that would be the ski doo pushers on social media
Bottom line is how manny new sleds are being sold worldwide each year around hundred thousand sleds if people are not buying new sleds each year and production numbers are not going up it’s not going to last only 2 sled manufacturers left lets be honest and the world today is different sucks but just facts people are hurting financially big time
John Deere made sleds back in the
My dad actually has an old spit fire he wants to restore they a tree super cool old sleds!!
Worked at a company that Textron purchased ... everything they touch turns to $hit. At least my experience.
You would have that hands on experience definitely scared how it’s going now with Cat
At one time there was over 200 manufacturers for snowmobiles in the US, now there is 3 maybe polaris should buy artic cat and reunite!! Just look at atv racing it's hardy around any more, everything in the power sports is to expensive for the avg American just like the auto world , housing,food etc
Would be cool! And definitely so cool so many manufacturers use to be involved back in the day! Definitely agree with the cost of things!
There is a lot of truth to what you are saying about social media over racer/athlete status.
My page Northwoods snowmobiling llc has more followers and Influence than most other pages.
There aren't the Tucker Hibberts, like there used to be
For sure crazy how social media is the new influence for sure!
They havent had any customer service for a decade
I hate to hear this that’s definitely such a huge part of it!
I’ll be honest,I’ve been dreaming of getting a new snowmobile, and I’m partial to arctic cat because that’s what my dad had when I was growing up.
This news makes me nervous to invest in an arctic cat though because I don’t know if they’ll be around to support it.
If they don’t come out with some good PR news soon it’s really gonna hurt adoption of their new catalysts platform.
Totally understand your dilemma
Arctic cat locked the doors in 1980 for a year or so
I remember when the Arctic cat closed the doors in the 80s couple of people I knew bought brand new cats unassembled in the box for half retail. Maybe history will repeat.😁
Yep. It was 2 years
Very interesting!! Maybe we will see this again
82-83, they produced 81 sleds and 84 on up
Snocross died when winter x games dropped them.
Why don't you think China company won't be it? You guys are all wrong?
Artic cat has its work cut out for them especially when trying to compete with ski doo cat is stuck in 2015
It unfortunately feels that way! They made a big leap with the chassis but definitely have more to go.
@AjStoffle there chassis seems to be really good.
This would be the best time do buy a cat, especially if they stop producing. Collectors item in the years to come
Oh, I guess that makes my Fathers 1976 Yamaha Exciter and my 2006 Yamaha Attack collectors items too. I have always wanted an early Yamaha SRX and an Early SRX Triple or Viper Triple too .. The 700 Triples still are very fast.. just upgrade the rear suspension.
@mikeskidmore6754 yeah I would hold on to all those sleds bud
So with Trump getting in I personally think things nationwide are going to get tougher, I think we need a change to happen.
The wages haven’t kept up to life. We are just handling more money, we are not really making more.
Might be able to get that new sled as an investment then right 😉
@@AjStoffle As a Collectors Item maybe. The Arctic Cat Employees should buy the Business.
Brp had a couple easy way bailouts. Cat came back harder than ever 2 years later in 1984 from a bankrupt. I love how everyone is shitting on this new cat. I’ve got 3 858’s and prouder than ever. Big deal there’s a couple glitches. How many glitches was with a 2017 Skidoo 850. That was a real POS. How many we seen pulled down the hills to their truck. Everyone needs to settle down and let this level out. Cats not going anywhere. All 3 manufacturers are feeling this low snow. Dealers sitting on 22/23/24’s. 🤦♂️
Definitely not shitting on the 858 really want to see them be successful the whole industry needs it to be!! Definitely expect issues out of them all the first years
@ yeah Forsure. It be a sad sight to see only 2 manufacturers in these trying times
Trump will make it better
I’ll bet you guys didn’t know that Polaris is owned by Textron…
I'm old enough to remember that. They degraded Polaris too.
Actually I did know about that textron bought them I believe in 1968 and then built them up strong and sold them in 1981 I had that same hope to happen for Arctic cat it just hasn’t seemed to go that way.
With Trump they will get better i feel but it might not happen right away and it could dip worse at first. Same goes with our grain markets.
Dude. He wants to put 25 % on canadian stuff. Canada will put 25 or more on all usa goods. Thats to protect its brand brp. I dont think this ends well for any of us.
The tariffs definitely won’t help anyone. It’ll make parts harder to get for any skidoo owners in the states, and likewise for cat and Polaris owners in Canada. Nobody wins
90% sure that is what's going to happen here in Canada we just need Justin out and Pierre in
Trump was one of the worst president's for grain farmers. Also, they have been failing for decades. No savior is going to fix it
Put the pipe and glass down….,,,You elected a convicted criminal con man….
Trump, El Niño and a killer crypto/stock market might be enough to save Cat and the whole industry.
I swear by a big loop of mule tape in one of my pockets. It’s a tow rope, pull strap, repair strap for a lot of stuff and is super easy to just keep in your pocket.
All these sleds from everyone is over priced…. Can’t see paying that much for a sled that if I’m lucky the I’ll get to ride it for 3 months. Last two wave been horrible. Had maybe 1 month last winter upstate ny