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Arctic Cat Catalyst 858

Naw…thats what the internet is for lol! Truth is-if the engine works good and is reliable people will love the sled. If and when they do a rein rail -more people will love it and when they do a turbo -even more people will love it. So if they can whmeathet the financial hardships of the rebuild/re brand and survive the stupid internet, they will thrive.
 
I was able to ride the 858 sleds a week ago. Our Cat rep met a group of us up Logan canyon. We were able to ride them for about 2 hours. We rode a 165" mountain cat, 165" sno pro and a 154" mountain cat. They all had the 3" tracks, the rep told us that the machines were from the original media ride in west Yellowstone and had been re flashed about 40 times. The engineers are busy making fuel and clutching changes before production starts. I was excited to ride the sleds in the conditions and area we know pretty well. The trail had been groomed recently and the corners had some bumps. The sno pro was very smooth down the trail, my personal sled is a 2019 154 Alpha. I never could dream about hitting the corners as fast as I was. The catalyst is planted in the corners, and feels like a dual rail hitting the bumps on the straights. The 165" tack was smooth over the bumps where in the past I have felt the slap of the longer rail. The whole time climbing we never switched the shocks from #1. I was able to ride the 600 sleds last spring in island park with Cat. The 858 is not as light feeling on the snow. We had 2 600's with us a 3" and 2.6 154. Everyone that rode the 858 said the same thing, it felt heavier. The 600 is almost too easy to ride in the trees. I find my self riding wrong foot forward not because it needs it to side hill, its to keep me from over compensating. The 858 you can ride neutral and just look and lean your weight. The power feels great in all ranges, I felt like the bottom end is awesome, but hopefully will be better in the fall. You can defiantly feel the longer legs of the engine compared to the 800. The 858 is going to give any na sled a run for there money next year. I know snowest does not think so, but I'm pretty positive it will beat a 9R. Excited for next season
 
ridgelinerunner said:
I was able to ride the 858 sleds a week ago. Our Cat rep met a group of us up Logan canyon. We were able to ride them for about 2 hours. We rode a 165" mountain cat, 165" sno pro and a 154" mountain cat. They all had the 3" tracks, the rep told us that the machines were from the original media ride in west Yellowstone and had been re flashed about 40 times. The engineers are busy making fuel and clutching changes before production starts. I was excited to ride the sleds in the conditions and area we know pretty well. The trail had been groomed recently and the corners had some bumps. The sno pro was very smooth down the trail, my personal sled is a 2019 154 Alpha. I never could dream about hitting the corners as fast as I was. The catalyst is planted in the corners, and feels like a dual rail hitting the bumps on the straights. The 165" tack was smooth over the bumps where in the past I have felt the slap of the longer rail. The whole time climbing we never switched the shocks from #1. I was able to ride the 600 sleds last spring in island park with Cat. The 858 is not as light feeling on the snow. We had 2 600's with us a 3" and 2.6 154. Everyone that rode the 858 said the same thing, it felt heavier. The 600 is almost too easy to ride in the trees. I find my self riding wrong foot forward not because it needs it to side hill, its to keep me from over compensating. The 858 you can ride neutral and just look and lean your weight. The power feels great in all ranges, I felt like the bottom end is awesome, but hopefully will be better in the fall. You can defiantly feel the longer legs of the engine compared to the 800. The 858 is going to give any na sled a run for there money next year. I know snowest does not think so, but I'm pretty positive it will beat a 9R. Excited for next season
Click to expand...
Great write up. It's awesome to see they are continuing to refine mapping/clutching. Hoping to get more info on all that this weekend in Jackson.

Any handling comparisons between the Catalyst and Ascender 154s? I initially ordered a 165 858 but changed it to a 154. In the ascender chassis I did like the 165 better; it was a bit more compliant and stable. But I've always preferred and have typically owned 150s track lengths. Unfortunately there was not a 165 at the demo in West and was nervous about ordering something I did not throw a leg over.
 
I did not spend a lot of time on the 154. The 165 just keeps climbing! The snow was 6"-12" softer snow, good base. I always used to say the longer the better, but I like my 154. The first thing I noticed is the catalyst chassis does not try to keep tipping or the sleds momentum throw you around. You can tell that the weight is as low as possible. The only positive with the 165 Ascender in the ascender chassis is that you can go slower on the steep and deep. I would probably ride a 154 catalyst too! We took the sleds back down to our rep at the parking lot and I hoped on my 2019, I felt right away the weight up high, I could not ride the corners as fast as the catalyst and the chassis felt like it was riding me. Felt like i was going back to a proclimb from the alpha. I hope this helps, Those guys that took the leap of faith and ordered one will be the talk of the parking lot, especially if Polaris doesn't get there act together. Not sure why guys still buy there stuff
 
For those who have rode both the 600 and 858, is the 858 just as easy to ride in the mountains as the 600?

Never did get a chance to ride the 858, but I did get a chance to ride the 600 for a day. I was impressed with how easy it was to ride the 600, specifically how the front end would stay up and didn't have a tendency to dive to the left or right like my Alpha sometimes does. I know the 600 is lighter than my Alpha and it sure does feel that way when you ride. I also noticed that the 600 Catalyst was much easier to turn out while going down hill.
 
My 800 catalyst feels much lighter than my 600.
I would expect the 858 to feel very similar. Heavier crank and longer should be mostly offset by the lower and further back motor placement.

I would take everything in the podcast with a heavy dose of salt. Those guys repeatedly prove they know little to nothing about setup or the sled in general.
 
rkm said:
My 800 catalyst feels much lighter than my 600.
I would expect the 858 to feel very similar. Heavier crank and longer should be mostly offset by the lower and further back motor placement.

I would take everything in the podcast with a heavy dose of salt. Those guys repeatedly prove they know little to nothing about setup or the sled in general.
Click to expand...
The podcast is spot on off the second time i rode them. They aren't there to set sleds up. They were there to ride or evaluate what cat brought. Everyone who ordered one should be thanking snowest for the crappy review. It's because of them that cat got off their azz and remapped and clutched them. People will get better running sleds because of it.
 
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