That's not good news. They want to use Cats production capability to build other profitable products. Bad news for Powersports business.
Arctic Cat in Trouble
- Thread starter GoBigParts
- Start date
That's not good news. They want to use Cats production capability to build other profitable products. Bad news for Powersports business.
That's how I read it too.
Textron Seeks "Strategic Alternatives" For Arctic Cat Division UPDATED
In an SEC filing on December 18, Textron says it is looking for "strategic alternatives" to its Arctic Cat and powersports group.
snowgoer.com
Damn!
I don't understand why Textron bought Cat only to do almost nothing with it. The sleds are finally starting to get the development they needed, but the dirt side has been completely stagnant with the exception of one 600cc atv. It's been almost 8 years now since the acquisition.
If I'm reading that right, as of right now there is no plan to produce MY '26 Cat sleds. That's really bad news if nothing changes, and it's going to hurt sales of existing sleds; it could turn the bean-counters at Textron into self-fulfilling profits who'll just pat themselves on the back if Cat fades away. It'd be incredibly stupid of them to build a new chassis and not give it at least three years (probably five, unless they're really going down the tubes). The silver lining is that there's got to be a better parent for Cat then Textron - but who? I can't see Yamaha jumping back in, and I don't think any Japanese company is going to be any more interested. I can't think of any other powersports company either.
At least Cat has a competitive product, and therein lies the hope; if it weren't for that, I'd be thinking "game over" for Cat. Some other potentially good news is that I think a lot of us are under the impression that snowmobile sales are on a steady decline (I would have guessed that), but it actually looks pretty steady over the last fifteen years (but nothing like the 90s). I'm not sure if that means there's comfortably room for three players, but it would seem strange for Cat to be able to get this far if it were impractical (especially with Yammi fully out).
At least Cat has a competitive product, and therein lies the hope; if it weren't for that, I'd be thinking "game over" for Cat. Some other potentially good news is that I think a lot of us are under the impression that snowmobile sales are on a steady decline (I would have guessed that), but it actually looks pretty steady over the last fifteen years (but nothing like the 90s). I'm not sure if that means there's comfortably room for three players, but it would seem strange for Cat to be able to get this far if it were impractical (especially with Yammi fully out).
They must be following the 80s GM model: spend a bunch of time and money finally building something interesting - if imperfect - and then kill it just when it's getting sorted out. My best guess is a shift in management: the CEO or somebody high up when they bought Cat liked snowmobiles or thought it was a market they could grow, but the new team is a "slash everything but our core competency" type. Of course, Polaris was part of Textron waaaay back. I suppose that's another reason for hope: they were salvaged from that mess and came out stronger. Just makes you wonder how it is Textron has survived this long...
Last edited:
If I understood the article correctly, Textron is going to spend around $200M to indefinitely postpone production, which is a lot of cash for a operation the size of Arctic Cat. To spend that kind of money I would think this includes buying out supply agreements with their suppliers which makes you wonder if there is any intention of ever restarting production.
We need to do a lottery pool on snowest, then put the winnings into purchasing arctic cat and investing in r&d.
Also, technically, 2026 snowmobiles can't legally be produced until the second half of 2025. The article says the pause is planned through the first half of the year. I'd be surprised if they didn't at least do some limited production snowcheck- only sleds at a minimum, even if there are no changes to them from my2025.
Also, technically, 2026 snowmobiles can't legally be produced until the second half of 2025. The article says the pause is planned through the first half of the year. I'd be surprised if they didn't at least do some limited production snowcheck- only sleds at a minimum, even if there are no changes to them from my2025.
That money is actually a constantly increasing number. It includes all the separation costs that have already been incurred by the 1500+ people across all of Textron (it started as laid out in AOP in Nov '23 of cutting 750 people in '24) in the last 12-13 months. They are now incurring this extra cost on stopping mfg indefinitely. Some of that could be paying for tooling storage at suppliers, etc. Then the valuation decrease from existing inventory they are likely using to adjust their value on the books of unsold inventory to take the loss this year as well for tax purposes.
They have produced '26 model sleds in January - March some years. They don't leave everything until July 1. They don't always get shipped, but youth sleds (solid build and sell ratio) and overseas have to be built sooner than later.
I guess I was wrong, I swear I remember reading that. Wikipedia says model year can legally start anytime the previous year. Still though, sled production is usually summer and fall
V
volcano buster
Well-known member
What all was in the deal from Arctic Cat to Textron, apparently almost 8 years ago, that they would plan to continue with once they close out the motorsports side?
My bet is Cat is done for good and there will not be a buyer for it.
Its definitely not an appealing investment in today’s environment and the sled industry isn’t growing. So if they are at this point of pausing production not looking good for the future.
Sled industry needs a complete revamp to attract new people.
Bad snow years impact things but I truly believe it has more to do with prices. I use to buy a new sled every couple years, not anymore! It’s nuts how much prices have increased in the last few years. I primarily bought this year because of the age of my other sled but it was a hard pill to swallow because of the prices.
I think inflation is just coming full circle.
Your money is worth less.
The middle class is shrinking.
Your money is worth less.
The middle class is shrinking.
Cat is done. No one is going to swoop in and buy them. There are not enough sled sales to support 4… wait, now it’s three sled brands. Doo will continue to take market share from Polaris due to Poo’s inability to solve their QC issues. Basically the industry is going full circle to back in the 60’s when Ski-Doo was by far the largest brand of sleds.
I thought the economy was in wonderful shape? Thats what cnn tells me
