2018 Mountain Cat Overall Review?

GTfly4 · Feb 1, 2018

Hi guys, just starting to look at the Mountain Cats and wondering how everything has been going with them? I saw on HCS some of the guys have been having trouble with the 800 short tracks backfiring a flame that is melting some bellypan plastics. Just wondering if the MC owners have experienced this too? They sure look like a great sled, just wanted to make sure there wasn't any huge issues that have been found now that they've been on snow for a little bit. Thanks in advance!

summ8rmk · Feb 1, 2018

Great sled, no, awesome sled!
After 300miles i did notice that it would have a high idle like the ole zuke after riding it hard. Need to let it idle down to 1800 just like the zuke or it may have a slight back fire.
I could possibly see a big backfire if u shut it off immediately. Cutting the snowflap shorter does indeed affect trail temps about 10-15° hotter.
Uses about half the oil of the zuke, same amount of gas if not a touch more.

Alpha Cat......

summ8rmk · Feb 1, 2018

Forgot, got over 400miles on the original belt! Looks good enough for another 400! We will see......

Alpha Cat......

DDECKER · Feb 2, 2018

decker mod, snow flap!

DDECKER · Feb 2, 2018

o yea! 800+ miles first belt 0 issues!

GTfly4 · Feb 2, 2018

Great to hear! Thanks for the reply! Another question, is the single heat exchanger keeping everything cool enough on the trails? The last M i owned (2012) had two I believe and just wanted to make sure as I don't always have the best powder conditions in my area.

summ8rmk · Feb 2, 2018

Trails won't be a problem as long as u have scratchers, even on ice.

Alpha Cat......

Deezy · Feb 2, 2018

Coming off a 2012 Pro Rmk, I have an Early Release 2018 and it is the best sled that I have owned to date. The difference in handling between the Pro and Ascender is incredible!

Not in th least bit disappointed with my purchase.

CO 2.0 · Feb 2, 2018

$11500 in mods on my silber 16 axys, and I still like riding my 18 cat with $1000 in mods more

ecyr123 · Feb 2, 2018

My bro got. 18 mc so I got some good seat time on it. I have a stage 2 2016 proclimb and I am still amazed how much better of a sled the 18 is.

eldereldo · Feb 2, 2018

There are some issues with them. Poor fit on the air screens can let snow get into the engine, make sure you check and seal everything up before riding, not hard to fix but it should be checked. Occasional issues with reversing in deep snow where the belt doesn’t seem to engage and just squeals, might be moisture on the belt, haven't had a chance to check it when it has done that to see what the cause might be. A couple reports of clutch’s letting go and shattering, although that seems to literally be a couple of instances.

So pretty minor for a brand new sled.

Pluses, the motor is great, lots of pull and low end grunt. The clutches are something else the way they take up at so low an rpm and smoothly. Sled gets up on the snow and handles great. You really need to play with the shock settings and get it dialed to your weight as it makes a huge difference in how the sled feels just adding or taking a few lbs of pressure out of the various shocks. No regrets at buying one at all.

Wheel House Motorsports · Feb 2, 2018

Don't personally own one but ride with a number of them and have spend a couple hours ripping around on them.

Only real issue seems to be the snow ingestion around intake at this point.
Seen a few have primarys blow up but very isolated issue and quick warranty turnaround and they replace anything it touched.

The sled flat works, I was never a fan of the proclimb. This thing is so much more agile, much more of a tree machine. Smooth takeoff, really impressive pull. good shocks (on mtn cat) All in all a great offering from cat this year. Put them back in the market after a few years of falling back.

Also clutching/belt performance on these things is awesome. I cannot get over how hard you can beat them and they don't blow belts, they just wear them out of spec over hundreds of miles. They also don't make bad clutch heat so they provide consistent performance even in crazy deep snow where other sleds really heat soak and start to run 'soft'.

Axys still has the cat a little in agility and weight obviously but the cat is freaking TOUGH in comparison and holds up a lot better to abuse. Cat is a lot more playful and "fun" to ride. Axys is very planted and deliberate in its performance.

GTfly4 · Feb 2, 2018

Sounds great! Thank you for all the replies! Glad to hear Cat has made a winner.

no_uh · Feb 2, 2018

I really want to a new MC as my next sled but my local cat dealer is meh and the polaris dealer here is incredible. Decisions, decisions.

summ8rmk · Feb 4, 2018

Got my first crusty snow ride yesterday.
And damn do these skis SUCK!
Twitchy, darty, deathwobble. 1/2in ice crust on top of a foot of powder and scary going down steep hills. Sidehilling was just as bad.
Now, trying to decide between Mohawk and Grippers.
Gonna swap skis with my 14 for now.

Alpha Cat......

richardderkevorkian · Feb 4, 2018

summ8rmk said:
Got my first crusty snow ride yesterday.
And damn do these skis SUCK!
Twitchy, darty, deathwobble. 1/2in ice crust on top of a foot of powder and scary going down steep hills. Sidehilling was just as bad.
Now, trying to decide between Mohawk and Grippers.
Gonna swap skis with my 14 for now.

Alpha Cat......

Those skis are death traps.

fudge313 · Feb 4, 2018

Skis have to be aling strait.. No clearence at all..

bcsnowdog · Feb 4, 2018

Love my 18! Best new sled to date. The power is amazing and it rides so smooth up the trail to the hills. Its incredibly good in deep BC powder. You have to ride it to believe how good the new clutch works. Still on the original belt at 1200 kms. I have no problem with the boards never filling up with snow. Fuel mileage worse 7 highest 10.5. I love the led light and the gauge is easy to see. I see no reason to swap out skis, they feel good but alignment has to be perfect or will feel weird (learned this from wifes 16 600). Side panel-hood removal is easy and fits way better than previous models.

sno*jet · Feb 4, 2018

bcsnowdog said:
I see no reason to swap out skis, they feel good but alignment has to be perfect or will feel weird (learned this from wifes 16 600).

you wont really see a reason until you try something better. then switch with someone rocking stockers still. then when you get yours back its like oh yeah huge diff! i gave the stock ones an honest try, 3 mos of riding, i double check alignment all the time. jmo, i love the 18s but hate them clown shoes.

ultrasks700 · Feb 5, 2018

GTfly4 said:
Great to hear! Thanks for the reply! Another question, is the single heat exchanger keeping everything cool enough on the trails? The last M i owned (2012) had two I believe and just wanted to make sure as I don't always have the best powder conditions in my area.

I was a little scared about the front mount heat exchanger at first, I do a decent amount of trail riding, both to get to the backcountry spots, and taking the wife out for a ride here and there, and surprisingly the sled cools VERY well. The scratchers are crucial, but I usually only have one down. Temps trail riding stay about 100-105. My m series usually ran in the 120-130 range.

I am very happy with the sled so far. I swapped out handlebars and controls, added a Upgraded front bumper, storage bags, and removed the snowflap(its useless and gets in the way) The power is great and very smooth, but I hear so several that the Speedwerx Stage II is a MUST for these and really wakes the machine up. I would not hesitate to get one, and they are starting to pop up for sale. there one local with 80 miles for 11,800$, hard to pass that up

2018 Mountain Cat Overall Review?

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