I'm looking at getting one of these soon. What are the pros and cons of this machine? I've heard stories that they didn't have the power to really turn big mud tires, is this true? Anyone had any problems with them? What about the pricing on them?

 

I looked at one the other day at the dealer.First I didn't like the frame at all.Looks kinda punny to me for such a big bike.Also didn't like the weight of it.Dealer said it was 800 pounds,not sure of that,but that is alot.Also had a conversation with him about articats answer to the CAN-AM 800.And with the weight of it still will not keep up with the CAN-AM. Also it's really top heavy and no extra ground clearance.Price was 10,500. Do what you want but I'd ride both (or others for that matter) before you buy.

 

The Thundercat is faster then the Can-Am. The Thundercat actuall handles better then most of the other ACs because of the way the seat is designed you ride about 2 inches lower, so you have the sense of riding in the bike, not on top of it. The GC is the same as the other ACs with that frame. It weighs that much because it has a bigass engine in it. You will have all the power you need to turn bigger tires and if you don't you can do the 1400cc mod. Bore out the cylinders and throw in the 700 cylinders, giving it 1400cc. The first Thundercats off of the production line did have some problems, but those have been sorted out. You will not be dissapointed with the Thundercat.

 

I know the Thundercat is fuel injected so would doing the 1400 cc upgrade give it any more power? Has anyone done this and then compared it to a stock one? I'm not worried about the weight or size part of it. When they first started having boggin in the dirty south I ran a 700 sportsman with a gorrilla axle lift. I'm more worried about the belt handling the big tires in a sticky situation????

 

I have heard about 2 people that have done the 1400cc mod. I'm not sure what all it takes because i was told about this on another forum. But i did talk to the guy that saw one of these run and he said that you can't floor it on pavement or else your tires will just burn right off, and in the loose stuff you can make 50ft rooster tails. The belts on the newer bikes(07 and up) are designed differently then the older ones and they won't break(but never say never, because im sure they can)

 

That's good. Can you give me a link to where you read about this big bore kit? I was just worried about the thick mud and big tires causing the belt to slip. Lot's of bikes that are that powerfull will overpower the belt and smoke it.

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: contentsunderpressur

I'm looking at getting one of these soon. What are the pros and cons of this machine? I've heard stories that they didn't have the power to really turn big mud tires, is this true? Anyone had any problems with them? What about the pricing on them?</end quote></div>

There are many pro and con arguments - yes they are fast, however consider a few things, how fast can you safely go on trails. You can only get so much traction based on the weight of the machine so how much usable power are you really going to effectively be able to use.

Two things to keep in mind - safety, not only for yourself but for others.
Number two - too much power will only spin your tires, how much land can you destroy before the land owner closes their land and not allow any ATV's of any size....

This is just food for thought.

My personal feelings are that the engine is way too big. There are exceptions and those would deal more with race application or very heavy and hard utility work. But for pleasure trail riding the engine is way too much, and probably would cause more headaches than fun. Other than pulling some neat wheelies. Over the years I have learned that too much power is worse than not enough and that applies to puckups, jeeps etc etc... also.
If you are able to get the traction then be prepared to have broken parts like axles, cv joints etc....
Bigger doesn't mean better it only means faster - faster in speed, faster getting stuck, faster to get yourself hurt in the event that you make a mistake, faster to break parts etc....

 

I understand what your saying. Maybe this will help. I'm not intersted in how fast it runs but how much torque it has. We do a lot of mud and creek riding. We ride in packs of 50 or more every weekend and never break 20 mph doing so. The creek riding is the reason I'm so interested in an AC. The airbox and belt are snorkled nearly to the handle bars from the factory and it has acordians (sp) on the front and rear diff. It's a great machine for creek riding. It also comes with a stiff suspension that doesn't sag when weighed down by mud and an ice chest. I had a sportsman previously and was pleased with the power and durability of the belt. I had a six inch lift and 29.5s and I could spin all four tires over in silt mud without the belt giving. However, I don't want to get something that will break down mechanically on me all the time. The sportsman did. I've heard stories of the Thundercat having problems turning big mud tire over in sticky situations and I need to know if that's true or not. I'd love to hear the good things about them but would rather hear the bad to help me make my decision. Everyone is welcome to throw in there 2 cents, I want to hear why you would or wouldn't buy one.

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: mitchell87

The Thundercat is faster then the Can-Am. The Thundercat actuall handles better then most of the other ACs because of the way the seat is designed you ride about 2 inches lower, so you have the sense of riding in the bike, not on top of it. The GC is the same as the other ACs with that frame. It weighs that much because it has a bigass engine in it. You will have all the power you need to turn bigger tires and if you don't you can do the 1400cc mod. Bore out the cylinders and throw in the 700 cylinders, giving it 1400cc. The first Thundercats off of the production line did have some problems, but those have been sorted out. You will not be dissapointed with the Thundercat.</end quote></div>

I checked on the 1400cc mod. It looks like that's for the Thundercat snowmobile.

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: contentsunderpressur

I checked on the 1400cc mod. It looks like that's for the Thundercat snowmobile.</end quote></div>



I only read about it on another forum, i havn't seen any other evidence. On the other forum it said that they have done this to a few Thundercats, but since it is so new they arn't selling it or advertising it yet.