Yesterday I watched an Arctic Cat 500 auto in the snow. The driver broke through the crust and appeared to be in three wheel drive momentarily. When he gave the throttle a few more rpm all four wheels started to turn. Is this the way they work? A little bit more rpm and all four wheels churn?

 

Victory:
I've got two '00 Auto 'Cats, took mine down to Oregon for a ride with GrizRick not too long ago. That is exactly the way mine worked in nearly all conditions we rode in. The only time I couldn't give it more gas to get the four to spin was when I had a bad angle and had the right front several feet off the ground. When the left front started to spin, it was trying to flip the 'Cat over backwards, due to the extreme steep angle. I had to back down easily then get a better angle of attack. This time, I crawled up like nothing will all four spinning. Scan back a few weeks, or even just to the bottom of the forum. I should have a post up about the "front diffs-they must be different", it explains exactly how the ride went, what we noticed and thought of the AC's front diff. BTW-the '00 500 Auto was the first to have that same diff. that the '01's have now.

Hope that helps,

Mike

 

That seems to be the way my front diff works, to a limit. When I had my cat jacked up, I could hole one wheel, but if I increased the throttle the littlest bit it would bited and sping right out of my hands.

 

Victory, you have to read cowboy's post he refers to. It is exactly what you need to get your answer. No garage tests, no dealers blowing smoke up your you know what. Just the facts out in real-time. BTW...I'm a day away from owning an AC500 auto.