#1. Did AC even make the 375 in 2001?
#2. Are there alot of new models for 2002 that werent even offered
in 2001?

Thanks for any and all help.

 

Well, since I can't seem to get that fancy clickable link thing working, I went ahead and just did the old standby- copy and paste! Here is Boner's post from what he noticed at the beginning of the month:

"Well, I went to pick up my parts for my cat yesterday and guess what I saw when I showed up. About 6 2002 400 4wd and a 2002 240 4wd.

All I can say is that all my disappointments about Arctic Cats when I first saw them are gone. At first I was disapointed because there wasn't a larger motored bike with a locker to compete with the others, but the extra advancements I see on the 2002 models showed me that Arctic Cat inproved what they had before starting something totally new.

Here is what I noticed on the 2002 ACT models (400 in this case)
1.New seat is SUPER soft,but wider. (personally don't care for it being wider)
2.Redesigned floor borads. They give you more place to put your feet at, but I saw no problems with the old ones.
3.Redesigned foot brake. placed more out of the way-- still sucks tho
4.Arctic Cat made front differential.
5.linkage reverse lever (no more cable)
6.new muffler design
7. 2 extra inches of frame clearance (chart below)
8.larger overall rear tires
9.moved seat latch location to the rear (I don't like that too much)
10. better front rack design
11. softer front shocks with less compression dampening
12. new fan (I like it much better)
13. ALOT less fender rivits
14.Stiffer fenders (possibly because of fender flares
15. New front suspension design (round instead of square tubing)

Differeces on the 250 4wd:
1.Arctic Cat made front differential
2.linkage operated foot shifter (no more cable)
3. The same reverse lever change


These differences are all that I found noteable and not so obvious when looking at the specs, pictures, and other info avalible.

Measurements:
2002 250 4wd
Front tires: 22.25
Rear tires : 22.5
Front frame: 9
Mid frame : 8
Rear diff : 8.75

2002 400 4wd
Front tires: 24.25
Rear tires : 25
Front frame: 12.5
Mid frame : 11
Rear diff : 8.375

2001 500 4wd
Front tires: 24.5
Rear tires : 24.5
Front frame: 10.5
Mid frame : 9
Rear diff : 8.5

Now the 2001 500 didn't have a rear diff skid, thats why it has more clearance even tho they share the exact same rear axle.

You can see that Arctic Cat is claiming the 10.75" of clearance at the middle of the frame, not at the diff. You can also see that the 2002 has ALOT more ground clearance.

Now, here is something I got in my e-mails tonight. I am gonna keep the person's name secret, but I can tell you that he is an employee of a very large ATV company and his statements below are totally true:
"

It was also mentioned somewhere that the new wiring has been redesigned to be more "water friendly", using water tight connections and such. Also the front tires are now 8" wide, instead of 10" on the older models, which will help to improve steering quality. You already know the obvious gain in ground clearance, which is now 10.75" instead of 9.2. And from what my dealer says, the '02 lights are worlds brighter than the older model 'Cats, which is a huge improvement-the stock headlights on my 'Cat are, nothing short of, say, pathetic. Oh, the '02s come with a nice winch switch located on the left side of the handlebars under the starter button, which contorls both in and out directly from the switch-nice feature!

OK, so that should take care of your subject questions, now for the others... #1-NO, the 375 is brand new to '02. #2-Yes, I can't remember exactly, but something like 5 new models??? That is brand new models, not produced before. AC went one step further and redesigned their existing lineup to include higher ground clearance as well-for example, the ACT swing axle 500s now have 10.75" instead of 9.2 like my 'Cat has. That is a huge advantage for guys like me who need the extra clearance. Then again, with the industry leading 12" clearance on the ne "i" models, what more could you ask for? [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

Hope that helps, and Best of Luck in the decision,

Mike

 

To add to that post I would like to say that the 400i, 400 i 4wd, 500i, 500i auto, TBX, 90, 375 4x2, and 375 4x4 are all new models for 2002.