Round three of this year's dealer meeting tour has concluded this morning and I'm sitting on another 737 somewhere between Minneapolis and Denver. The folks at United got me home early from Vegas on Friday and about five hours early today, in spite of the flights being pretty full. They do a nice job taking good care of folks who spend too much time on airplanes.

As expected, after last year's big announcements with the new M8 and M1000, Cat doesn't have huge changes in store for 2008. In spite of being a new Cat dealer, I think we had a good year with the M series. The M1000 set a new record on the dyno for the most naturally aspirated horsepower we'd ever seen out of a twin cylinder engine, just over 137 hp with only about a thousand bucks worth of RMX components installed. We also found the M8 to be a couple horsepower better than the M7, with better bottom and mid-range just as Cat promised. The RMX kit on the M8 was also good for about 9.5 hp, making an M8 with an RMX kit a very cost effective way to have some big fun. The addition of reverse also made the Cats more attractive to a lot of folks this winter. Instead of running the engine backwards like Ski-Doo and Polaris, Cat designed a reverse gear in their ACT drive which is shifted by a servo hooked to a button on the bars. Granted, from a weight perspective, it's not as slick as the Rotax system, but the advantage is that the sled never dies going in reverse when they're cold.  The weight is low and in the center of the sled, which is definitely the right spot to minimize its impact on the sleds' ride and handling. In general, the Cats weren't the lightest sleds on the market, nor the most powerful, but they did a nice job striking a good balance and building a sled that's really fun to ride. In the 1000 class, they really built the first big bore twin that didn't make the sled considerably heavier and harder to ride like the competition's machines. If you want a big bore, the Cat's really the only sled worth considering.

For 2008, Cat has a couple of nice changes which will improve the sleds. Beyond the requisite BNG (bold new graphics) that we always get with new sleds, they have a new rear suspension that uses a Fox float shock and eliminates the torsion springs. The advantage of air shocks is that they can be very compliant in the beginning of the stroke and then have a very high rising rate as you approach full compression. It's very difficult to bottom an air shock, since the air in the shock gets very tough to compress as the shock travels further. The Cat engineers also built a new rail that looks similar to the new Rev-XP with lots of holes in them to save weight.  All told, they say the new suspension is eight pounds lighter. They also changed the tunnel, footboards, and outer tunnel grips.  The tunnel now has several holes punched in it with the aim being to get the snow off the running boards.  The outer tunnel grip rail is also angled inward slightly, which should make standing on them slightly more convenient.  The new holes in the chassis account for another 1.5 pounds of weight loss. The ’08s will also have a new racing style spindle which allows about 10° more turning angle, which will be handy for tight spots when the sleds didn't want to turn sharp enough.  Finally, the base model sleds get a new gauge with similar functionality as the '07 gauge.  The Sno Pros will get a new Deluxe Gauge that allows switching between analog and digital speed and tach displays, as well as the odometer, two trip meters, engine hour meter, altimeter, clock, gas gauge, and warning lights. As in 2007, the Sno Pros will also get Fox Float front shocks and titanium clutch springs. All told, Cat has taken solid sleds and added some nice upgrades for 2008.

Here are the highlights on the new Cats, along with the MSRP.

M6 153
$8999
600cc engine
118hp
490 pounds
153x15x2.25 track
Black

M8 153
$9899
800cc engine
142hp
495 pounds
153x15x2.25 track
Black or Orange

M8 153 Sno Pro
$10,699
800cc engine
142hp
490 pounds
153x15x2.25 track
White

M8 162
$10,299
800cc engine
142hp
500 pounds
162x15x2.25 track
Black or Orange

M1000 153
$11,499
1000cc engine
165hp
510 pounds
153x15x2.25 track
Black or Orange

M1000 153 Sno Pro
$12,299
1000cc engine
165hp
505 pounds
153x15x2.25 track
White

M1000 162
$11,899
1000cc engine
165hp
515 pounds
162x15x2.25 track
Black or Orange

M1000 162 Sno Pro
$12,699
1000cc engine
165hp
510 pounds
162x15x2.25 track
White

For Spring customers, Cat is essentially offering a $450 rebate on liquid cooled sleds. They are advertising a free Sno Pro upgrade that is funded by the rebate, but all things being equal, the rebate is valid on a standard model as well. Given that, the price gap would remain the same. Cat is also offering an all black version of the M8 Sno Pro and M1000 Sno Pro called the Nightfire which is also only available as a spring ordered model. Given how well the 2007 Cats worked, 2008 should be another fun year.

Thanks,
Donavon