Wildcat Forum banner

What do you think the top end speed will be????

29K views 107 replies 40 participants last post by  wildone 
#1 ·
I hoping it will do at least 80mph. My Polaris 850xp goes 75 and I had a Bombardier 650Baja that did 80. How fast do you Polaris 900 and Can Am 1000's do? Anybody know what how fast this engine is in the other Artic Cat sxs that it's in?
 
#2 ·
polaris xp900 = limited at 75mph
can-am commander = limited at 74mph
arctic cat 1000 XTZ = power limited not speed limited to around 70-75mph

this new wildcat does not have the same exact engine as the previous XTZ1000. this engine is reworked to crank out more power thru better air intake, throttlebody setup, larger valves, and better exhaust. this engine has enough power to run 100mph in the wildcat already, the test units will do 100mph. i am sure on the production units, there will be electronic speed limiters in place in the 75mph range just as the other big SxS are speed limited. i feel certain the lawyers are trying to keep the speeds to a safe margin. i would love for cat to leave it uncorked and let us run 100mph.
 
#6 ·
They will never let these things get over 75. That's something the aftermarket has to do.
 
#9 ·
the XTZ 1000 will likely be the all time fastest SxS. the XTZ 1000 prowler does not have any type of speed limiter, and it is the only big engine SxS that is not limited. the XP900 and commander 1000 are both speed limited in the ECU. the XTZ 1000 is NOT speed limited and will run as fast as the engine will pull, most owners see around 75-80mph, rarely you get a good one and can run 80+ the fastest i have ever seen a stock one was 82mph. the fastest i have ever had an XTZ 1000 is 91 with all my clutching done to it. but from now on, i can pretty much assure you all big bore SxS will be speed limited. i am unsure of the top speeds of the production model wildcats but i feel certain they too will be limited thru the ECU.
 
#12 ·
If I paid this kind of money for a "sport" sidexside with that kind of suspension and it was limited to 75 I would be very upset! I would fully expect this machine to hit 85+ stock, and with free flowing exhaust and ECU tune I would expect 95+ easliy....

It comes down to friction, wind drag, weight, HP, and gearing...I don't think they should limit the top speed. I realize car manufactures do this as well (my 11' stang GT was limited to 155) but they put it at a value that most people won't even hit on a normal day. I guess all I am saying is if they limit the top speed in the ECU I will be the first trying to figure out how to bypass the ECU or raise this limit!
 
#13 ·
A review says the top speed was 70mph. That's a bummer. They said the 900xp was faster Too bad. I was hoping for 85 at least.
 
#14 ·
70mph on dirt roads is more than you should have ever expected. pavement will show alot different top speed. dirt presents alot of friction and alot of drag. driving top speeds on dirt or gravel roads, you will never reach a full top speed as if you were on pavement in any machine
 
#17 ·
My Prowler 1000 wouldn't do over 65 on the dirt, but did 82 on pavement. I doubt the magazines did a pavement top speed test. 70 on the dirt with the tire slippage isn't bad at all. And I highly doubt that the XP would do more on the same surface. That still could translate into an 85 mph top speed on pavement.............
 
#19 ·
Seriously why do you need to go faster than 70 mph? I can see for racing but the average Joe has no need for that kind of top end speed even out west in the dunes. Out east we need the low to mid range torque. Keep in mind the highest speed limit in the USA is 75 mph and that is on an interstate which these will never be allowed on.

Would you seriously go 75 mph on unbalance atv tires? If something goes pop or you lose it, it's not going to be pretty.
 
#20 ·
Seriously why do you need to go faster than 70 mph? I can see for racing but the average Joe has no need for that kind of top end speed even out west in the dunes. Out east we need the low to mid range torque. Keep in mind the highest speed limit in the USA is 75 mph and that is on an interstate which these will never be allowed on.

Would you seriously go 75 mph on unbalance atv tires? If something goes pop or you lose it, it's not going to be pretty.

Baditude,
To answer your question HE11 YES I WOULD drive 70+ MPH on unbalanced ATV tires. I have done it and will do it again. My Raptor or my TRX both top out at 70MPH stock. Yes because you wouldn't go that fast doesn't mean someone else won't or doesn't want to. I would like it to top out at 85-90MPH myself but I also would like it to get to 60MPH FAST!!! In some areas of the dunes there isn't a speed limit and it is fun to race your friends now and then. On the trails yes I agree the low to mid range is more important.

I go 100+MPH on a Street Bike so I know all about the what if something goes POP or you do something wrong. I am also smart enough to know when to play and when not to.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Sailor
#22 ·
I have a bad feeling that these manufactures have gotten together and made an agreement to limit the acceleration rate and top speed.

In one of the videos Arctic Cat states that the acceleration is about equal to the Xp and the Commander. That doesn't sound right for a new sport product. It's sales 101 that you don't say your product is "as good" as the competition, you should say "it's better" .
 
#23 ·
I understand the want vs need - I don't need more horsepower / torque than I have in my RZR S but I want it and would be the first in line to buy a 1200. No place that I know of that you could do 70+ for long in the mountains that I ride and figured with all the whoops and bumps in the dunes it would be asking for it but I have never ridden out west. Sounds like I need to go out west
 
#25 ·
I live in Baja half the time on a beach that is 17 miles long. We scream down the beach at 70 or 80, depending on the machine, and then head into the desert where we can go for a 1000 miles, oftentimes at top speed. It isn't all about top end though. Much of it is going from 20 to 80 as fast as possible. My main point is that it would have been nice if the WC was top dog power wise out of the box. That's what I thought they were shooting for. I am very happy that they did such a good join on the suspension though. That much travel makes all the difference desert racing.
 
#24 ·
Baditude,
Yes you might WANT to make a trip out west. I have been stationed back east before and know what some of the trails look like.

But out west they are a lot different let me tell you. Just look at the video that Redman made. There are road/trails in the desert that you can bomb down no problem. And for the dunes?? I can only talk about Oregon. And there are places where I can run 4-5 miles at 70+ no problem. From what I hear about Glamis it is better than Oregon.
 
#28 · (Edited)
Hmmm.....the only selling point is the suspension. Although a great selling point, still puts me into a tough decision. I like the xp's looks better and utv mag says the xp has more low end power. So now the wildcat only has one advantage. Enough to still choose the wildcat, but AC really made the decision tougher than it should have been.
 
#34 · (Edited)
Hello gentleman,

I joined the Forum a couple days ago after dropping 5 small on a deposit. 3rd on the list for a shop that's receiving 10. Here's to hoping for a decent first allotment to the dealers come release day. I'm a motocross guy who has never personally owned a SXS but have ridden many, the latest being the XP, two weeks ago. I like to be different, which adds to the Arctic Cat draw, but the decision was simple when I looked at the most important car component: suspension. Big HP means very little if your tires are not on the ground making use of it.

To reiterate what has been well appointed; the car is exactly what you want from a factory offering that will never be exactly 'what you want' out of the crate. In motocross, it takes gobbs of time & money to get your suspension dialed in. I made my living in Supercross a decade+ ago and can tell you that a motor can be built to be national level competitive for peanuts compared to the endless expense of dialing in suspension - and that's when you start with good components. My KTM 350SXF is an example of this exact point. The stock suspension was just not adequate from the factory; so I learned after several valve builds, spring & oil level combinations. I now have Ohlins TTX forks and shock which retail for over $4000. Then you get to spend more money on tuning the quality stuff. The motor on the other hand was competitive against the bigger class 450 bikes after a ECM tune and exhaust – about $700. Throw in a high compression piston for a couple hundred, gearing change for $50 and I am beating 450’s off the line and to the first turn for $1000 total on power upgrades. Point is; engine/drive is cheaper to extract performance than suspension. When’s the last time you heard of somebody scrapping their whole SXS engine for something ‘faster’? Never. Conversely, how many times have you seen somebody throwing all the stock shocks and arms for Kings, Fox, W.E. & long arm kits? A lot more frequently. I am betting $16,599 that with very little additional expense, the Wildcat will be faster than a stock XP with a simple aftermarket tune or component. My stock suspension already has me going ‘faster’. Where does this decision become difficult?
I look forward to learning more about this beast through everybody’s experience as we take delivery and put these things through their paces!
Rob
 
#29 ·
Well as we all know it is hard to have your cake and eat it too sometimes. I think the Wildcat is a better choice but that is me. Your just going to have to figure it out for yourself. And I am sure I can hot rod the Wildcat for cheaper than what it would cost to make the XP have a suspension even close to the Wildcat.
 
#32 ·
Why is the weight an issue? What do you think it should weigh? If you were building it that is. And there are kits out there that will take a RZR S to 14" of wheel travel.
 
#33 ·
I would like to see something under 1000, but then again I'd rather it be tough, hard thing to balance when designing something I realize. Lite and rugged is tough to achieve. I do agree the speed issue, it shouldn't just match or fall short of the xp, especially from AC who makes wild awesome sleds and their prowlers apparently do 80+ ???? Can't verify that but many claims are made.
 
#35 ·
Power, weight, and wheel travel are the three most important aspects of off road racing. The idea is to get as much wheel travel as reasonable and then to get the HP to weight ratio as low as possible. Actually torque is the best type of power but HP is more commonly used in these equations. Ideally you're looking for less than 1 hp to every 10 lbs. If the WC weighs 1300lbs and has 95 estimated HP then it's higher than the ideal. My Polaris 850xp weighs 650lbs and has 72 HP so it's at about 1 to 9. Pretty good. The WC should be about 1 to 13.6. Not great.

Motorcycles are a different reality. They are easier to power up than a SXS. I had a Honda 650 and put a power up kit on it and it really woke that engine up. From what I've read on the Polaris forum getting appreciably more power from a SXS is much harder. Most recommendations over there say that the only good way to get more power is to turbo or clutching. Maybe we can hear from some Arctic Cat owners who've had this 1000 engine and see what results they've gotten trying to increase power.
 
#36 ·
Power, weight, and wheel travel are the three most important aspects of off road racing. The idea is to get as much wheel travel as reasonable and then to get the HP to weight ratio as low as possible. Actually torque is the best type of power but HP is more commonly used in these equations. Ideally you're looking for less than 1 hp to every 10 lbs. If the WC weighs 1300lbs and has 95 estimated HP then it's higher than the ideal. My Polaris 850xp weighs 650lbs and has 72 HP so it's at about 1 to 9. Pretty good. The WC should be about 1 to 13.6. Not great.

Motorcycles are a different reality. They are easier to power up than a SXS. I had a Honda 650 and put a power up kit on it and it really woke that engine up. From what I've read on the Polaris forum getting appreciably more power from a SXS is much harder. Most recommendations over there say that the only good way to get more power is to turbo or clutching. Maybe we can hear from some Arctic Cat owners who've had this 1000 engine and see what results they've gotten trying to increase power.
How did you manage to shed 100lbs off of that thing from stock?

2012 Polaris Sportsman XP 850 HO ATV : Specs CA
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top