better balanced than their predecessors , and more reactive to rider input .
Maybe even more than last year , though , we felt the need for a better ski on the Arctic Cat , which suffered from greater amounts of understeer than competitive models once we really got charging through see-through turns .
When trails got rough , bump energy was transmitted through both the front and rear suspensions , more certainly than from the Ski-Doo but also the Polaris . But having about 40 fewer pounds to hang onto through the moguls made it easier to control and not as tiring as its predecessor .
Veteran snowmobilers know that repetitive stutter bumps are sometimes best attacked when carrying some speed , and the SlideAction design in particular seems to shine best when on the throttle . We toggled through shock settings with the handlebar controls , and found the middle setting typically worked best for our riding style , though bumping it down to soft helped other times in chatter . We love the concept of the ATAC push-button system but wish the handlebar controls were more intuitive .
Rider comments included , “ I love where I sit on this machine , I feel like I ’ m 100 percent in control ” and “ The new G8 gauge is freaking awesome ; the resolution is amazing . It looks like I ' m watching a 4K television .” But it wasn ’ t all puppies and rainbows . Some riders found the seat undesirable , with one saying “ It puts you in a great spot , but it certainly doesn ’ t have all-day comfort .” And every rider noted how cold they get riding this new chassis . “ Even on other models with windshields , I still got blasted by wind coming around the side panels ,” one said .
Overall , the second-year ZR 600 in the Catalyst layout proven our first impression from the previous year were right on the money : This is a fine snowmobile , and a big jump forward from the previous ProCross-based ZR 6000 .
NOVEMBER 2024 / SNOWGOER . COM / 27