Race Suspension Adds to Sno Pro 500 Pricing

As some sharp-eyed readers of Snowmobile.com may have noticed, we first reported the price of Arctic Cat’s 2010 Sno Pro 500 as US$7,995, but in a later review reported it as being US$8,299.00. What was up with that? Admittedly our hearing has been detuned from riding too many mod-piped sleds in our early years, but we did hear the correct numbers, each time.

The first time we heard the Sno Pro 500 pricing was at Arctic Cat’s “sneak peek” held in a southern suburb of Cat’s Thief River Falls, Minn. headquarters. At that time Arctic Cat marketing honchos were quite adamant that the new entry-level racer would come in under eight grand (US dollars). The product manager, a former, and quite successful, Team Arctic race manager felt that the pricing needed to send a message to the competition that, indeed, consumers could enjoy the benefits of Arctic Cat racing technology in a sled that was fit for duty as both a weekend racer and an everyday trail sportster.

However, as the weeks passed, Arctic Cat marketing types discovered that many would-be Sno Pro buyers were more serious about using the sled as a stock racer than as an everyday trail sled. That meant they wanted the full-race rear suspension like the one found in Cat’s full-on 600cc stock racer. Since that was the basis of the new 2010 Sno Pro 500, Arctic Cat decided to listen to its customers and give them what they wanted, but it would add another US$300 more to the sled’s suggested price.

As Arctic Cat spokesman Kale Wainer explained, “(The sled we showed) at Sneak Peek had the Slide Action Skid in the SP 500. That’s the same skid found in all the Twin Spar models. Based on response, the majority of consumers buying the SP 500 will be racing this model in “Cross Country” and Snocross, so why not give them an even more race ready snowmobile with the ultimate in durability for ditch banging or extreme use? That’s when we decided to use the actual Sno Pro 600 Slide Action Skidframe. Using this skid upped the cost, but we are still priced on top of our competitors.”

Wainer added that the rear suspension for the Sno Pro 500 uses all the same components as the 600 Race sled except for shocks and springs.

“The front arm, idler arm, pull rods, pivot arm, rear arm, rails, coupling system, and rear axle were all designed to keep up with the grueling demands of snocross and cross country racing,” he stated. “The front arm shock is a Fox IFP similar to the one provided on the F-series Sno Pro package as well as the Fox 2″-diameter body ear arm shock.”

Arctic Cat’s Wainer further explained that Arctic Cat’s production target for ride calibration is to satisfy aggressive trail and cross country type riders. He said that if a Sno Pro 500 buyer wants snocross calibration with compression and rebound adjustability, he would be able to purchase the same shocks and springs as those used on Arctic Cat’s existing 600 Race sled.

Said Wainer, “In a nutshell, our Sno Pro 500 buyers are getting a truly race-ready sled out of the box; at a price that is still more competitive than what other OEMs have to do to make theirs race-ready.”

Related Reading
2010 Arctic Cat Sno Pro 500
2010 Arctic Cat Lineup Preview