There are still rumblings from the Pol direction of a new 2 stroke triple. It is said to be mounted in a new frame that does not have as much travel as the current offerings. So maybe what is old will be new again. Your old TCat will probably go as fast or faster than a new TCat just because it doesn't have all those sharp suspension angles which also take extra power to overcome. I have my old ZR 900s which I still like for the tight twisties in NW Wisc. It is my opinion that you don't need a foot of travel on both ends if the trails are smooth. That is just me - I know I will get shot down here. Also the old ZR 900s will go an honest 110 GPS. So now I have ordered a new Sidewinder that will go 120 on GPS but is 120 lbs heavier than the ZR and will require more work to ram through the tight stuff at speed. Also it will suck more fuel than the ZR. There are two kinds of vintage sleds. Old relics like the Chap Skiroule is fixing up. He is doing it for sentimental reasons and it is a rare sled. He will probably never come out on it but that is not why he is doing it. Other vintage sleds are sleds like your TCat and my old ZRs that still do have some useful benefits out on the trails. TCats still have a tremendous following. I know of a guy that has 15 of them. And there are still tons of ZRs and XCs out on the trails. And they still get the job done. They are not a new 'Doo. They are not rider forward. They are not all shiny and new. But they still get the job done.
I fully agree some of the older sleds are still FAST, but only on smooth trails LOL
where honestly, they run just fine, but the problem with older sleds is, as soon as you get a mogul in a SMOOTH trail, you KNOW IT! and can get in over your head if there are a LOT of them you didn;t see coming
there are some mods you can do to older sleds to get you more travel and suspension, like on my T cat, I have a cross fire 136 skid in it and a AGLT front end with gets me about 13 inches up front and a good travel in rear,
but its where you sit on them that still kills you in bumps,
I tell folks its like a tetter totter effect on old sleds ,where you sit too far off of center, so ALL bumps you get, at felt and amplified like, due to tail kick you get on an older sled
where as newer sled you sit more in the middle of tings and as such, you get the least amount of kick from bumps, , even if BOTH sleds had NO shocks, the newer sleds just by where you sit are WAY better in ride, add in the taller seating to help you stand as needed with less effort, and you can see real fast HOW they are SO much better overall in ride.
I DON"T think there any better in 0-60, or 0-100, look back at old shoot out results and you'll see there still pretty even there, to be honest!
even HP numbers are not far off on older 600 or 800 motors
But motors like sitting position, have come a ways on being more effortless
200 miles on a older sled VS a new one, and you will see how huge things are even on SMOOTH as glass trails, and so will your wallet on fuel used
I ran My T cat this past winter with guys on new sleds, and I was stopping for fuel abut 2 times to there one on ever trip/loop we did! and we were NOT riding hard or fast, they were getting maybe 12-13 mpg and I was getting about 9, and I was running MAYBE 1/4 throttle if that to be honest!, granted at times there were bursts of FUN added LOL
which is where a BIG hp sled shines to be honest, 0-100 come fast and pulls the arms
I think there will always be followers again to the big triples, and I sure would LOVE to see one in a new chassis, they cannot weight any more than a big 4 stroke motor, to be honest!
I did mine up, as part of sentimental value, as I owned a bunch in my younger days when they came out and always wanted another one in great condition
sadly, I had mine re done in summer of 2016 and in early 2017, totaled it, and NOW< have it all done again, picking it up tomorrow to be honest LOL
her's a pic, of before crash and of it done again!(the 800 is a friend of mine's) I do have a 600 also though!
