MY2014 is the year Arctic Cat decided to jump into the fray with a brand new 137-inch tracked model line to answer the call of buyers looking for more versatility.
Yamaha simply lucked out by being at the right place at the right time. How good is this track length in a Viper? Real good – and we’d unquestionably make it our first choice if we were surfing Yamaha showrooms with a money clip.
Although a 141-inch uncoupled version of the Vipe is included in the 2014 brochure, this 137-incher with full coupling, sliding front arm and torque links on the rear arm is a huge ride upgrade from former Cat-designed 141-inch uncoupled longtracks.
This year, you can put your money on the base model Viper LTX with aluminum bodied, rebuildable front shocks sporting coilover springs or upgrade to the SE that uses Fox FLOAT 3 air shocks.
These air dampers use an internal return spring to prevent stiction and provide more progressive movement. Both offer 10 inches of front travel.
Out back, the shock choices are the same on both the Viper LTX and the LTX SE. A 43mm front shock is mated with a 53mm rear arm gasser. The front shock is a preload adjustable coilover and the rear uses torsion springs. Yup, pretty conventional fare; but proven and effective.
We’d rate the ride quality of this combo as being spot-on with its Minnesota stepsisters and second only to Ski-Doo’s Renegade rMotion set-up.
In fact, we were shocked at how closely the Viper’s ride compares to the blockbusting new-tech of the rising rate rMotion.
