Wheel Horse Safari Snowmobiles


Yes, Wheel Horse really made Snowmobiles. 

Sometime in the late 60s, someone got the great idea that like many other Lawn and Garden manufacturers, (Bolens, Homelite, Sears and Yardman just to name a few), Wheel Horse Products, Inc. should get into snowmobiles. In approximately April, 1969, Wheel Horse Products completed a deal and purchased the Sno-Flite line of snowmobiles. Sno-Flite was a new line in 1967 made in Des Moines, Iowa, manufactured by C.E. Erickson Co. Wheel Horse finished out the 1969 production of Sno-Flites before changing the product to their own. In 1970 the snowmobiles were cosmetically changed from yellow Sno-Flites to red Safaris. The Safaris were manufactured until 1972, when the line was discontinued and sold off.


1969 Wheel Horse Sno-Flite Snowmobiles

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When Wheel Horse took over production, the model year was well underway.  Rather than introducing changes immediately, production was continued as yellow Sno-Flite snowmobiles.
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This Sno-Flite snowmobile is part of the collection of Dan and Betty Pickenpaugh from Colorado.  They run a private snowmobile museum, and send me this picture of their sled to use on this website.


1970 Wheel Horse Safari Snowmobiles

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When the 1970 model year came around, Wheel Horse launched the slightly revamped line of Safari Snowmobiles.  The body color was changed to Wheel Horse red and there were some minor cosmetic differences, but essentially they were the same as the previous Sno-Flite models. 


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_The1970 models were:

  • 295
  • 309
  • 309W
  • 335
  • 399
  • 440



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I found these photos on ebay several years ago and saved them.  They are of a Safari 309W that was for sale in southern Minnesota. 

The W in the model number indicated a "Wide Track" model.  The standard track width on Wheel Horse Safari snowmobiles was 15 inches, but the Wide Track models used an astounding 22 inch track. 

You may notice that the grill and headlights are wider, but you can really notice how skinny the seat looks above that 22 inch track.
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1971 Wheel Horse Safari Snowmobiles

According to the master engineering files from Wheel Horse, there were no models specifically built for the 1971 model year.



1972 Wheel Horse Safari Snowmobiles

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In the 1972 model year, production was dropped to only three models.

There was a change to the decal style, and a few other small parts changes, but for the most part, the base of the sled remained unchanged.  In fact, they only released a supplemental parts list for 1972 that showed only the parts that changed from the 1970 models. 
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_The 1972 models were...


  • 335
  • 399
  • 399W

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1972 was the end of snowmobile production for the Wheel Horse company.  According to my research the final production actually took place at the garden tractor factory in South Bend, Indiana, and reportedly the guys who normally built garden tractors had a very difficult time building snowmobiles.  After production, the remaining parts inventories were sold to Parts Unlimited, a Wisconsin company still in business today.  According to their staff (some of whom are still around who remember the Wheel Horse stuff) they continued support until the parts ran out in the early 1980s.  They no longer have any Wheel Horse inventory or information available.


ADDITIONAL PICTURES OF SNOWMOBILES, LITERATURE AND OTHER ACCESSORIES ARE AVAILABLE IN THE GALLERY --->  CLICK HERE





MORE TO FOLLOW LATER.... WORK IN PROGRESS......