stop thinking about old bobcats with their mechanical controls. my machine is a 2005 with pilot controls. one stick drives the machine and it is very easy to be delicate with it. the pilot controls are easily mounted, easy to handle, and work very well. the only drawback i have heard of is that the hoses bring heat into the cab, not a big deal in a machine designed for use in the winter. the perkins diesel in my machine has a turbo, and can easily be reprogrammed to get more power, it moves my 13,000 pound skidsteer at top speed easily. i very rarely ever use full throttle. the only time i use throttle over about 50% is when i am running the snowblower, then i set the throttle at about 75%. it is not a power need to be at higher throttle, but rather to get the fan speed up to throw the snow farther. a cat weighing half as much shouldnt be an issue. the motor however is probably very heavy, but maybe not much more than the other motor the machines were offered with, a cummins rated at 99hp.
the drives are only about 10 inches in diameter and about 8 inches deep. they mount on a flat surface. not a project i have time or need for, but sure seems like it would be a fairly easy conversion, and not all that much money. might be more useful in something like a 4t with the dual rear diffs and all the drivetrain components. one nice thing about hydraulic drive is that the motor can be placed just about anywhere.