I really like this four wheeler, but it is a little pricey. I am a full time college student and will be making the notes myself and I wanted to know if this is the best choice. What about Honda foreman, kawasaki prarie, or Suzuki eiger? Feedback would be great.

 

go with the cat or the eiger. both very nice quads. the eiger is a little more sporty while the cat is more work oriented and will go through more.

 

the Eiger is the most machine for the money but lacks a front locker, and like Hoopie said, rides rougher than the Cat due to the SRA, plus ground clearance is much less than Cat. the 360 Prairie is a well equipped machine but only comes in an Auto belt drive that uses a servo motor to apply pressure on the belt for enging braking, too many parts to go bad IMO. the Kawi does have a front locker however and a nice sealed rear wet brake. not sure if you meant to say Rancher or Foreman because the Foreman is in a higher price range and even still doesn't have much for suspension travel or ground clearance compared to the Cat. all depends on how you ride and what you will be doing with it. the Cat is a totally different type of machine than the others you mentioned and offers a much different ride too. the Cat has the most suspension travel of any utility machine out there, has IRS and lots of ground clearance, the others are all SRA machines with much less suspension travel and ground clearance, more of a sporty ride for less demanding terrain.

 

go cat you wont regret it i got an 06 400 fis and its incredible it makes riding effortless i have yet to get stuck every atv has there strong and weak points but i have climbed and gone through things that ive watched other atv brands not even get close (cough polaris) the locker makes all the difference in the world

 

I did mean the rancher, sorry. I'm mostly going to be hunting with it and screwing around the house. We don't have a lot of trails here in southern mississippi, but we do have mud holes. we do most of our riding on paved backroads and sometimes hit a major mud hole. does this change any recommendations? anybody know the payments on the cat with the 72 month financing?

 

if it's just going to be a hunting ride and those trails are flat and most of your riding is on even ground then you could definately get away with a SRA machine. if you want to shift then it's between the Rancher and the Suzuki if you don't mind not having a locker upfront. the Rancher is a much nicer looking machine, but the Eiger has more power, suspension, ground clearance, HI and LO range manual, and discs up front. well, that was easy, looks like you're getting an Eiger!

 

honda service and sales people suck around here. so its the cat or the eiger, eiger is cheaper. i just checked the suzuki web site and it says the eiger does have the locking diff. one more thing, i'm a big guy (6'4" 265) will the eiger have enough room because i know the cat is pretty big. thanks for answering all my questions it is really helpful

 

"Torque-sensing limited-slip front differential provides maximum traction and light steering in tight turns" that's what it says about the Eiger, only the KQ has a locker. it's a full size machine and would probably fit you as well as the Cat, but I would try them in real life because the Eiger may be a bit too soft for your size. the Eiger should be enough unless you want to do serious exploring in which case the superior traction and articulation of the Cat will suit you better, plus the ride is way more plush. many don't seem to have any trouble without a locker up front, Honda doesn't even offer one yet, but for me I need to know all four are getting equal power.

 

just so we are clear, "limited slip" is not the same as "locking". limited slip will send equal amounts or torque to each wheel until one can spin easier than the other at which point that wheel will spin while the other may get no power at all, in essence 3WD. a locking diff is just that, both wheels are locked together and get equal power.

 

ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. now i see the light. i really like the arctic cat but we will just have to see what the payments are on each one before i decide