I crashed my sp700 and after it is fixed, I'm giving serious thought to selling it and buying something else. I am quite familiar with the sp 500, having had 4 of them in the family. I am concidering a cat 500i auto but I would like to learn a little more about them before I make a decision. How do they compare speed and power wise, comfort and ride, ease of maintainance, features, etc. etc. Also what is a good price for one? Their is only one local cat dealer around here and I hear that he is a real a$$. He sells boats and a little of everything else too so the picture is pretty clear. With that being said, I would probably be doing all the maintainance and repairs myself. Any help would be appreciated.Thanks!

 

Well I have a AC 500i (standard), Never driven an auto but here good things about them. I absolutley love my wheeler, there isn't a place that i have found that i can't point it and shoot! I am very unfamilar with Polaris but i hear they're also a very nice rig. I would assume that the Polaris would be faster just by all the reveiws I have read but not positive. But im sure form exsperience The cat is a true work horse and utility rig. I personally use mine for moslty rereation but have definatly got my fair share of work out of her. Either way both machines are a great choice so i guess i would narrow it down by using price, availability, and what you will use it for. Good luck!

 

Myself I wouls take the Cat over a Polaris but that is more of a personal preference than anything else, I've had both. The Cat is going to be a little slower than the HO, down low I have to give the hand to the Cat. The ride I would say will be fairly even but the Sportsmans squat while under a load, the Cats don't near as bad. The belt on the Cat most likely will never need servicing other than a wash out every 1000 miles or so. Their belt stays engaged all the time and uses a wet clutch to engage drive to the primary clutch. This design creates less heat and longer belt life.

But all of this aside if you can't get along with your dealer or he is an a$$, by all means avoid him. If you do have some trouble you don't want to deal with someone you can't get along with. AC has a habit of letting anyone sell their atvs, Rv dealers, tractor dealers lawn mower shops. Look around and try to buy from a good dealer with a good reputation, it may be one of these other dealers who knows. Arctic Cat has the best customer service that I have ever dealt with. If you decide you want a Cat you may call AC and express your feelings about the local dealer.
Good luck in what ever you decide.

 

I tried both out last spring when I was looking. Found that the SP500 had a bit more punch to the engine, and a bit less suspension. In all fairness, the two quads were quite close in just about every regard. I ended up getting the Cat, because:

Suspension was a little higher, and didn't squat down much under a load - my farm is rough as a cob, and I wanted the best rough ground capability.
It could be had with a manual transmission
Price was a bit better

Keep in mind that I work with my machine quite a bit, so my focus was a little more on durability and hauling/dragging capability. However, I still find the 500i to be a delightful handling machine, especially once you learn to lean in a bit. Very light steering.

Maintenance hasn't been an issue for me, just change the oil. 350 miles on it so far, and no problems other than a branch getting under the front fender and knocking a light bulb out. Can't blame Cat for that one.

The dealer made a big difference. I talked to three Cat dealers. Two were not particularly accomodating - both were in the chain saw and yard equipment business. Strictly list price, and I had to worry about service. The third dealer, Bell's Suzuki in Lexington, KY, was very accomodating. Priced me a manual 500i at $5800. As the best price I had been given on a SP500 was $6200, I went with the Cat. Probaby would have bought it anyway, but that sealed the deal. If at all possible, get one from a dealer that sells motorcycles, they tend to treat you more professionally, and service will be better.

Don't know if you're anywhere near Cincy, but Lex is 70 miles south of there. Might be worth the drive.

--John


My Cat Pictures

 

What makes you thing a no sway bar, non handling, overweight cat is going to even keep up the the SP500 in anything other than maybe a drag?

 

WOW, Elrancho seems a little testy. Well my overweight, non swaybar having, pig of a 4 wheeler is nothing but a great machine. Now last I knew people don't buy utility quads to drag race or even race at all. If u wanna race buy a Banshee or a preditor. Now when it comes to AC suspension there isn't a better suspension out there and if they needed a sway bar then they probally would of put one in.

 

Also any one who own an AC that feels they really need a sway bar please post, it will be intresting to here why.

 

Thanks to all who have responded so far, to my post. I don't think that the dealer has even started to fix my 700 yet, so I will have plenty of time to look around.

 

The Cat doesn't need a sway bar it is very stable as is. Most of the Grizzly owners that I know of were so unhappy with their suspension flex they took their sway bar off. This allows for more rear suspension travel of each wheel independent of each other. Yes it gives a little more body roll, but it is a utility quad.

 

I dumped my swaybar August 2001. Its worthless on the Grizzly and with it on, articulation isn't much of an improvement over anybody elses straight axle. With it off its about as good as an ACT rear end on an Arctic Cat. Nothing touches the independant AC's though.