I'd like to hear from owners that have Personaly switched from the Kawasaki P650 to the Arctic Cat 650.

Do you feel the motor in the cat has the same amount of power?
Does the ride feel much more unstable in certain terrain where the P650 didn't?
Have you broken any axles or had any other problems with the Cat?

I own a P650 and a P360 I am thinking of selling the 360 for a new cat 650 but want to hear actual first hand comparisons before I do.

thanks
Jerry

 

hello

I have had a 02 p650 and switched to the ac650 the ground clearence can't be compared, the cat wins, the motor and power are the same,so far i have not broken anything on the cat but i didn't break anything on the p650 either. the only down fall is the brakes were a lot better on the p650. just my .02's hope this helps.

 

Thought about it... but Arctic Cat ATV dealerships are scarce. Decided to stick w/ prairie so I bought another 700. Maybe next time around I will buy the AC...I'd like to see what happens with the AC and thier first year with the kawi engine.

 

I too sold my P650 for the Cat 650.
Power is here on the Cat too, can pop wheelies with ease.
The P650 is better at flying down the trails at speed & roosting around corners but the Prairie is set up more on the sporty side.
Get in the all out rough stuff & the Prairie will be dragging its under carriage in no time, while the Cat clears everything with clearance to spare.
The Cat IRS is smoother on the rougher sections & can be ridden at a quicker pace because of the suspension travel & IRS.
The lighter Prairie handles quicker but the Cat can keep up.
Don't think much of the Goodyear Radial Tires on the Cat but the Stock Prairie Tires aren't any good either.
Engine braking is not as good on the Cat vs the Prairie but this may be corrected with different adjustments with the shims & installing the Black spring. The Cat comes with the P700 Belt.
Your knees can hug the mid-section easier on the Cat vs the Prairie.
The Cat is a little wider (body), off-camber is great on the Cat.
Nicer softer seat on the Cat.
Miss the brake levers for frt/rear brakes as the Cat uses a one-brake lever, it works good but got use to the Kawie set-up.
Its nice to have a 6.5 gallon gas tank on the Cat.

 

Thanks for your opinions guys. The one thing I DO NOT like about my P650 is the width of the seating area. To me it is too wide and uncomfortable, my P360 is alot narrower and the seating position is greatly improved. I've sat on the cats and find it to be very comfortable. Since I live in idaho I deal with a lot of rocks and places with GREAT traction, I fear that the power of the 650 may be to much for the cats Rear IRS setup.

 

I just got my Artic Cat 3 weeks ago. I have found
1 Power is the same, extra weight doesn't seem to hurt.
2 Top end is actually more (final gear ratio?)
3 P650 handles sportier
4 A.C. pushes in turns (Tires might be cause,nobody likes them)
5 Ride is awesome in rough, rocky mountian terrain
6 Quad seems to be huge when first riding but it feels good after a few miles.
7 Only negative I have is the brakes aren't even close to P650 brakes. The foot brake doesn't work at all

Hope this was some help, every time I go out I like the A.C. better. Iv'e got 3 rides in so far about 220 miles. Only problem so far is a leak somewhere in the front dif. but with a 2 yr. extended warranty who cares.