I have an Arctic Cat 650 that unfortunately has had many problems. It is a wonderful machine but it is plagued with belt problems and axle problems. By dealer is taking it back and I can choose a new machine. I can get another Arctic Cat or go with a John Deere (traxter or quest 650) Buck or Trail Buck. I ride in the midwest 90% of the time. We have mud, trails, and woods. 80% of my riding is for fun and the rest is Hunting and working the ATV.

I really like the idea of gears because I am gun shy of belts at this point. I know a lot of machines are belt driven with know problems so I am open.

How is the Traxter for general riding. Do the gears hold up in wash board trails? Is it a harsh ride? How durable is the machine. I dont want anything to break I just want to ride.

How about the 650. Does the belt slip? Will it climb hills and rocks without slipping the belt? Will it pull 200-400 lbs without slipping the belt? Is it more fun to ride than the traxter?

How are both of them in the mud.


OR should I get another Arctic Cat?

As you can see I have a lot of questions. I dont want to make another mistake.

thanks for your help.

 

Personally Id stay way from the hideous John Deere. If I were going to get one of these Id get a Bomb version. But in shopping around the bomb is way to expensive, and then you tack on the john deere name and the price just gets stupid

 

Sounds like you got a lemon. That's too bad. The John Deere is a lot of $$$ I would say try another 650. Maybe wait until the 05's are out. Should be sooner rather then later now. If you still have problems with the axels get some gorillas. They seem to work great. Maybe you should also take a look at the Suzuki twin peaks and Kawasaki P700. However, if you switch machines you will need to come up with a different name, AC650 would need to go if you owned a Traxter!

 

Its really to bad. The 650 is such a nice riding machine. I love that thing. I just cannot keep fixing it.

I also found out that Arctic Cat voided my warranty on my drive train. They will only fix it once and that is it. So if I did keep it I would have to fight that battle.

Its a bummer cause that is a great machine to ride on.

since the dealer is taking it back I can only get another Cat or a John Deere and since Cat has not been nice to deal with I am looking at getting the Deere.

the Deere does not have a lot of the nice things that cat has though. No IRS, No nice guages, Not a twin engine and so on. But they do seem dependable.

Oh well maybe I drive one of them for a while and then give it to my wife when the 05 cats come out.

I still love cats.

 

AC650, Sorry about your machine but no matter what name brand you do get a lemon in the crowd, As for the Bomb I hear that they both are terrible in the mud and uneven trails. Even with the viscoloc diff. They are to low slung and to heavy. I think they look like a Moped or scooter on 4 wheels not the Quest as much as the Traxter I am sure it is a good reliable machine. But dont drop the AC yet Have you thought of the 500 I have put mine through its pace on the trail and Pulling it uses a different trans than the 650 it is always engaged most people will tell you they have not had many belt problems with the 500. It also has the right amount of power and still has the same display as the 650. Also uses the same frame.

 

Don't know if this helps but... I've had an AC 500i on my farm for the past two years. 5 spd manual transmission. In 2 years and 900 miles, the only casualty was recent - lost the gear indicator lights on the panel. Otherwise, it has hauled trailer loads of cut oak (500 pounds) back to the house without a problem. This is my primary firewood hauler in fall and winter - probably moves five or six trailer loads every weekend from October to March.

One of the primary reasons I went with the Cat 500 was the manual trans, it's about the only big utility quad that still comes with one. The other was the ground clearance - my farm is pretty rough, and my old bear kept getting hung up.

 

gotta say here that the Vinson uses the same manual tranny as the AC500 and although there are a FEW problems people talk about on the Suzuki side, most people are pretty happy with it. I rode my friend's AC500I, but hated it. Already listed the reasons on other threads. I just didn't like it. You might like it, though.

 

gotta like john deer green, the 650 should be a good machine though sounds like a lemon.

 

He is jealous, and wishes he would have got the 500!!![img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

Just given you a hard time John!!![img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

Well coming from someone that has a Quest 650 (same as the Trail Buck), I can tell you it is one tough machine. The same goes for the Traxter/Buck. The Traxter is a pure utility machine with the ultra reliable gear on gear transmission, while the Quest has a very reliable belt drive. The Quest 650 has lots of power!

On the other hand I feel that A/C missed the boat by using Kawi's unreliable belt drive system, and they should've stuck with the tried and true AC/Suzuki belt drive system. I wouldn't hesitate to look at the 500i. They have the same suspension setup as the 650, but use the better belt drive system.

If you like the JD but not the harsher suspension, you can install a cheap long travel suspension lift from Perfex that makes it almost as comfortable to drive as an IRS machine.

Just some thoughts...