The more I look at specs and owners opinions the more it looks like Arctic Cat is on my short list for a new ATV this fall. I am looking at the new 2005 650 series. The ATV will be used for plowing snow, pulling a brush cutter/mower, pulling some food plot and work implements and for general woods exploring and farm work.

My requirements:
I need something stable and reliable
I need loads of power for towing and hauling.
A nice roomy machine for my long legs and big ***.
It MUST have a fully locking front and rear. (no "limited slips")
Must be good in the mud. The mud on my farm is really nasty clay stuff. 589s will obviously be a necessity.
Has to be capable of hauling heavy loads (myself being the heaviest load it will carry)
I also require something with the softest ride possible (very bad back).
Automatic trans that requires no foot controls. (more back related stuff)


This ATV will not be used for high speed, low drag acrobatics and hill climbs. My sport riding days are officially over. I'm pretty much down to the Arctic Cat and the Grizzly which still seems to have low speed overheating problems which makes me nervous for my low speed high load application. The new Kawasaki might be a choice if it has an IRS rear. The Polaris is out due to the 4x4 system as it just won't fit my uses. Honda is out due to the diff design.

Are there any known chronic problems with the current 650 machines?

Is the H1 better for low end work?

Is the V2 the more "proven" motor and trans? To me, the V2 looks to be the better choice for now. I really don't want to get burned as an early adopter of the new motor if it is a mess of trouble.

Can anyone fill me in as to the details of the 4x4 system? It is fully locking is it not? How is it engaged?

Any input or advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

I'd go with the AC 650 twin for what you've suggested. I like the Grizzly, but I think the AC would be a better workhorse. Ride is great on both from what I hear. I know the Grizzly rides good. AC is a pretty well built machine. As far as the H1, its not out yet, and I don't see any major improvement that it could be over the V-twin. Either one would have more than enough power for what you are looking to do.

4wd is limited slip, with the option to lock it fully with a handlebar lever. Also has 2wd capability. Best of all worlds there. Quad has a high saddle if you happen to have trouble getting a leg over for any reason though.

New kawasaki will be independant as well. I imagine it will have a nice price tag to go with it, but hey, I'm not buying. Good luck with whatever you end up with. You really can't go wrong with anything thats out right now. All of these things are good. (unless you were wanting the differential lock, and you're right, Honda is out on that one. Their new big unveiling for 2005 was black plastic)

 

Thanks for the info. The AC is looking better and better. There seems to be a few problems with the belts from what I have read but I don't see theta as a deal breaker as of yet.

I got a kick out of your fourtrax pics. My first ATV was an 88 or 89 Honda fourtrax 300 4x4. I had an awful lot of fun with that machine. One thing I loved was that you could drive the things through extremely deep water. I have driven mine through water holes and completely submerged it over the seat and handlebars for a few seconds. As long as you blew through it fast enough to keep the water from getting into the air box or up the pipe it was a pretty decent submarine. I never had a lick of trouble with ti and i regret ever selling it. Mine had the front racks just like the one in your pics. I had to buy those extra at the dealer and I also had to pay extra for some of the bolt on foot boards that attached to the foot pegs. I remember the little "trunk" it had on the back that was accessed by lifting the rubber straps and swinging part of the back rack away. I think I even have the little toolkit that came with it around here someplace. I remember the stock tires were junk. I gave up on patching them properly and just started driving sheet metal screws into the holes. A somewhat sharp stick or a thorn would put a hole in them. The 4x4 was a 3x4 most of the time but solidly outperformed the 2x4 300s I rode with. I would have to dig out my old pics but I don't think mine had the black fender flares in the back. If I remember correctly those came out the year after mine. It has been close to 15 years after all (WOW does time fly) and my memory is a bit hazy.

That was the last ATV I owned. I'm sure I'm going to be in for quite a shock when I step up to a modern top of the line big bore machine like the AC650, grizz or new Kawasaki.

 

My first 4 wheeler was a 1986 Honda 200SX fourtrax. Bought it new. I had a blast on that thing, but in hind sight, I should have bought a car instead (Didnt turn 16 till fall of '86) =) Anyways.. A friend of mine tried to see if it would float. We walked it out on a dock, and sure enough, it floated on all 4's. He then tried to sit on it.. But that didnt work. The bike flipped upside down and all we saw was the bottom of the 4 tires sticking up. =) Drained the water, changed the oil and it ran fine.
The 4wheeler ended up getting stolen during a move back in early '87 or so and I hadnt owned one till I just bought my '04 AC 500 Auto. Man, why did I wait so long to get another one?

 

Captain
I like you was just faced with the same delima,didnt know which one to buy my local dealer sells both griz and cat.I really liked the cat tell I rode it, and in my opinion the brakes were horrible the rear brakes was all but useless. I thought maybe they just needed adjusted but thats not the problem when you press the rear brake the bracket thats welded to the frame deflects of to the side not allowing pressure to be maintaned on the master cylinder, when i noticed this i pointed it out to the service mgr, He replied ya I know thats ac for ya , he told me that he had complained about the problem to ac ,and wanted to weld brackets to the frame to stop the problem but ac wouldnt let the dealership do so. but other than the brakes it didnt feel to bad but that kind of scared me off, I kind of felt like if they took a short cut there where else did they cheat, and after all the brakes are kind of important,Dirt wheels test on the 650 kind of says the same thing
but thats just my opinion which dont mean squat
hope this helped oh I bought a griz
Dan,S

 

berg; the cat's brake have to broken in before they will start working properly. I just changed the pads on my cat and I ended up going thru the old breaking in routine and it was still about 50 miles before they really started working super again. Really hard pads take quite awhile to seat in, but then again they wear really well and thats a plus in my book. Any brakes that work super out of the box, that's soft pads, are gonna wear very fast and probaly won't stop you as well as the harder pads after break-in,

 

i personally have never had any problem with the cat brakes, like bear said they gotta be broke in i always take my new ones and just ride the brakes for a while and if i ever complained about the brakes it was that they are to good cause i actually endoed my fourwheeler two years ago cause the brakes locked up to hard but i love my 650 it is the best fourwheeler i have ever driven and i have driven all the big bores except the kawi prarie and the honda rincon but good luck on your choice

 

I drove my buddies 650 prairie last weekend on some old logging roads and is it ever sweet!All you have to do is point her and twist the throttle,and hang on!On the cat you have to work alot harder for a scarier ride.