I have been looking at these and would like to hear any comments about this quad. I do not know anyone who has one of these, but they seem pretty nice. I want to get it so I can take the wife safely up on the 4WD trails here in Colorado. Also, what has changed for 05? I can get a pretty good deal on an 04, but am not sure if it is worth it or not to spend a little extra and get the 05. Thanks.

 

I don't own one but the difference between the 04 and 05 is it has a different style of brake caliper (single piston floating caliper) instead of the fixed dual piston setup, and it has a digital gauge pod. It also has the MRP speed rack instead of the regular mrp rack, which isn't a big deal.

 

My neighbor has one, just bought it about 3 months ago. It is an '04 model it is the 500 TRV. I think he has about 400 miles on it, ballpark guess. He absolutly loves it for working, but he said it rides pretty stiff. I took it for a ride and it does, even with the shocks adjusted to the softest setting. I think that is maybe because with only one person on it it does not compress the shocks enough. The lengthened frame threw him off a bit at first, but says now he is getting used to it. When his wife learns to take turns and how to balance her bodyweight properly, they will be going good on the trails. But I was really surprised for the added weight on the bike how well it handles and runs in the mud. He is not into hillclimbing much so I could not tell you about it in that aspect of the game. All in all I would say it is a pretty capable ride. But that is just my opinion. I also read in dirtwheels mag that it has a much heavier-duty rear suspension and a different axle than the regular 500. Well, hope I have helped a little. Good luck!

 

Hello; The wife and I just purchased a 2004 AC 500 TRV a couple weeks ago. We put about 40 miles on it in the yard, then took it to a freinds. He has 40 acres of wooded trails where we put on another 100 miles. The cat did great, it rode fine and was much more stable with two people on it than I would have imagined. It wasn't as fast as my buddys grizzly 660, but the TRV did'nt have near the vibration in it. I did'nt notice any more body roll than the grizzly had either. The TRV is a bit more stiff to turn than the grizzly, but in turn I felt I had better control. I did'nt buy it for speed but the grizzly and his warrior could not pull away from us on the trails even though we were riding double. Were going north riding this weekend so i'll have more info later. But so far we are very impressed with the machine.
Bullwinkle123
AC TRV
Michigan

 

I have an 03 TRV with 700 miles on it including 360 miles in the Taylor Park area of Colorado in just 5 days. It is a handful in tight woods with 2 people and is setup stiffer than a 1 seater. I use a 60 inch plow in winter and it overall is a great machine. No problems in the 16 months I have owned it. I chose the 03 as everything is still manual and not electric as there is less to fail given the conditions ATV are exposed too. I am looking into better tires to help handling as the stock tires stink. Colorado is the great place to use it and it excels at Jeep trails with its clearance and suspension with 2 people.

 

The other change for 05 is that the passenger footrests are now rubber mounted to reduce vibration

 

We have two TRVs. I prefer the TRV even when riding solo. Whether mountain trail, forest, swamp or dirt road - the TRV is the safest way to ride 2 up. Its extra long wheel base makes it seem like a cadillac ride and the lower gear ratio hauls the two adults around better than our other ATV's. For technical riding - its fabulous. If you want to race the other quads - this is not the right machine.

My wife and I went over backwards on our Polaris 500 while riding two up. She had a broken arm and I broke my colar bone and had extensive internal injuries.
The TRV handles that same incline angle without even getting light on the front tires. I have not been able to get the wheels off the ground even when trying to.

We have over 600 miles on our 03 TRV. Other couples are buying TRV's and we ride with them frequently. Hope you find your TRV experience as fun filled as we do.

See our pics

 

The TRV seems to work great, the only thing keeping me from buying one is no front dif locker, and you can't remove the rear seat when nobody is riding. I really use my rear rack a lot...

 

I wonder if there is a Diff locker for the 500i. These are basically the same machine.
I welded my own "half" MRP rack for the rear rackage.

 

We have several 2-up TRVs in our club.My buddie Jeff rides an 04 Bombardier 500 and it has a Visco Lock in the front that works excellant.It will supply power to both front tires when needed.He and his wife like it alot.I rode it for awhile and as soon as they put a 700cc engine in one and take our 50 inch trails and make them 60 inches or wider,I'll own one too.

Bill