My buddy has a 2004 Cat TRV 500. We go riding through woods trails primarily with a group usually anywhere from 3 to 6 riders.

He is the only one with a Cat. I have a Polaris 2004 Sportsman 400. Three of our group have Grizzly's and one has a Kodiak 450 with solid rear axle.

My buddy has been complaining recently about how his TRV is "a tank" in that it's somewhat arduous to navigate through the trails. Mind you......these are not real tight technical trails. They are ATV trails with tree roots and protruding rocks. We all ride these trails with some speed but it's the turning and minipulating around obsticles that becomes a workout on the TRV.

I had driven the TRV previously and didn't really notice it.......but it was on more open trails. Others in our riding group have also described the TRV as "a tank"......meaning it's a bear to drive. A few nights ago we were riding and I noticed my buddy lagging behind a bit so I waited for him to catch up and asked if everything was OK......and he said ya......but he comented that his machine is a handful and he asked if he could ride mine to try it out........so I said sure and we switched. I must say that I immediately noticed a huge difference in the effort required to muscle the TRV around......and I didn't like its reaction when hitting protruding rocks in that it would sometimes jerk you off into another direction. My buddy often mentioned after a long ride how his arms muscles "were burning".........now I know why. It seems to me that the TRV on more open trails is just fine......but when you get into any twisty turnys......particularly if you're trying to keep up with a group........it gets arduous.

When we stopped my buddy immediately proclaimed "what a huge difference!" and that he's going to get a new smaller more nimble quad. He said he'd keep the TRV because he likes the ability to go two-up riding (wifey)........but he's had enough of the "tank" feel in the woods when riding with the group.

He's going to be looking at new quads and I know that the Grizzly and Sportsman will be the primary candidates. I think I'll also mention to him that he may want check out the Bombardiare Outlander 400 4x4 H.O. as it's been characterized as an extremely "nimble" trail machine. With the prominence of the Grizzlys in our group it may be that the Grizzly is foremost in his mind and at the top of his list at this time. I have yet to ride a Grizzly so I can't speak to how it compares......but the Grizzly guys also say the TRV is "a tank" so I think I can probably presume the Grizzlys characteristics are pretty good.

How do the non-TRV 4x4 IRS Cats behave in comparison to other machines such as the Sportsman, Grizzly and the TRV relative to muscling them around the woods???

 

The TRV weighs 732 pounds empty. Your 400 Sportsman weighs 697 pounds so its just 35 pounds less than the TRV.
That makes the machine weight likely not a significant factor.

Your 400 has a wheel base of 51 inches compared to 58 inches with the TRV. One would think the extra 7 inches would not effect turning effort to much. The longer wheel base is normaly associated with a smoother and more "planted" ride.

Ive found the TRV is both the hardest to steer, and also the easiest, depending on whether the front end alignment is done correctly or not. If the TRV is pulling to either side - it requires a lot of muscle to crank around.

I found the suspension will make a big difference on the TRV. The soft squishy ride made me take the rough areas more slowly because the "tank" feels like it wants to roll-out of every bump. I really noticed a HUGE difference in switching to the HighLifter HD springs. It changed the ride so signifcantly that I recommend everyone change to them. Im even squaring off corners and if you ask anyone with a TRV and standard springs - they would say - no way!

So.... Dimensionally the TRV isn't that different from other quads. I'd suggest your friend up grade those springs and see if he gets the same results as I did. Honestly - it makes a big difference.

 

Also,

IF the steering effort is coming from preventing the handlebars from turning, it has to much toe-out. With to much toe-out it wants to turn easy - and keep turning even tighter.

If the the steering effort is coming from making it turn - it has to much toe-in. Just a couple of turns on the steering arms can make a big big big! difference.

I snapped a steering arm on the left side of our TRV 7 miles into an aggressive and uninhabited area. We rode out riding backwards on two wheels while we balanced the quad standing both of us on the right floor board. Yes it was hard to do but we had plenty of time and practice area to work with. Anyways - ... it took me 2 months of tuning those rod ends until I had it centered again and its back to steering like an old Polaris trail boss girls bike. Sweet... finally.

 

Update

My buddy just called me and he just got back from the Polaris/Arctic Cat dealer. He bought a new 2005 Polaris Sportsman 600. He also bought a 4 place enclosed V-nose drive through trailer so I think we may be "going mobile.....beep, beep!!!" for some quad trips before too long as well!!!

'WhoDat'.......Thanks for your replies........but I didn't even have chance to talk to my buddy about the tie-rod/front end alignment issues you recommended.........I think he had just decided he wanted something different for our group trail rides and when and did it.

Like I said though.......he is keeping his Cat TRV so we'll have to look at his front end.

Thanks again
Bob

 

Well, your buddy has a lot of money or good credit - so hats off to him!
Next time you see this guy - remind him that he just bought a sportsman that weighs 33 pounds more than his tank...lol
Good Luck!

 

Well..........he's got a lot of money AND good credit......LOL.

But the Sportsman is truely a whole lot more manuverable through the twisty turnys regardless of weight........a huge diffference.

Thanks, Bob

 

My buddy just told me one of the other issues he had with the Cat was that he uses it in winter with the plow set up for doing his driveway. He said that the plow mounting brackets that bolt to the frame extend down "like knives" and get hung up all the time when trail riding......particularly when traversing over downed trees/logs etc........ This is compounded by the brackets being very difficult to install (at least on his) because the bolt holes don't line up........and really really really don't want to line up either (we tried for about 1.5 hours). He gave it to the dealer and told them to install the brackets.

Don't get me wrong here......I'm not trying to trash the CAT. Frankly I love the idea of American quad companies.......Go CAT and Go Polaris. His CAT TRV has given him ZERO operational problems and is a rugged machine. It's just that it's kind of a beast on the trails.

Bob

 

Hey Whodat - where are you getting the rear MRP racks for your TRV's? Is that in place of the seat or in addition to it? I'd like to check that out. Thanks.