I've been reading these forums for a couple of weeks now. My father-in-law bought a 2005 AC 400 auto, and he got me hooked. I probably put half the miles on his bike that it has accumulated. I now have decided to purchase a 2005 500 auto, and it is in the process of being assembled with the options I asked for at the local dealership. I have opted to get the plow, front and rear bumpers, and hand/thumb warmers, although 2/3 of those options I won't be able to use until next winter thankfully! I am just itching to get out there and throw some mud around. I work shift work at a plant and a lot the people I work with have ATV's, and do quite a bit of riding. I love the Arctic Cats, but I have one question, why do they seem to have such a bad rep? I think they have done an awful lot to improve their bikes in the last few years, but anyone I ask always says buy a Bombardier or a Yamaha? I'm not knocking any other bikes, but my buddies 400 Bombardier (2003) looked like a 250 sitting beside the Arctic Cat, why are people so negative towards the Cats?

I'll post some pics next week on my page when I get my bike. I will be walking around with a HUGE grin on my face for a few weeks to come I'm sure.

Thanks for all the useful info that I've been reading. Ride On!!!!

TTYS Barnzilla

 

welcom to the atv world and our forum.
i was the same as you.
i road my brotherinlaws 400 forman and i was hooked.
my first quad was an 03 500 manual and now i have an 04 500 honda rubicon and an 04 700p kawasaki.
im sure you'll love your new cat i realy liked mine.
enjoy.
and welcome again.

 

Welcome to the site Barnzilla

 

hey barn welcome to the sight. and i dunno why arctic cat gets such a bad rap even the magazines and atvtelevision is really hard on them. arctic cat has some of the very best features and some of the worst, but since their earlier lineup they have vastly improved their machines. i am sure you will love your 500 auto for i used to have 2 of them an 02 and an 03 and both were bombproof they just missed the front diff lock which you have on that one. all i gotta say is when i got my 650 and got out in the mud with eveyone else they didn't knock arctic cat anymore they were all i guess you could say aww struck. but good luck with your machine and ride safely.

 

Welcome aboard barnzilla.

Sounds like a neat machine you've ordered there. Boy, I don't know why the AC's get such a bad rap either, but they sure do. Doug Meyer on ATV Television can't say enough bad about them. But ours have been absolutely trouble free - and we've got over 1,000 miles on both. Except for flat tires, but that's not AC's fault. Good luck and have fun.

 

Welcome! I am on my second ATV and my second Arctic Cat a 2005 400 man. I think the bad talk stems from jealousy. The guys I ride with can not seems to say anything good about my Cat however thier lusty glares and the fact that I am the designated tow strap guy speaks volumes. I chock it up to envy of the latest greatest.

 

welcome to the forums[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

Welcome to the forum. I'm still new here myself. I've only got about 5 hours on my first Cat. It's a 500 manual, and so far I really like it, and I'm sure you'll be happy with yours.

Do you think maybe all the negativity comes from their snow mobiles. I've lived in Texas all my life, and I've never actually seen a snow mobile in person, but there's a guy I work with from New Hampshire who used to ride all the time, and he says the Arctic Cat snow mobiles were the best handling, but least reliable. Who knows? He's a Yamaha guy.

At any rate, Arctic Cat only started making ATV's in the mid 90's, and I get the impression that they are one of the only manufacturer's to actually listen to their customers, and seem to build what the customer wants. Maybe, maybe not, but it seems that Arctic Cat will soon be a leader, and not a follower in the ATV industry. Around here, in my little part of the world, Arctic Cat's are really increasing in popularity.

 

I can throw a few bullet points up on the board


· Weak dealer support
· H1
· Poor factory support
· Problematic quality
· Ownership
· Troubling financial performance
· Weak R and D


Shonk

 

hey shonk i will agree with you on factory support and the H1 they should have kept their mouths shut on the H1 for a while. as for atv quality i have yet to see one that is better and have seen alot that have been worse. dealer support well every dealership is different i have a great dealer to work with myself they used to lie to arctic cat warranty for me when i brought mine in for warranty with my big mud tires on it. and arctic cat's r and d man they came out with the MRP and the duramatic transmission and the 10 inches of suspension travel and over 12 inches of ground clearance. just to name a few. every year they seem to be improving things that makes leaps and bounds to catch and surpass every other manufacturer. and i own an arctic cat snowmobile and they have been really good to me and perform great. i am by no means a true blue arctic cat guy who bleeds green but i look at the good and bad of everything and well this goes out to doug meyer from atv television you come up here and run with the big dogs and then we will see where your priorities in a good atv lie. and instead of pussyfooting around and telling us how good a straight axle is i wanna see you get all up on that machine and try to break something so people will know the quality of each machine and how it handles to us aggressive riders. oh and on a private note FUDM!