Battle of the manuals

Just wondering i'm looking into getting a Manual machine, something geared more for indistruction. I see a hard pick here. I want a 500CC machine with gears, my question is I want the ultimate strength in everyway. I know the traxter has this, but I also like the Manual Cat, as it now comes with Independant, the only manual out there with that, and has a 2wd option which is more cosmetic but good. The only thing it dosen't have is a locking front diff and the rad seems to be vulnerable looking in the front. But other than that I hear and seen that they are very tough also. How are they on fuel as to a traxter which is very good on fuel. I'm looking for any info anyone can help with.
This is a battle that i'm having a great deal of difficulty with. The reason i'm not going for a grizzly is I don't want a 660, if they had a 500 then it would be different with a manual tranny. Auto is great but I miss gears believe it or not.
Does anyone have that battle they had on this site last year between the Cat and the Traxter.
What kind of miles do you have on your machine! I seen a traxter on this site with 12000 miles he said, if that is true that has to be a record.
Thanks

 

yam8
Check out the comparison test of the two located somewhere on atving.com.

 

Traxter is more tough than the cat..

cat is weak compared to the Traxter...

 

FWIW...I've a AC 300 4x4 and a Traxter. Here are my observations

AC - Pros
quieter
much better on gas
much better ride
easier to steer
better stock tires
2/3/4 wd options

Traxter - Pros
much better design
much better cust service (they replaced an engine/tranny out of warranty for free)
much more of a work horse
very heavy...almost mandatroy to have a winch


Overall...each are good for there own areas. If you are looking at 500's, you can get some killer deals on a traxter. there's a new XT on ebay right now with a plow for 5999....thats a great deal.

If you plan on doing more work than trail, i'd suggest the traxter. If you are going to do more trail riding than work, I'd get the AC.

I think the frame on the AC isn't quite as tough as the traxter. I've got quite a few rust spots where the weld points are on the AC. I just found a broken weld on one of the racks on the AC. My machines aren't abused.

good luck

 

Something to look at. The Traxter is tougher, though it had an engine and transmission replaced during the warranty period. That has to stand for something. Kind of a contradicting statement.

I would go AC all the way here. I haven't seen anything that looks as tough as an Arctic Cat. My 99 was a solid piece of machinery. The 500i manual looks to be the hot ticket. I think the only thing Bombardier has going for it is the visco-lock. Thats it. They can't give away Traxters around here. The Honda dealership still has the first edition traxters for sale.

 

I don't own either, but I have ridden with both. Here is my opinion of the two machines. First, the Traxter is a lot wider then the AC. So if your into tight trails and woods riding, the AC would be better. Second, the Traxter has a more effective front differential then the AC. The AC works very well for a limited slip, but the Traxter is better. Third, the AC has an articulating straight rear axle, the Traxter does not. That means the AC will keep better traction to the ground, and will deal with uneven or off camber riding better. Neither one is particularly "fast", but they both have plenty of power. Beyond that, they are both reliable and well built.

Rick

 

Understand that the engine/tranny were replaced OUT OF THE WARRANTY PERIOD for free. There was a hydraulic noise that is common with most traxters. Mine was louder than most. There was nothing wrong functionally with it.

Do you think AC would replace an engine or tranny, out of warranty, for free....for ANY reason??? I doubt it

There is no comparison as far as design. I own one. The traxter is designed better. But is is also alot heavier, has crappy tires and is alot louder than the AC.

The best thing for you to do is go ride them both. If I had it to do all over again, and the choice was between a 500 AC and a Traxter...and they were within a few hundred of one another...I'd take the traxter

JC

 

the traxter has good tires

mines came with 26inch blackwaters

or maybe the XT models only

 

The main turn off for me with the Traxter is probably the Ape Hanger handlebars. That and it just feels huge.

 

Well, I don't think anyone could dead on say that one if built unquestionably better than the other. But I will say this, if there is a better built ATV on the market than Arctic Cats, the Traxter is it. I sell Arctic Cats, but after taking a look at the Traxter I was REALLY impressed with how extremely overbuilt it was.

Now, I see we have some very big headed people on both sides of this discussion, but even thought I am an Arctic Cat Salesman/owner I will try to give a fair comparison.

About the Arctic Cat being weak compared to the Traxter, that is completely wrong. This shows me that you have only seen Arctic Cats in magazines and not enough in person. Arctic Cats are one of the best built ATVs on the market. Just look at the frame work, it might not quite be as sturdy looking but saying it is weak in comparison is being completely biased.

About the design, I really don't understand. What makes the design of the Traxter better than the design of the Arctic Cat?? To me, it looks like a mechanic built the Traxter. It's built EXTREMELY tough so it rarely has to be worked on and made so maintance is easy to do on it mostly. ON the Arctic Cat, it looks like the Boss asked a employee useing this "Tool" (the ATV it self) and the Mechanic working on it to help him (the boss) design it. The employee side of it comes with the comfort and convience, the toughness comes from the mechanical biases, and the boss side comes from the compromises that make up this ATV (as in manual 2wd selection that is cheaper and more reliable). So, saying which one is better designed is HIGHLY debatable.

About the motor and all, Many manufactures do this. But very few of them do it wide spread. You have to be very lucky to get someone high up in the food chain that is extremely nice to help you (aka-- be nice when you call them). And many people don't get this because they are pissed off about what happened and end up being rude to the people that can help them.

And yes, the Traxter is not only wider but the overall feel of the bike while sitting on it feels EXTREMELY WIDE. To me, it was uncomfortable, but to others it may be more comfortable. I think the handle bars (like Andy mentioned) are part of the reason but the tall mid section, with a lack of space in front of the seat combined with the widness of the tranny area made it feel this way to me.

As for the tires, only the XT models come with the 26" Black Waters, and even those were said to be only on par with the 25" 489s that the 2001 AC 500 had in the ATVConnection.com shootout.

Now, here comes the most controversial part. IF you are looking for an ATV that's only goal in life is to get you from point A to point B reliably at the cost of ALOT of comfort, then the Traxter is probaly the thing. If I had to go one way or the other about which appears to be built TOUGHER overall I think I would have to give the Traxter a nod. But if you are looking for an ATV that was built to get you from point A to point B reliably and in comfort at the cost of haveing to put up with a few rattles of the plastic and rust spots every now and then, I think the cat is the one for you.

The Arctic Cat might not have as much overall toughness, but it is so tough that you would spend more than a year of testing these bikes side by side to actually notice it. And even then you would have trouble HONESTLY saying that one was tougher than the other.

So, thats what i have to say about it. You can agree or you can disagree, thats what these forums are here for. But I just want to make it clear that this is one of my best attempts to be as nonbiased as possible.