Has any one had a kingquad and a 300 artic cat side by side to see what the difference is ? The mfg. specs look to be the same the only thing I herd was that the cat rear suspension was different.

 

Both use the same engine.The Cat's got heavier frame,larger tires,better suspension and a more comfortable seat.

 

I rode a kingquad a couple of times, as I have the 300. I'ld say the suspension is better on the AC. The AC wasn't as peppy as the KQ, perhaps the extra weight?

 

hEY DUDE'S, I owned a king in 2000 and I liked it alot , but i now own a 250 cat only diff is 34 cc in the engine , 2001 ac even have the diff lock , the swing arm rear suspenceion only has 3" travel , they move like vw rear end , the cat has 6.5 travel and double A arms front& rear a bigger fuel tank , wider handle bars , full floor boards, more rack cap, better seat to, bigger tires to , and disk brake's I hope this helps, MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL

 

I believe the rear suspension on the King Quad is refered to as "swing axle" not "swing arm." With a swing arm set up the rear wheels DO NOT move independently from each other as they do on the King.

The Arctic Cat actually has alittle more overall power due to the differences in compression ratio, carberation, and exhaust. These all add up. The suspension and seat (as mentioned before) really make a HUGE DIFFERENCE in the overall comfort of the rider while on the machine. I also find that the Arctic Cat will be more reliable because of it's overall build. The rear suspension is a great example of what I mean.

The Arctic Cat will also give you more performance when compared to the king. The added suspension travel not only alows you to be more sporty with it, but it also increases the ground clearance so you can have beter mud performance. The overall suspension design also allows it to be liffed, while the King Quad's suspension design makes it unsafe to lift (due to the rear swing axle suspension). Lifting the ATV will add to it's performance in the more technical areas.

Another feature you will like if you ever want to change wheels or tires on your ATV is the fact that the Arctic Cat has a much more widely used bolt pattern and 12" wheels all around. The King uses a bolt pattern that is unique to it's own design and uses 11" wheels up front with 12" wheels out back. This make it alot harder to find tires, much less wheels, in comparison to the cat.

Overall, I would take the Arctic Cat 300 over ALMOST any 300 in the utility devision. Thats not because I already own an Arctic Cat 500 and sell Arctic Cats threw a franchised dealership, but it is an obvious bias factor for me. What it really comes down to is the fact that the Arctic Cat 300 is an AWESOME ATV, and with a great price to boot.

 

Boner is right on the money, that AC300 is awesome for all the features. The only diff I saw in the KQ was it seemed to me, to accelerate a little better? The AC had all other features beat in my humble opinion. Boner made sence about the AC and the power, but the KQ did feel a little quicker. Ironically, was up at my dealers ranch again today, and rode their AC300. Can't say enough good things about this ATV, for it's features.

 

I own a King Quad, '99 model year. It has about 1800 miles on it and all miles posted by yours truely. I've pulled larger quads out of situations in past, with my tow rope and KQ. This quad jumps whoops better than most. The independent suspension helps keep the quad on all four wheels after a jump and it proves to be very stable. I also use it to plow snow in the winter. I have a Cycle Country Blade for it which is 48 inches in lenght. The little 280cc. engine is torque ready to kick butt. Never used tire chains, never runs hot. I've never riden the AC 300 or any other manufactures 300's. I have riden other quads, some smaller, some larger.
I intend to keep the King but I want something with a little more top end speed as well as more comfort. So I'm planning on looking at the AC 500i. So far the only bad thing I'm hearing here is that the reverse shifter is located in the wrong place, on the left side which makes it inconvenient to hold the brake and shift. Naturally, I would go for the five speed tranny. Automatics belong in cars and public transportation (buses).
Chuck

 

Sorry,
it appears that one individule took the orginal post I had here in the wrong manner,even though I dont see anyone else perceiving it like that?So for the sake of friendship and hassles,I edited the whole post.

Bill

 

hey dudes, Not trying to argue and But heating is why my king is no longer in my stable , that and the fact that dealer,suzuki, said I had to fix it, IT was still under warranty , I didn't break it , they said I rode to slow , The shop formen told me that bike had rep of heating , that I had to buy a cooling fan , It was brand new 4 months old 210 miles , and I had to buy a fan , ain't going to happen , best thing ever happen to me , I liked suzuki engines , if they would payed half on the fan it would still be here , they wouldnt hear of it, learned a lot about dealers to , want go back there either , But I did like the king , loved the attenion to detail they made everthing fit perfect worked good , except the cooling system , My wife bought the cat 250 , I was very worried, same engine , same cooler, well smaller engine, ( got watch what you say on here , details,) never had a problem yet , but I was worried about it , One battery , thats it and that was my fault, If it blow's up tomorrow , She will buy a new 300 cat I think , you never know about her ,

 

Has anyone used a quad with a snow blade to push gravel to maintain a driveway? Is it possible to do that or would it tear up the blade? I just purchased a used king to haul downed trees and other working stuff like that around the place and wondered if maintaining the drive with a quad could be an option.