I'm going to be purchasing a new machine in the near future and have been looking at the 300 cat 4x4 can anyone give me the reliability and best price in western Canada.
Please list the pros and cons
thanks in advance.
ps new to me 2000 model

 

Hey tsz glad to see you getting into atv fun the only thing that I actually saw that turned me off on 300 was the way the engine is mounted to the rear of the bike. Seems this would be a problem in climbing steep places with a lot of the weight to the rear...but I don't know haven't rode one. If it is built anything like the AC 500 it is nothing short of a tank and an excellent machine...I own the sportsman 500, AC 500 and a kawasaki 2x4 300 and the AC in some ways is a better bike than the Polaris...did I say that hehehe good luck on your choice but I would ask the dealer about the weight distribution or someone who actually owns one on climbing steep hills...it is tough sometimes with the engine mounted in the middle let alone it mounted to the rear...again this is just my observation and I to would like to hear from someone who owns one about the weight distribution issue...good luck let us know what you get...

 

TSZ,
I agree with atving, If I was you I would look into the ArcticCat 400, on the bigger quads(400,500) ArcticCat moved the motor to the middle for balance, also if you plan to add bigger tires the 400 would give you better choices. I dont think that their is much Diffrence in price bewteen the 300 to the 400 so It might better a better value

chuck
[green]2000 ArcticCat 500 4x4, Warn A2500, Roller Fairlead, AND WILL BE BUGGED SOON!!! and then covered in mud.[/green]

 

Tsz,I own the AC 300 and the polaris explorer 250 4x4 and for the weight distibution issue it would apear that the quad would be suseptable to fipping over on steep inclines due to the rearward engine placement however this is truely not the case .When lifting the front of my explorer and then the front of my Ac 300 oddly enough the AC is heavier my AC has never been easier to flip than any other of the quads I've owned "with the exception of my banshee".the enginering behind the AC 300 design is that of Suzuki "which was not new to quads when designing this bike King Quad"there belief is making total avaliable rear wheel hp they could out of the under sized 280cc power plant therefore completely eliminating a rear driveshaft was there answer butting the motor right into the rear diff.I guess one advantage is less joints but AC seems to have done pretty well on there joints so this is minimal in comparison.As for the rest of the bike I'd say reliability is so so and if it had another 50cc I'd say its would probly be the best quad out there.the rear suspension is like night and day with my explorer it is a water bed compared to a rock.My only complaints so far is the damn noisy brakes but thats on all AC's and the stupid nuetral saftey switch besides that it relly pretty good bike I use it for hunting and exploring the thousands of miles of untamed land here in Arizona.hope this helps later on!

 

I agree with xplorer, I have a Honda 300 4x4 and an AC 300 4x4. The front of the Honda is easier to pick up then the AC. I have never felt the front on the AC light when climbing hills. A friend of mine thought the front would be light, so we traded quads for a day. After climbing some steep hills he said it didn't feel any different then his AC 500. I have close to 2,000 miles on my AC without any problems (I guess I am lucky.) I sure like the rear suspension on the Cat.

 

I also agree with some of the others.We have both a AC 300 & 500 and so far on climbing hills, I can tell no real difference(as far as the front end being too light).It would seem that the 300 would be light in the front,but it feels quite stable going up hills.Just wish the 300 had a little more power.

 

Thanks for the update on the power issue.I was thinking of the high low range on the machine for hill climbing as a option.Is It beneficial to have the option to switch from two to four wheel drive.
When I looked at other machines most had a tool box is there one on any of the cats.
Thanks for your reply.

 

the 300 will not flip ower backwards it looks like it would but it wont I guess because it is so long I have only fliped once on a hill and i fliped sideways and I have climbed some huge hills

 

I just bought the 400 4x4 but had gotten pricing on the 300 4x4 down to $6000.00 less th e winch, if I wanted the winch the dealer wanted another $199.00. The 400 sold to me for $6700.00 plus $199.00 for the winch. No other dealers in my area would match this price , most were about $200.00 higher.

Regards Jim

 

I've got the 2000 500 Auto Cat, and it is very nice being able to select from Hi/Lo range for climbing hills, especially steep ones. Most of the riding I do is crawling up and over stuff, so the low range allows for better crawling capabilities. Also, the selectable 2 wheel drive is also a bonus for getting to the trails, where you really don't need four wheel drive, such as on gravel roads, or a few trails. As for the tool box, Arctic Cat has a small box underneath the back rack between the frame. I haven't measured it, but I would guess it's about a 6" square. It isn't real big, but it does fit the tool kit that comes with the bike, with room for extra stuff, like maybe a tire repair kit, etc. If you're worried about a place to store stuff, they make tons of different bags and styles for all over your atv, even small ones that will fit within the rack itself, so you can still put larger objects on top. Your options their are pretty much unlimited.

Good luck with the purchase, hope you enjoy your new 'Cat!

Mike