Hello, all
I'm looking into a new utility quad, and I'm caught between 2, so I'll list the candidates.

1) 2006 Arctic Cat 400 4x4 Automatic (not the VP and not an LE) - $4600 out the door
I like the 2 year warranty on the AC verses the Honda 6 month.
It is a larger chassis and is wider and heavier than the Honda by about 60 pounds, and I like that.
Arctic Cat has longer suspension travel (10" verses 6.9F & 8Rear on the Honda)
2" more ground clearance than the Honda.
Electric locking F&R differentials.
Is the $1500 savings worth it?

2) 2005 Honda Rincon - $6150 out the door
I like the Honda name for engine quality, although I'm not scared of the Suzuki in the AC.
It is a larger liquid cooled engine, and the torque converter transmission verses belt on the AC.
I like the tripple sealed front drums on the honda compared to the front disc on the AC.

Remember, the Rincon is a leftover 2005, and not fuel injected like the 2006s

I just really want one for a little trail riding and utility purposes around the house. No hard core mudding that I can forsee. Mainly a toy, but I want a 4x4 for versatility. I know the prices are good, and not negotiable.

Thanks
Mark

 

go with the honda they have always built a quality machine. the artic cats might look nice but the 400 is totally under powered for its size,and as far as artic cats warranty you might as well just throw your paper work away as soon as you get it. my brother inlaw bought an 05 650 and a seal went out while he was driving it tne oil light never came on and it ceased up, there wasn't 500 hundred miles on it and artic cat wouldn't stand behind it. they tried to say it overheated and burnt all the oil out of it. and that wasn't the dealer who was trying to tell us that it was artic cats own techs cause we had one of them come right to the dealer and thats what they were trying to say. well if all the oil burnt out i'm sure that it would have been a pile of melted aluminum. anyway it ended up costing him 1600 to have it fixed. so i guess what i'm saying is buy the honda

 

I dissagree, the cat sounds like a great deal. Not that i dont like honda, i had one, but i have had great luck with AC. You would love the speedrack options, and diff lock, and the added ground clearance. And I have had no reliability, or dealer issues with mine.

 

you like the drum brakes from the honda over the disk brakes of the cat better? drum brakes are a thing of the past they don't have the stopping power and they won't last as long as disk brakes will. i agree that the 400 is more underpowered then it should be but a solid machine all around. the belt drive system on it is great. honda makes a good machine to but it seems like they had the same basic machine for so many years and stayed number one with it that all the other machines passed them in all the comfort catigories and now honda is trying to catch everyone else fast and they aren't getting the same great quality they did a few years ago. seems like they are trying to evolve their machines to quickly now and we all know it takes time to work bugs out.

 

A friend of mine has the Arctic Cat 400 and it is a great quad. It has awsome ground clearance and I also like its diff lock. A little slow on exceleration but nothing a jet kit and an aftermarket silencer won't fix.

 

I would get the AC, the taller stance in nice and the speed rack is pretty neat.

 

Trust me on this, you will appreciate having a 650 over a 400 any day. I have one of the discounted 05 Rincons and they are very comfortable and handle great. The difference of power between a 650 and 400 in pretty considerable.

 

Thanks for the replies, everyone! I'm going to take the AC for another spin today with the suspension set to the softest setting. I never rode a Rincon until this past weekend, and it is impressive. I had it over 50 mph, (the AC 400 may not even reach that speed on those surfaces) on an unmaintained field with moderate bumps, and it rode and handled like a dream. I never figured it would be that smooth, and the AC has a firmer suspension. The big problem now is that the Rincon may be too soft. It bottomed out in the front on a somewhat mild bump at around 30 mph, and I'm coming to the conclusion that I may want to ride more aggressively than the Rincon's suspension was intended, and there is no adjustability. How will the Rincon front sit with a plow hanging from it and no adjustablilty? With the AC's 10" of travel and firmer springs, I'm coming to the conclusion that it is intended for more aggressive riding, and while I'm not wanting to go out and enter a motocross, I think I want to be a little more aggressive than the Rincon will allow.

I know that the Rincon and the AC 400 Auto are not really comparable machines, but neither are the prices. The Rincon is truely the Escalade of ATVs in my opinion, and maybe that's what Honda is going for. But also, Escalades aren't meant to be roughed up off road much. If the Honda had the suspension travel and clearances, it could be the Hummer of ATVs perhaps. Maybe the AC is more like a Jeep CJ or something - not too many frills and it's not a powerhouse, but it has the basic necessities and the suspension/clearances for rougher riding. Maybe I'm wrong, but I'm still undecided.

 

If you need a more agressive/utility/sport riding quad then I'd suggest either the Outlander 650 or 400, they are truly best in their respective class and the Outlander 400 will hold it's own against many 500's out there. BRP is offering free extended warranties on all Outlanders. Just an FYI but I believe the A/C runs a Suzuki engine?? Nothing wrong with Suzuki but you can't beat the Rotax engine in the BRP products, they are also best in class IMO. A/C selling points are suspension/ground clearance and a lot of different body style options. It may not seem like it now but once you start doing more riding I think you will definately want any extra power you can get.

 

ok yes if you wanna ride more aggressive the cat is deffinately the way to go 100 percent. the 400 doesn't seem to give ya the power you want so why not try a 500 or maybe the H1 650? sounds like you want the suspension of the cat and the power of the 650 honda so then the H1 would solve all of that. and the H1 has the arctic cat motor and has worked great so far and the 400 and 500 have the suzuki motor which everyone knows is a great working peace of machinery.