I completely agree with you tinner that the backup starter on the BF is a nice feature. If we hadn't bought the Can-Am, the BF750 was our second choice. We drove it around the parking lot a little bit and felt like a great machine. I would definitely recommend it, but don't know how it is in the long term.

What the Can-Am dealer suggested (when talking to him about how the Outlander doesn't have the recoil start) is that we go to Canadian Tire and buy one of those little battery powered jump starters in case something ever happens, and just leave it our built- in storage box (like the Polaris, just a little smaller).

I would recommend a Can-Am Outlander 500 to you, it has EFI, and two cylinders. I can personally recommend it because after almost a year of ownership, there have been NO problems at all. It has some pretty durable plastic skid plates, but we chose to fully cover the bottom with the Aluminum skids (dealer accessory). Still haven't installed them, but we will get around to it at some point.

The Can-Am also has a standard 3 year warranty. If you can afford to spend the extra $$ on an Outlander 500, I would say go for it! There is also an XT package (winch, handlebar windguards, bumpers, other thingys) an a Max package (two-up quad that is long wheelbase and sits both riders in front of the rear axle).

IMO Can-Am also has a great suspension system.

Two more options (sorry to get you even more confused lol) are a Yamaha Wolverine and a Can-Am Renegade 500. They are both really utility quads (without some extra pounds) in a sport-style body. They both have on-the-fly 4WD switches.

I'm probably gonna get a Renegade or Wolverine as my next quad, since I don't want a fully utility quad but want to do some "real" off roading (instead of just sticking to trails).

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Mile High

Ss97, I went from sports ATV's to my fat Sportsman and liked the feel of my bloated tank[img][/img]...didn't mind the extra width a bit...I suppose it would also depend how tall someone is...but then again after my wife road the Sportsman, she kicked me off and claimed it as hers.[img][/img] For comfort it's the Sportsman all the way. Instead of doing 50miles through the desert/mountains on a sports atv and have aching knees and saddle soars I could do 80 and feel darn good, fill up and do some more. </end quote></div>

Hey some people do like it....... I could never get comfortable with the wide saddle and the single lever breaking on the Polaris..... I rode one of my Father's Scrambler 500 for months and the thing was just so heavy and big to me.......

As far as Utes being more comfortable on long rides, no argument there..... but I am not really into 80 mile rides..... I like to ride fast and aggressive and I get more beat up riding a big Ute.... trying to manhandle those things is impossible but I find myself trying anyway.....

 

No doubt, having separate break leavers for front and back can come in handy. I have been in a few situations with the Sportsman when I was wishing for more than one break handle. Some how when you get hung up on the nasty side of a hill with the front end of the ATV defying gravity, the break handle ends up on the wrong side (that emergency foot break isn't worth much). I have had to lie over the front rack and drive it backwards down some nasty stuff I wanted to avoid but heck...I have had to do the same thing with the Kawasaki.

Not many sports ATV's up here though there are a few. My brother-in-law had a Raptor 660, had a bad back and would kill himself with the stiff suspension. I would trade him ATV's but then he would complain the Polaris was so soft he felt detached from the trail and not in control. He sold the Raptor and bought a DS 650 Baja...still stalls 6 times trying to navigate a wash with overgrown rocks but the surge on the strait away is what he likes. More power to whatever trips your trigger.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

Okay guys, I know I have pretty much gone all over the map here, but after riding all of the aforementioned choices again over the weekend and yesterday evening, I am pretty much down to the AC700 EFI and the SP500 EFI. I like the following about these two:

AC700EFI...I like the 6.5gal gas tank, ground clearance, suzuki engine, constant tension on belt in CVT(seems like a better idea to me than the slippage until lockup design) and the saddle and ride are not bad.

SP500EFI...I love the comfort (and so do my two herniated disks, although the AC was not too bad) I like the proven track record of the sp500 Subaru designed engine, and the recoil backup starter.

I guess right now it is between comfort and security of the recoil starter as I may very well do a lot of riding alone(I really don't know if this is that big of a deal or not - have any of you incurred a dead battery out in the field, or am I being overly neurotic about this idea?), and the extended range of the larger fuel tank, more power, and looks (I like the slightly sportier looks of the AC slightly better than the more utilitarian looks of the Sportsman)

I don't know if this will pan out to be true or not, but there are many more Poaris dealers in my area than AC (1), so I think I may be able to work down to a better deal on the Polaris, whereas the single AC dealer sorta has a monopoly for the area.

These are my thoughts as of now. Any input on these would be greatly appreciated, and please let me apologize for the long post.

ps. Does anyone have any personal experience yet, or thoughts regarding, the new Grizzly 550?[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img] (too new to get a very good deal probably though)
Oh yeah, rode the BF again for about 10 minutes, and just did not like the ride as well as the two above for my back issues.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-disgusted.gif[/img]

 

Also like the fact, as stated before, that you seem to get more for your money as far as skid plate protection and storage with the SP500EFI, that would eventually have to be added to the AC700...

 

The 500 EFI is better on gas than the 500 with a carb. I usually ride without carrying a gas can, and I can do over 100 miles on a tank of gas on some trails. My best was a little over 120 miles on that little 4.1 gallon gas tank. If I'm playing in the mud, hillclimbing, or flying down a road at WOT it uses more gas, but the size of the gas tank may not be as big of a deal as you think it is. The 500 EFI also comes with 26" radial tires and Active Decent Control which is engine braking on all four wheels instead of just the rear.

 

Perhaps the AC has such a big tank because it needs the big tank i.e....like I said before my Kawasaki 700 gets only 17 to 18mpg. I bought the 700 after I bought the 500 because I wanted more beans under the seat. After having it I have come to the conclusion that the extra power doesn't come into play that often and quite frankly I was not all that impressed. Yea it's nice to hit the throttle sometimes and spray 10ft of rocky roost and hit 60+mph on a fire road but that's not most of the time. I think this has come down to comfort, ease of use, and what can be driven out of the box threw a rock garden without having to spend several hundred on aftermarket skid plates. A stock Sportsman even has steel braded break lines instead of unshielded rubber hoses like most everyone else. There are not many rides where you will outdistance the fuel tank on the Sportsman and (just guessing) because of the poorer mpg with the bigger engine, the Cat may not get much farther anyway.

As for a recoil starter...I can't believe a manufacture would actually make a big utility ATV and not include it. Let's face it; we buy these machines to go where people usually don't get to. To claw our way up trails that were carved out by gold miners over 120yrs ago and have been pummeled by mother nature ever since. A recoil starter should be standard in my opinion and I also like having one but I will also say this...I have never had to use it unless it was to start an ATV that had set in the garage for to long and the battery was dead. I have never been let down while on the trail by any of my ATV's. Something else to consider is since these are automatics you're not going to push start it if it does go dead. My buddy's kid me that I take everything but the kitchen sink when I take the Sportsman but it's because I can. If you're going to be by yourself you might want that storage option otherwise you really need to talk to someone that has a big AC for a first hand opinion of that machine.

 

Tinner, I am surprised that a) you have been riding a 400 class machine, and b) you are looking now at the big bores. Is there something in there that you are not telling us? Any time a person jumps to the biggest thing on earth argument, I think some of us really cringe. On the trail type that you describe, and assuming you will NEVER be getting anywhere near top speed... why do you feel it ncessary that you need the big bore then? People talk about power etc. I don't care what you are riding, you will always be limited by the ability to hook it up. Tires play a major role. Anyway, I guess I just want to let you know that the argument may not be valid. Especially when taking in consideration your riding descriptions. So if you don't need a big bore, why consider the expense? There are plenty of other machines in the 450 to 500 range that have all the bells and whistles a person can use. Save the dough for something else. I just bought my wife a Grizlzy 450 IRS. Damn good machine. I use to hate IRS, but this one has changed my mind. I rode a new Grizzly 550 with EFI and EPS last weekend at a factory ride... I was impressed. It is identical to the 700 Grizzly except it has a smaller bore. That is it. Exact duplicate on the outside feature for feature. Almost 800 bucks cheaper though.
Unless of course you have other motivation that forces you to go with a big bore.... I find on the trails out my way that you will never know the difference...

 

Most of the guys I ride with want the biggest and baddest and fastest ATVs they can get. I don't know if they're trying to compensate for inadequate ***** size or not. I only know that I don't need too. I've been riding 500s for 11 years and never thought about getting anything much bigger than that, but maybe my next one will be a 550 instead. That's as big an engine as I want.

 

Yeah that was my feelings exactly. This has been a major gripe I have had regarding the manufacturers for some time now. I think at some point htey need to say enough is enough. The size war has already been noticed by lawmakers and the various groups that want to see ATV's go away permanently. It just gives them more ammunition. They indicated that larger engines make them less safe and raise the injury stats. I don't know.. but I can say that most guys on the bigger machines tend to push the limits a little more than the smaller or mid size guys do. Speed is definately an issue in many accidents. So it is logical to assume they are related. The problem is that riders want to buy whatever is the biggest at the time they pull the plastic out. I try to advise people that a good mid range machine will meet their needs and they can use the extra cost savings to do something else like get a trailer or upgrade safety equipment etc. Or pay for a riding trip to some place exotic. But it seems I get shouted down... I hope it ends soon though. We don't need the go big or go home mentality. The problem is we will get right back in teh same situation as we were in when we ewre riding 3 wheelers. If Honda had not created the CR250R, we could all be riding 3 wheelers instead of 4 right now.