I'm ready to purchase my first Quad and am lost in a sea of choices.

I've done a fair amount of 4-wheeling in large vehicles. I know how to climb rocks and get unstuck, for example. I've never owned or even ridden an ATV or dirtbike. I have a fair amount of experience with street bikes.

I can afford to buy just about any USED ATV and there is a lot available in my aria.

My first assumption is that the rice grinders would be less hassle to maintain and easier and less expensive to fix, as that is true with street bikes. I had a friend tell me that was not true and that Polaris ATVs were much better but not terribly more expensive, so they were a better buy. I asked him to enumerate the reasons why, and I haven't heard back from him.

Please give me some sort of guidance. Here's what I need...

Basically, I'm looking for a post-apocalyptic escape vehicle, so I'm more interested in simplicity and ultimate reliability than performance.

Must be a 4x4.

I want something with simple electronics, so that I can purchase a replacement and keep in a Faraday cage, just in case. Call me a nut or whatever you want, I plan to survive.

Said ATV must also be road ride-able and street legal. ATVs are street legal here in AZ, you just need a few simple things and registration/insurance.

Thanks,
Bean

 

Basically, what is the Toyota or Glock of ATVs?

 

Toyota of ATVs is considered the Honda. Very reliable. Not without problems but very reliable. Most any of the major brands have good quads now. Hondas tend to be a little spartan on features. They are the only ATV company that doesn't have full AWD or 4WD on a quad. But, that being said they will get you to and through almost everything the full 4wd machines will. Ride comfort goes to Polaris. My machine has been very reliable with over 1700 miles and 200 hours or so. Power per cc goes to Can-Am. Kawasaki has good looking quads that have lots of torque. Suzuki tends to be the best bang for the buck. Yamaha's machines are great too. Don't know tons about Arctic Cats. Seen quite a few on the trails here in New England but I see mostly Polaris.

 

the ultimate used reliability machine would be something like a used honda foreman manual shift or rancher manual shift. you probably want a carb, manual shift, and an air-cooled engine. i would look for about a 2000 - 2004, or even a 90's TRX 300. Good luck with your searching!

 

The less features the more reliable. Most Honda 4x4 except the 680 Rincon and 420 Rancher are Air/oil cooled, No water pump,rad,antifreeze,thermal senors and Fan to worry about. Down side is the have much less power for there size. Yamaha Big Bear is also in that class. They also have simple Straight axle rear suspension,much less moving pivot points then (IRS) Independent Rear Suspension has.

I had a 450 Foreman and a 350 Big Bear but they sure were rough and dull to ride.

 

So, sticking with simple might be a bit less fun and less comfortable on a long ride?

How much power do you really need? I guess the more power, the more supplies I can carry.

What machine would be the best balance between features and simple? I definitely want to keep the electronics to a minimum. So fuel injectors are OUT, but I might possibly be interested in other features.

Is comfort and power, really the only advantage of the Polaris?

Why so little info on the Yamahas? I seem to run into that everywhere. They are the shadow Quad.

Thanks for the info fellas, this is actually very helpful.

 

Polaris does sell a carb. model Sportsman 500 still. Polaris are up near, if not, the top when it comes to towing and toting. The Sportsman 500 HO has a front rack that opens up to show a bin under the rack. Lots of room for gear. You can get rack bags and boxes for just about any machine but Polaris has an interesting system called Lock-N-Ride that goes on and off in seconds using an expanding anchor system. Arctic Cat also has some kind of system for gear like that. Most machines 500 and up are now EFI. There are others out there 450 and under though. Take a look at each manufacturers website and see what they have in your categories. TLC is right about the Big Bear. Good reliable quad. Harsh ride compared to IRS.

 

If the ATV does not have a feature then that Feature will not let you down.
EFI's only problem is it relies on its ECM brain Box to never leave you flat but after that its actually nicer less moving parts in a throttle Body vs a carb. No jets ,choke plunger or floats.

Other Features that are nice but not necessary are a true AWD,diff lock, selectable 2wd/4wd,IRS,Star Trek over information digital displays,power steering and liquid cooling.

Over a Honda it also has a AWD traction advantage,no limited slip 3wd stuff.
Example. A Foreman 500 pushes 27hp while a 500 Sportsman pushes 35HP. The Can AM Outlander 500 pushes 40hp !

I have a Friend with a Yamaha 660 Grizzly,he had it for 7 years now,no problems so far but the same can be said for many other makes and models.

 

I hear you, but I assume that these electronics are in addition to the ignition electronics. I want to buy an extra set, just in case. If it's just a simple CDI for a carb quad, that seems like it would be easily affordable to have a spare one on hand, but if we are talking fancy electronics, that sounds expensive.