I asked this question on the Arctic Cat page. I thought I might get a few more responses here. If I sell my Scrambler 500, which would best suit my ridin' style between the Arctic Cat 500, Quad Runner 500 & the 450 Foreman(2 wheel/4 wheel) when available? I'm lookin' for somethin' that has power on hills, peppy enough to spin in the loose stuff when in 2 wheel drive, goes good in mud & snow, kinda fast and some what comfortable. Any help would be appreciated. I've never had a chance to ride any of the 3.

 

[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img] I'd say give the 450 a long look. It has won shootouts against the others, has Honda reliability, Honda engineering, and should go like stink in 2wd. Legendary in the mud. The S shifts more predictably and gives better access to power than the ES. Even an old Polaris jockey like me can learn to shift with my foot...

 

Suz. is mushy / narrow / short & slow
AC has a great ride with IRS. very stable good power but also slow
Honda has speed but swing arm rear & drum brakes.

 

Thank ya for the info. I think I got the polaris sold, I'll know for sure tomorrow. I got a friend that owns a foreman and an arctic cat and he told me to come down and try them both out,so I'll do that before I buy anything.

 

can i ask you a question why are you selling the polaris. and where do you live because im going to buy the kind that you are selling. or the sportsman 500. but it does not make a difference to me which one as long as its 4x4. and the price is right. well if its not alreadt gone let me know

 

Well, the boy that was supposed to buy mine went and bought a new warrior today so I guess I won't be buying any 4-wheeler now. It's a 500 2x4 and the only reason I am wanting to sell it is so I can get a 4-wheel drive later this year or early next year and work has been a little slow lately as well. I paid $5100.00 for it but I bought the five year warranty for $500 and financed it and the taxes with it and now I still owe $5100.00 on it and it's hard to sell a used atv for the same price that a new one would cost. I did put front and rear racks on it along with mud guards on all fenders and also I was letting him have a new double barrel shot gun that I have, so with all that I have well over $6000.00 in it. Oh well, maybe I'll save my pennies and get one later on down the road. By the way I am from Poca ,West Virginia.

 

I don't know about others, but this one easily goes to the AC for me. I looked at all of these 3 years ago when I was buying, and the AC 500 stood out easily. I guess now it will be even better with 2wd capability and IRS.

Here is what I looked at. The Honda has the weakest engine of the other two which are evenly matched. The AC easily has the best ride. Suzuki the worst. The Suzuki turns tighter than the others, and I had presumed that the AC was the worst turning until a month ago when I rode my friends 450S. Damn! That thing steers heavier than my AC does with 27" mud tires on. The Honda seat is also rock hard. I'm not biased here either, I am getting a Grizzly next, and I would tell you anything good or bad that I have found with any quad I've ever owned.

The AC costs less than the Honda, has more power, the floorboards are all steel construction, the fenders are strong, and I haven't torn one in 3 years of rubbing them on trees. As far as speed, they are all pretty closely matched I think. I would figure the honda to be the slowest of the bunch, but if that is so, it would only be 1 or 2 mph. The AC has great stock fender clearance, and you can fit in 27" tires easily with no lift, and still have a ton of clearance. I think that you could get 28" under there stock even. Turning diameter goes to Suzuki, and I don't see the Honda turning any tighter of a circle than the AC. Reliability on the AC has been outstanding over its tenure. I have seen very few problems in the past 3 years on the forums with Arctic Cats. I would still call Honda the best, but that is because they have always been the best.

Basically, the only upside to the honda now is that it has a push button 2wd available, and a nice digital display. Everything else goes to the two 500's, with the AC offering disc brakes, better suspension, more power, and a dual range transmission.

Still, all three are good, and the best thing to do is get what you like the best. 3 years ago I went with the Arctic Cat, and between these 3 bikes, I would do it again today.