Hi everybody,
I am looking to buy an atv. It will be a 4x4 because I live in minnesota I need an atv that will go through lots of snow, mud and will pull a pretty large boat as well as carry my dad up a fairly steep hill. I used to have an 82' 250 three wheeler that could pull him up in first gear so I think a 300 will do. Any comments on that.

I cant spend over three thousand so these will be no older than a 96 and probably no newer than a 2001.

I have pretty much narrowed my search down to the 5 four wheelers listed, please tell me if these all have four wheel drive and if you can get them in manuals.



1)polaris sportsman 335, 400 or 500 (but have heard that automatic belts slip when wet.)

2)polaris magnum 330 or 400 ( only 6 inches of ground clearence compared to 11 on the sportsman. How much will this matter with snow on the ground.)

3)arctic cat 300, 400, or 500 (have heard that it doesnt have the speed. please comment if this is true.)

4)yamaha wolverine ( don't know anything.)

5) big bear 350 or larger ( don't know anything.)

 

Of all those listed I'd go for the Artic Cats, especially for pulling a boat.

Jaybee

 

I don't really like any of the choices but it's not for me. Maybe the Wolverine for 4x4 fun or the Artic Cat (heavy quad) 400 or up for work. I hear too many stories about Polaris break downs. Whenever I think about the Big Bear 400, I think about this one guy complaining about his at a local dealer. He said that he just got it home and it was making some noise and something went clunk. The service person told him to bring the new BB back in. Before that I thought that the BB didn't seem bad for the price. Artic Cats have Suzuki motors so maybe you should at least look at Suzuki's too. For $3000. could buy you a used 4x4 Rancher 350. It is really going to depend on what is available used in your area for the best price. You can check used atv prices at NADA.com or KBB.com to get an idea or compare ads to see what they are selling for.

 

id go with the big bear 400 o yeah and www.atvtraderonline.com is a great place to find atvs[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img] the wolverine is a great atv but its more of a fun machine than a workhorse, but it should do anything you want it to.

 

it is as simple as this...

Get the Yamaha 450 4x4 Kodiak automatic

 

the wolves are nice and the bear, but the 400 big bear tops out at around 45, its alittle slow when the trails open up.

 

if the belt get's wet on any belt drive machine, it will slip. manufacture's these days have just about perfected the problem. i say from my experience, buy a polaris sportsman. get the 500 at least. i don't push snow, but i can say that my sportsman has pushed & pulled many quads from mudpits. i have never seen another quad that can mud like a sportsman. just to be equal, other quads use lift kits, aftermarket tires, skid plates & a front locker. you can drive a sportsman off the showroom & tackle nearly anything that you throw at it! dependibility is very good, though some will try to convince you otherwise. i think that you will be able to find a good used one to fit your budget. let me know!

 

When you say "belt drive" are you referring to the V-belt in the Kodiak transmission or are you speaking of the drive train? If you are talking about the drive train, that might have changed on the '03. The website says "Drive Train -- Yamaha On-CommandŽ push button 2WD; Shaft" Maybe they have replaced the belt with a "shaft" now???? If so, thats good. Not sure if this helps, but I seen it on the website and thought I would post. Thanks!

 

all belt drives that i am aware of transfer the power from the engine crank to a separate transmission. then power gets to the wheels usualy via shaft.

 

i don't believe that i have ever seen an atv do as poorly in wet conditions as a polaris. My dad has a 98 Sportsman 500 and we usualyl go riding with 4-7 other guys that have polaris's they all bought the same year. They get stuck in the water because their belts slip and they're so heavy just about everyone else gets stuck getting them out. However, their suspension is extremely superior to all other stock. Also, up here in Alaska we get lots of snow, and in the snow no other machiens do as good as them because they dont loose their momentum shifting gears to plow through the snow. I saw someone had posted that they heard very bad things about the big bears. A friend of mine has had his since 92 and hunts with it about every weekend. I won mine at a gun show last April and not only is it the best machine i've ever ridden for $10 (also big bears are really cheap compared to all other machines in their class) but the only bad things i've had to say about it so far is that i'm a little dissappointed with the stock tires and cauling (the mudflaps get caught on things easily so i broke them off and replaced them with rubber ones). One great thing about all the yamahas is that for quite a while they've been making them with a snorkel-style intake. So if you're planning on doing any semi-deep water or mud crossings, you can spend about 3 hours and under $50 and fit yourself with a very well-made snorkel simply by removing the stock one and routing some tubing up to a higher location.