I am well pleased with mine so far. It has great power, speed, and handling. It is very stable. The ride is good and it handles rough terrain at high speed. It is even a good jumper. The only problem I have had is mine has a loud clicking noise in the rear when the suspension works independently. I am told there is a service buletin that covers this and it is a lubrication issue. I will take it back to the dealer to get it done after the weekend ride. I put it thru 140 miles of mountain riding 2 weekends ago and it put a big smile on my face.

 

mudbone,
Can the outlander keep up with the sp700?

 

You have to be kidding!
Unless my brother-in-law has a bad one, they won't keep up with a SP500.

 

It depends on what you mean by keep up. Will it keep up in a drag? No way. Will it keep up in anything but wide open trails? You bet. I ride with a friend with a 650 Prairie. I am an experienced rider. On the trails I can give him a hard time and, in the right circumstances, even pull away. I have ridden with 700s that couldn't keep up, but I think that was more the rider. The Outlander is a well balanced sporty machine that can hold its own against just about any utility.

By the way. The mags lined the Outlander up with a 500 Sportsman when it first came out to see just how fast it was. They said they were dead even.

 

My friends SP500 can run with my other friends 660 Grizz to about 35mph, then the Grizz pulls away. I would think the Outlander would hang with the SP700 even longer.

 

I don't understand why you would think a 400 / 4 stroke / belt drive would be faster than a 500 /4 stroke/ belt drive. As BK said, on the trail it's anybody's guess, the rider has everything to do wth it and I agree that the Outlander is a great trail bike. But, in a drag race, the 400 has a disavantage up against the 500. My Sportsman 500 is an old 1998 and is NOT an HO and is bone stock. I don't smoke the Outlander in a drag, but I do pull away. I rode his Outlander and it was a nice handling bike and smooth.

 

Thats funny my outlander smokes my buddies 2000 500sp from start to finish and against the 500HO it's dead even. I did noticed once the Outty is fully broken in it gets faster. I am wondering if my machine is just plain faster or just broken in, I topped out at 64mph on flat pavement, another newer Outty topped out at 57.(stock tires using speedo)

 

Could be it's not broken-in yet, I would guess it has less than 150 miles on it. I think when we ran I was going somewhere between 55 & 60. Likely closer to 55. I traded a SP400 2-cycle for this SP500 and the 400 was just as fast as the 500 and more fun on the trails, but I wouldn't trade back. I don't miss them fouled plugs.

 

Just based on the information from what I have read the Outlander will keep up with a 500. The outlander may have a smaller motor but it is also lighter. The sportsman may have a bigger motor but weighs in 77 lbs more than the outlander. So, in a drag race they would run about the same. However out on the trail the rider plays alot in to how well a machine performs. As does other parts (ie suspension, tires). All of these help a machine perform better.

I am leaning more towards the sportman just simply because it has been around longer and there are more aftermarket parts available. The plastic holds up a lot better. The only thing that would sway me at this point is if the outlander came out in a 500cc size motor and they improved the plastic.

 

Hello
I have a 2004 Outlander 4X4 XT in Yellow - i only have 60 miles on it so far but love everything about it. My Bother in law has a Yellew 2004 Outlander 4X4 XT MAX the 2 seater and he loves
it also. I thing the Yellow is the best color and it has the gray lower by the foot pegs.
Some time i wish i have got the Outlander 4X4 XT MAX the 2 passenger but i love mine also and if you
buy before the end of the year and you do not have to finance it - you get a 3 year warranty for free.
I have not use the racks yet. Ride and handles great.


Yellew 2004 Outlander 4X4 XT