Hello Bombardier owners. I'm interested in the Visco-Loc system. I'm on the fence between a outlander 650 and a KQ700 and my main concern is the 4x4 systems. I have been riding a friends of mines Kodiak 450 and it has a locking front dif and it works great. I have to use it about 3 to 5 times a ride. Now the KQ has locking dif so i'm ok with that, but i'm really interested in a outty, how well does the visco-loc work? I've heard some people say you really have to get the free wheel to really spin fast to get the visco loc to work, is that true? Thas seem kind of unsave. When i use locking dif i'm in low going up a really bad steep hill, i need a locker that works very well. Please let me know your thoughts about the visco loc.
Thanks,

 

i have seen my bro's outlander in action when he was stuck and i specifically watched to see how the front diff worked
they say it locks up but from what i saw it was probably only 3 and a half wheel drive, the 4th wheel wouldnt turn as fast as the other which was spinning wildly-so in my mind, thats not a locking diff
i am sure you will get many different accounts on this topic, this is just what i saw on that particular day [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]
450kodman

 

Did not work on my fiance's outlander 400 pulling logs. Had 2 rear wheels in mud, 1 front on icy patch and other on hard ground. rears were spinning and the one front on ice was BUT the one that should have been grabbing did not move a bit. I finally had to grab hold of bumper and give it some help. That knocked the outy out of contention as my next machine.

 

I will tell you this, it's way better than anything else in climbing mountains because I see and do it every weekend. We ride up tricky mountains and do hillclimbs, the Outlanders always go further than any other machine because of the visco-loc. In our group we have PoPo's, Grizz's, Brutes, King Quads competing for king of the mountain and in every ride a Outlander 400 or 800 has won.
This years Mud Nationals were on Outlanders.(all the classes they entered in were victorious)
The world ATV trials champion rides a 400 Outlander.

 

The Visco-Loc is never going to work as well as a true locker. I too am concerned since I will pick up a 800 Max in June. As a result I've read everything on several forums and watched several video clips of the vicso, including BRP's PR video.

Here's what I've been able to glean from all the reading and watching the clips... Keep in mind it's not personal experience.
- If you "attack" your ride, the Visco system will work pretty good. However, if you like to crawl, and while on the steep hill you talked about, don't like to spin all the way up, but instead like to let the tires slip, back off the throttle a little, and re-throttle, repeating up the hill, the visco will not lock to your satisfaction. Personally I'm a little leary of "hammering" it all the way up steep hills because I'm afraid of the tires hooking up and flipping me over backwards, especially in the rocky areas I like to ride. If you ride in "greasy" areas this isn't likely to be a problem.
- If you install larger tires than OEM, it takes a lot more spinning to engage the visco.
- What 450 Kodman says seems to be the general consensus as to how the visco works (Upnort, based on you comments it doesn't appear your visco is working properly).

The nice thing about the Visco is you don't have to think about it - it's always there. And the steering is easy and excellent. When I lock the front on my AC 650 V2, it steers like a truck, a very big truck. If you like to crawl around and technical ride, be sure and give the AC a look, the H1 and V2 are both excellent machines and have excellent ground clearance. If handling is important, install a rear sway bar. Great improvement, but of all the utility quads, the AC is more utility than the others and that may not be to your liking.

Let's face it. A 650 Outty is a lot of money. If you are down to a choice of the two, you might confess you concerns to the Outty dealer and tell him you want to try it on the hill you have in mind. Tell him you'll give him a $100 to give it an honest ride for an hour or so. Ask him to ride with you so he doesn't think you are out to tear up his machine. Tell him if it meets your expectations, you'll buy it (agree on a price first). You will not then have spend those hard earned dollars on something you'll be disappointed with later. That's what I'd do.

You're not the only person to voice the concern about the visco vs. a locker. BRP is gambling MOST people will be happy the way they currently have the machine set up and frankly, I'm surprised someone among us hasn't figured a way to tighten the internal clutch pack, or even adapt a locking device.

 

just my 2 cents....

i have been doing alot of mud holes and last sunday rode with a grizzly, 2 artic cats,a praire and a frute force and we all hit the mud holes and i was the only one who didnt need to be winchd out...once i hit the mud and it got fender deep i hit it and it just powered thru the mud...

oh yeah--this was on the standard 800 with the stock little carlisles on it and most everyone else had up graded tires like mudlites and a few others...take a look at the pics

www.themudbuds.com go to bottom and click pics and look under 4-9-06 should be alot of pics of all of us in muds you will see us all and im the bottom few busting it up!!!

 

Let me first say I don't own an Outty I own a Traxter.
The Visco loc is seamless. None, zero, nada. The one tire might turn 1/4 of a turn before all 4 are locked up. Those of you with Traxters know what I'm talking about. The pump locks up the pack real quick.
Now I have been reading about the Outty enough to know that they must use a different pump. The Outty owners that have talked about their quad almost always talk about 2,3 or more turns to lock up the pack.
Why the two different systems? I have no idea?

I think the Visco lock is better than a locker. Why? Because the locker will rip the tires loose from the surface when you are in any turn no matter how small. The Visco loc won't do this. It will load it, but it won't rip it loose like a locker will. In a straight line, a locker is super nice. Most of the hills I go up have turns in them. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

This is one of two things that really keep me from pulling the trigger on an outlander 800. I hear different things from different people about that visco lock. Some people say it is instant, some say it is a quarter turn others say it has to spin like mad to build pressure. I don't know what to believe. I can see how a variable locking differential like a visco lock would be a great advantage in many, if not a majority of trail situations, when a fully locked diff is actually a hindrance. On the other hand when the going gets really rough and technical you simply can't beat all four wheels mechanically locked together in my opinion. The three wheel limited slip crap just doesn't cut it with me in those situations. What would have been great, and would would be great if BRP or the aftermarket is listening, is for a switch to give that normally perfectly acceptable visco lock a true locker setting. It couldn't be that much of an engineering challenge for BRP. A clutch plate inside the front differential or something to lock the thing up with a switch or a lever like Kawasaki for example.

That and give us an option when it comes to the brake levers please. The single brake lever is the other thing that makes me hesitant to buy the thing. That I could probably live with but the visco lock is really giving me second thoughts. A locking front differential is a necessity with me. Limited slips like Honda's just don't cut it.

 

I agree with CaptianQ. I read and hear two different stories about the visco-loc.

Now i agree, i think the visco-loc works great in the mud. I haven't heard one person say differently. BUT, i don't usually do deep fast straight line mud bogs. I do slow moving steep up hill trails. I'm a little afraid that i'm going to have to gas the Shi* out the machine to get the free wheel to spin to engage the visco loc then at that point i'm flipping over! I might have to take JimJa's advise and see if i can rent one.

Thanks everyone for your input.

 

Doctor turbo hit it right on the head. Even rockcrawling IMO the visco-loc works better. We climb up the sides of dams around here, the rocks that they use are about 1' to 3' all shapes and sizes on a 33 degree slope. Again the Outlanders are the only ones that make it. The world trials champ said it's(400 Outty) the most stabile and the visco-loc works perfect.

I love going were my buddies can't go, hell even my girlfriend on her 400 goes place were they don't.