hello all
i am new here and i have a few questions. i am looking to buy my first 2 up atv. either polaris 550 touring or the outlander 650 max xtp. i am what u would call a big man. i am 6'3 and over 300lbs and my wife is a bigger woman as well. any suggestions on what bike you would recomend.
thanks

 

Definitely the 650. I've had too many 550's in the shop this year.

 

The 650 Max and 550 Touring are both great quads. I'd give the nod on weight carrying to the 550 Touring. I've ridden with a few folks with the Max and the suspension can be kind of soft even with the shocks cranked up. As far as power goes the 650 Max has power on par with most other makers 700s and 750s. Also, CanAms tend to have better numbers as far as fuel efficiency goes. The 550 Touring also has better on board storage options for keeping extra gear handy. Both are good machines. CanAm would probably get the nod for more reliability. The only other thing I can think of is the CanAm has a weaker frame than others. It's a very thin wall metal box called a spar frame. There have been enough instances of the frame getting bent where the lower A-arms in the front are attached to the frame, that there are several companies that make a frame insert to help the situation. We put one in my son's Renegade to help out and for peace of mind. That and/or good strong skid plates should help to take care of the issue.

 

I agree with moose on the xp 550- might feel like a better fit for your size over the sportier, smaller feeling outlander. The 550 will have enough power to carry you and your wife but the 650 rotax in the can-am is more powerful-

I've owned a lot of can-am's (just bought my 8th yesterday - 2011 outlander 800 max xt) - as far as the frame strength- I don't think it's really an issue. the handfull of cases I've read about of the frame being bent all occured when the atv was being overly abused (front wheel hitting a stump at 35+ mph, atv being rolled down a hill...)

I've come down pretty hard of jumps, and I've tagged rocks and stumps on logging trails pretty hard- enough to tear the bars out of my hands with great pain and bend tierods- and I've never had a problem with a bent frame.

I would say, on either the xp or outty, giving the weight of you and your wife that you consider a 2" lift just to get back some of that GC when you're both riding.

One of the things that I really love about the can-am TTI suspension is the absense of rear a-arms. As a result- the outty has great unobstructed ground clearance in the rear where as other atv's with rear double a-arms have that lower a-arm obstructing over very rough terrain. on the flip-side, the lower a-arm does offer a little more protection to the axles...

as you can see in the pics below-


can-am




polaris

 

Arctic Cat, Polaris, and Can-Am are the two up choices. All North American Machines. Wonder why the Japanese manufacturers have not gotten into this market?

 

I've wondered that myself. Especially where they all have plants making ATVs in the US now. The more competition the better for the consumer.

 

Another option would be to attach an after-market passenger seat onto a regular single seat ATV
I installed a kimpex outback trunk to my 09 Prairie 360.
It cost around $250, installed easily and is of very good quality. It fits securely onto the ATV's rear rack.

I also owned a 2009 Polaris 500 touring EFI. It was a reliable and powerful ATV. I only sold because I no longer had a need for it.

The kimpex secures the passenger better than the touring. The touring has 2 hand bars, whereas the kimpex fits completely around the sides of the passenger.

Good luck

 

Another advantage of the longer wheel based two ups is they must go up up steeper hills before flipping back onto the rider. Kinda like those stretched dirt bikes that are made for hill climbing.

 

That's a good point, about the 5 or so inches of extra wheelbase. Come to think of it, that 500 touring went up hills very well. Also, that Polaris rear suspension made for a comfortable and smooth ride. I'll have to see how the new add-on seat works this weekend, it's first visit onto the trails, including some rather steep hills.

 

bolting a trunk seat onto a 1up can't even be compared to the safety of a factory 2 up atv.

even though a lot of people use them for passengers-the 1up atv is really not designed to have a "trunk seat" on them- the racks are not designed to hold the weight of a passenger- it really makes the atv unstable up any moderate hill and it cramps the drivers foot well- not to mention the unstable footing for rear passanger. Factory 2up's have an extra long wheel base and position the rear shocks behind the passenger, not in front like when you bolt a trunk on a 1 up.

even the manufacturer has a disclaimer stating the trunk seat is not meant to be used to carry a passenger while the atv is in motion and the atv also has a warning not to carry a person on the racks. There's not much holding those racks onto the chassis of the atv to begin with.

If you plan on riding 2up often- buy the right machine. The money you save on bolting a trunk seat to a 1up won't mean nothing after you roll an unstable atv and break your passengers neck.

I ride 2up often, and just bought a new outlander 800 max-