Hey all - looking to buy my very first ATV!

I have trails near a place I go in the summer - and have always watched the ATV crews go by with envy.

I would like a machine that can carry two people so I can ride with my wife/kids.

Stability is important since I will be riding with the kids!

Power is always nice - but I don't need to go 100mph on the thing.

Any brand that stands out at this level? Any bells and whistles that I should be on the lookout for on newer ATVs these days???

There are streams along the trails - but I shouldn't be riding through stuff that is FEET deep (hopefully!!).

Any other questions I should be asking?

 

There are only 3 brands of 2-up ATVs that I know of. Arctic Cat is now Textron and they make one 2-up model. It's a 700.

https://textronoffroad.txtsv.com/atv...%3A2-passenger

Can-Am makes a 450, 570, 650, 850, 1000, and a 6x6 450 that you buy a box for.

https://can-am.brp.com/off-road/help-me-choose.html#f/seating-options-new=2&vehicle-type=atv

Polaris has a 570, 850, 1000, X2 570 with a dump box and a passenger seat that folds down so you have more room in the box when you're riding solo, and a 6x6 570 with a dump box.

https://atv.polaris.com/en-us/2-up/

https://atv.polaris.com/en-us/special-editions/

I wouldn't get either the Can-Am 6x6 or the Polaris 6x6. They're really made for working and not trail riding. Those are all of your 2-up choices as far as I know. Your passenger should be more comfortable on any of the touring models than the Sportsman X2.

 

Thanks for the reply!

How is the Can-Am reputation? The 1000R Limited looks really nice... I see a 2017 locally with 300 miles on it for $10,900..

Is 300 miles a lot for an ATV that is 2 years old? Standard? Or low?

Comes with GPS... I wonder - will the GPS unit work in Canada? I would like to assume so since BRP/Can-Am is a canadian company right? Are there special 'Trail' maps to download?

 

Can am is a good brand the only downfall to the one you are looking at as it comes with airshocks and they can be nothing but troubles. ... The question comes up how many machines you buying? Since you want to ride with the wife and kids.. May be better off to buy a SxS 4 seat.

 

Are the air shocks trouble because they fail? Or trouble because they don't actually ride well? I have the opportunity to get a 3 year extended warranty on this machine - so if it is failure, that might help.

Is it just with the 2017 year? Or air shocks in general?

A SxS is not a bad idea, but the wife isn't the one itching to ride - it will be me and the kids mostly. If she wanted to ride a lot, then a SxS would be the no brainer.

 

They ride pretty nice with the air shocks. But as with anything with air shocks lines start leaking. shocks develop a leak, etc. Im pretty sure i was told they removed the air shocks this year. More than likely the dealer would not fix under warranty as they would call it a normal wear and tear item. Our dealer would not even sell em. Can am's with even the normal gas shocks ride extremely well better than anything else iv tested.

 

I think Zrock is right that the dealer would call the shocks a normal wear and tear item. I've owned nothing but Polaris for over 20 years and rarely had a problem but from what I read on the forum their quality has gone downhill. Most of their ATVs are good but they're making more than their share of bad ones. That being said, most of the 2-up ATVs I've seen on the trails were Polaris. People keep buying them and saying they're a comfortable ride. I think Yamaha would sell tons of 2-up Grizzlys if they ever made them. I don't know which of the 3 brands I would get if I was buying one.

 

300 miles is nothing as well. That's barely past the break in for a new machine. I'm guessing the reason they got rid of it was they couldn't afford it. Or they bought it and realized that had no time to actually ride it. Polaris will probably have the best ride. Can-Am is very good too. The 1000 will have more power than you will ever need for sure. Both Polaris and Can-Am make less powerful and also less expensive 2-up machines that would have more than sufficient power. The Can-am Outlander 570L 2-up and Sportsman 570 touring would both be ones I would look at. Textron has a 700cc 2-up model that would be good too. Polaris, Can-Am, and Textron all do make 50" side by sides that don't cost much more than the 2-up atvs too. The Polaris Rzr 570 for instance, starts under 10K new in the U.S. Canadian prices will be a little higher. I have a friend in Illinois that is selling his 2016 Rzr 900 Trail for $6800. Whoever buys it will get a great deal.

 

The Outlander Max Ltd. 1000r still has the air adjustable shocks. One of the main reasons I bought it and the previous Outlander Max XTP 650. As stated by Can-Am you can adjust it on the fly for riding conditions and passenger/load weight changes. No need to use a spanner wrench and try to adjust the shocks. I've put thousands of miles on the machines and haven't had a failure yet. They do provide a decent ride but I also consider Polaris to have a more comfortable ride. Another reason I like the Can-Am better is that when you have the passenger seat installed you still have room for a decent sized storage box on the rear rack. With the Polaris Touring (their 2-up machine) there isn't as much room for a box. They do have storage under the front rack on the Touring. I had that on a Polaris X2 and liked the feature. The X2 is the best work related quad out there in my mind. True 400 lb. capacity in the back. The passenger seat that folds up or away isn't quite as comfortable as the Touring seat or the passenger seat on the Can-Ams. Another difference is the CVT engagement. Unless they've changed it since last year, the belt doesn't engage until you rev the rpms up over 2000 rpms. The engagement on the Can-Ams is much more immediate and, I find, smoother. The big bore engines on either brand will leave a smile on your face. Been on both my Max and my son's Polaris Scrambler XP 1000 and they are a hoot to ride.

 

300 miles on one sounds like someone rode it a bit for one summer and that was it. I haven't been on a test ride of any of them but I would lean more toward the 570s too. Especially since I can only go 15-20 MPH on most of the trails I ride. I can open it up on roads for a little way but we're only supposed to go 20 MPH on the shoulder of the roads, not 55 MPH down the middle of the lane like we often do. If I was somewhere I could legally ride that fast on the roads, and actually liked riding fast, I would go for something bigger so the engine doesn't have to work as hard. And if I was riding at a high elevation I would go bigger too, but not a 1000.