Hey Andy Bashem, I might have the only one according to you but I have a 1994 Polaris 300 4x4 with 5300 actual miles on it ,still has the original belt on the cvt. Has never had a major componant break . The only repairs have been normal wear ,brakes, spark plug, 2 rear chains , air filters . I now also own a magnum 500 and it has been flawles for over 1200miles ,you bashers base your argument on the problems of a couple of models and ride it to death. I guess when you routeinly get beat on the trails by another brand you have to find something to complain about. I personally don,t get into all this bashing you guys seem to love so much although I could as an atv mechnic I could likly rile quite a few tempers by showing what machine I repair most often. matter of fact if it were not for that one Quad I could just about close down. I am so tempted to say what it is but I want. By the way I have replaced both Engines and transmissions in Hondas also done some rear end gears. Everything from 300 4x4s to the Honda Foreman Yes they do break down contrary to what you might believe and one thing I have found out about a few of the Honda owners around here ; They want you to hide their Quads in the shop when they bring it over and don,t tell anyone that they broke something. I am beginning to believe that this must be in the owners manual when you buy one or something the way they try to sneak them to the shop. Some owners are like this others could care less. I have no doubt that Honda makes good Quads I know them inside and out esspecially the 300s. But I don,t own them for the very reason that I just listed ,some of the owners attitudes. I made it a point to always have a Quad that could do my talking for me when we got to the woods and I always run out front. As for the Rubicon don,t count your chickens before they hatch,You see how far the Ranchers made it before the Recall.
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Kevin Gowdy aka Kagey 1999 Polaris Magnum 500



[This message has been edited by Kagey (edited 11-07-1999).]

 

A good friend of mine was at the Tour d'Forest in Marienville Pa. and witnessed
first hand how inferior Polaris junk is
thrown togeather.The group he was riding
with had to tow back a 2000 Sportsman with
only 65 mi. on it because the PVT assembly
fell apart.I'll take a Honda anyday !!

 

and there`s a missing welding on the rancher... Talking about quality building hein ?! And that other honda that don't start because the electric shift has juice all the power, And that other honda who won't start because it was shut down in gear... I agree that in general, honda bike are put together better than polaris but I can also say that you get more for your money with that polaris. I own a 95' scrambler 400 and never had any probleme with it except with that little gaz filter that cost me a big 5 canadian bucks. So magnum vs foreman ? I think that magnum wins in every aspect.

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Sylvain Belec 400 scrambler - 225 moto4

 

Well Kagey, all I can say is that you got a good one. A lot of people did as well, but as far as the numbers go, Polaris's of that time period were synonomous for becoming junkyard relics. I won't even go into the plastic they use. I will say that its sad to see a brand new 425 expedition with dryed out and faded plastic on the starter/light housing. As for the honda's you repaired, I can believe it easily, but I couldn't ever believe that the ratio of screw ups to solid bikes will ever favor the polaris's. I don't go and bash people on any consistent basis. Its usually the damn braggers that put their brand on a pedestal and boast of how much better it is than others. They have it coming. You won't ever see me brag. Not intentionally. I don't care for it much, and I hate seeing others do it. For gods sake, this is the Honda thread. No room for a fool to come in and praise the stupid Mag 500. I rode one, and while it seemed good, It didn't just blow my mind. In fact, I rode one the first day the dealer ever got it and I couldn't keep it running without holding throttle. Even after 5 mins. of riding, it still died every time. Probably something to do with the throttle control adjustment, but still not a good selling point for your brand new shaft drive 500. I can't remember ever getting toasted on the trail by anything either. Doubt I ever will, but then again I don't ride with a whole lot of people. Funny thing though, you don't see near as many people trading in Hondas for Polarises as you do the other way around. I drive right by the Polaris dealer every day, and good lord. Their used lot consists of a few 300 class kawas and suzis and then a bunch of worn out 3 year old polariss. Two sportsmans as of last week, and the scramblers come in and out with the traffic rate of a Johnny on the Spot portable toilet at a Cowboys game.

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Andy Bassham *(1999 Arctic Cat 500 4x4, 1989 Honda 300)*

 

I have a friend with an '84 Honda Fourtrax 250. You won't believe how much maintainence he has had to do in the last 15 years. He had to change the oil a bunch of times and buy one new battery. Can you believe all that? HAHAHAHA

And for the Honda transmission, this crazy dude has NEVER changed his tranny fluid. No joke, I don't know how the thing is still alive.

I always favored Polaris as the best overall quad but you can't beat the Honda's reliability. I would nominate the Borg Warner T-20 Skid Steer as the best tranny ever made. There are lots of T-20s out there 30 years old and are still in fine shape.

Everything has it's purpose.

MaxRules

 

Well I'm glad you're happy with your purchase Mag500, but I doubt that anyone will rush out to trade their Honda in for a Polaris due to your post here. I say WHO CARES!!!! If you are happy with your machine good, enjoy it, and quit trying to force your opionions on others. Go back to the Polaris tread and brag!

 

A_team,
If MAG500 would hve written his post like you did then Noone would have complained.

I don't think anyone here has a problem with the magnum, but we do have a problem rude people,which I will not name.

Arctic Cat 500, Get an Arctic Cat and get the best of both Honda, for reliabliity, and Polaris, for suspention and power.

 

Kirk, Boner, Andy, Kagey, and even A_Team:

All good responses.

A_Team, you make some valid points. And, I don't have anything against the Magnum - I think it is probably the best quad made by Polaris... I also have no problems with folks telling about what they prefer. (i.e. I prefer the Polaris 4wd system)... I feel the same way, except I prefer the Honda system. That's the great thing about this county - we can all like different things and it's OK.

What I object to, is an individual who obviously has no idea what he's yapping about, attempting to do nothing more than start a fight.

Anyone can claim things about what they have "seen" with the "other" quads.... Gee, why is it you almost never see the Yamaha folks fighting with the Suzuki folks fighting with the Honda folks fighting with the AC folks fighting with the Kaw folks??...
Why just Polaris?

Seriously A_Team, if you are happy with your quad, I'm happy for you. I think most all the folks here are like that. I'm happy with mine. I'll be the first to admit it could be improved. For that matter, I have tinkered with mine for over a year, and made various improvments. And, I like it even better now.

Ride safe and Happy Trails


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Steve "Bog Hog" West

Honda 300 4x4 - Gordonized, Powered and Vamped

 

i don't know why there is all this bragging about polaris atvs on a honda thread.

one simple answer might be resale:

honda-good

polaris-ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

any questions?

 

Mr. Mag500. Let me tell you something. Yeah yeah your magnum has liquid cooling and a good 4 wheel drive system and really plush suspension. Sure, it beats the foreman in a drag race. But, Honda didn't make the Foreman 450 to race the other competitors. Sure it get's it's butt kicked in shootouts. But in those shootouts it gets beat in hi-performance categories such as speed. 4 wheel drives are not meant to be fast. Honda didn't make the 450 to be fast. They mostly concentrate on reliability. And the foreman 450 dominates over the Magnum in Reliability and resale. Also you can't beat the easy maintanence of Honda. You may think that the Foreman 450 is a stupid air-cooled engine but i'm willing to bet that the engine would last longer than yours and go through a heck of a lot more of a beating. And sure the Polaris has a good 4 wheel drive system, but what can you do when you are going through a huge mud hole and your drive belt gets wet and slips...? The guy on the 450 is gonna be laughing at you on the other side of the mud hole while you are stranded in the middle of it. This is my opinion and i'm sure many other Honda veterans feel the same way.