I am in the process of evaluating which machine to buy. I would really appreciate opinions from those of you who have owned and/or ridden these two machines. I have narrowed my search down to these two machines, however, can't decide which to buy. HELP!!

 

You are exactly where i was 4 months ago...i read and looked and rode and read and looked and rode again....and i narrowed it down to the Big Bear or the Rancher....tough choice....i ended up buying the rancher....i think the big bear is a great bike....but i owned a honda before and i never had any trouble with it...so i gambled on this one being just as reliable...i don't really think there's much difference in the 2.....good luck....

 

I just went through the same thing, deciding either the Big Bear or Rancher for my daughter. I went with the Rancher due to having full floor boards and is a little lighter and smaller. Also the digital speedo is nice also. Both atvs are great. Also got a great deal on the Rancher ES 4x4. Paid $5075 for the red Rancher with 25" 589 M/T tires. However the floorboards were my main reason and I didn't want a auto.

 

I used to own a 96 kodiak, then my best friend bought a 2000 Rancher ES and keeps it in my garage, I found myself riding his more than mine. after about a year I couldn't stand it anymore, so I sold the kodiak and bought a 2001 rancher es. I haven't regreted at all, in my opinion it is the best all round 4x4 on the market today.

 

this is weird i am going threw the same thing as well but I have made my mind up to buy the big bear mainly because of the selectable 2wd/4wd and for $70 you can get yourself a warn winch or plow also I hear many good things about the big bear...its also 57cc larger

 

bigbear, if your choice is to get the big bear, go for it...it's a great bike....i don't think you could go wrong with either choice.

 

dude dont its a yamaha there not reliable and you want a long lasting machine, are you planning in selling the bear after acouple years? the rancher will keep its value more. I think you should stick with the rancher GREAT machine

 

i own a 2001 big bear and my neighboor has a 2001 rancher, the big bear is a bigger machine, they both run exactly. my only complaint is that his rancher is much faster. the big bear has a poor top-end speed, its geared very low. If speed isnt an option i would definetly recommend the big bear.

--mcbride

 

The Big Bear is geared very low. Depends on what you want to do with it. I had one, but my father fell in love with it and keeps a sprayer on it most of the time. He uses his Kodiak as his "Sunday" bike. It is really a true utility quad, but I still like to ride it in the woods.
The big bear has a super low first gear which is great for some farm use. If you trail ride, you will hardly ever shift below 2nd gear.

A rancher is faster

Like most quad decisions, it boils down to how you plan to ride it.

 

I dont know of any open space where i can get an atv going faster then 50 anyways and right now i have a 84 honda 200s and that thing is very tourqy...I would love the big bear if it is geared as low as the 200s cause I just like tourqy machines and I dont care about speed cause I felt like I was going fast on my 200s haha And I love to go threw mud if there is a mud hole and to the right there is an easy trail I would go threw the mud in a split second without thinking thanks for the replies guys