Being a Can Am owner, I was interested in the history, or milestones, of the Can Am brand. What did they bring to the ATV hobby? There are some new things, but they haven't been as inventive as some of the other brands. So who in the industry has been most inventive? I guess Polaris.

Here is my Can Am list:

1998: Introduce the Traxter and Quest (cvt equipped). It had a setback engine and tank making a "step through" possible instead of a leg swing. Kinda like a girls bicycle.

1999: Introduced the DS660 sport ATV. Had outrageous horsepower at the time. The model won the Dakar rally in 2005. However, it was not a big success in the sport quad market. Too big.

2003: Introduced the Outlander 400 HO with some innovative features including the Trailing Torsional Independent suspension for a smooth ride and good camber control, the SST frame design to "ski" over obstacles. BRP also partnered with Deere to produce an ATV for them.

2003: Introduced the Outlander Max two up machines. It was the industry's first quad with a specifically designed passenger seat.

2004: Introduced "BRP" as Bombardier Recreational Products, a business unit into itself. Think snowmobiles, watercraft, Spyder motorcycles, ATVs and the like.

2005: Introduced the Apache Track Kit for ATVs. This was an industry first.

2005: BRP wins GNCC races with a modified Outlander. BRP raced for 4 years.

2006: Introduced the Can Am brand to the ATV line up.

2007: Introduced the Can Am Renegade 800. Added the 500 and 1000 shortly thereafter.

2009: Introduced the Air Controlled Suspension, an industry first.

2010: Introduced the Can Am Commander UTV to the model lineup

2012: Introduced the sporty Maverick version to the side by side lineup. AT 101hp, it was the most powerful side by side at the time.

2012: Introduced the new, improved G2 SST chassis to the quad models. This was a stronger frame with many other improvements also.

2014: Introduced the Maverick DS Turbo at 121 hp. This was the first turbo engined side by side.

2015: Introduced electric power steering as an option.

I'll bet I've missed some things in my research.

David

 

Covers a good amount. Can't think of anything that's been missed.

 

Gents:

This week we're turning the clock back to a time when The Andy Griffith Show was the most popular TV program in the US, The Beatles released the experimental concept album "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band", and gasoline was 33 cents a gallon.

The year was 1967 and a classic Greek myth inspired the name for a new ATV company that’s still going strong today:

https://atvconnection.com/articles/a...facts-know-18/

 

I find this very interesting. I worked in a little factory one summer while in college. This business was developing a 6 wheeled amphibious vehicle that had this very transmission, with a 12hp 4 stroke engine and fiberglass body. It was called the "Swamp Fox". The target market was hunters and fishermen. It performed poorly, so the owner installed a 2 cylinder, air cooled snowmobile engine and the thing got much more interesting. It would float, but the spinning wheels would not "paddle" the thing through the water. So we installed a Berkley Jet pump in the back and now it would propel across a lake, although slowly. Then summer ended and I resumed my classwork.

My early introduction to ATVs did not stick with me. I was much more interested in sports cars like my MGB that I had at the time.

I think there are some antique Swamp Foxes around here and there. It was not a big market success like the 3 wheeled Honda ATC90. That was introduced to the market about the same time.

David

 

I'm glad that ATVs have a thumb throttle. The only off-road vehicle I owned before my ATVs was a snowmobile. The right thumb controlled the throttle and the left hand controlled the brakes. When I got a Polaris ATV with a single brake lever on the left and the thumb throttle on the right I didn't have to learn any new controls. Just hit the throttle to go and the brakes to stop just like my snowmobile.

 

This special "transmission" built by ODG had one shaft for engine input, and two shafts, independently controlled, for the left and right side. We rigged levers to control the left and right sides. I never had one apart, but I imagined some type of brake inside to slow one side over the other. I don't remember a reverse.

It was the late sixties the a farmer named Melroe from Gwinner, ND, rigged two hydrostatic pumps driving two hydraulic motors independently. He built a "skid steer" vehicle small enough to scoop out his cow barns. It would turn on it's on axis with one side wheels going forward, the other going in reverse. Melroe Bobcat became a huge business.

Hi jumbofrank: I rode the trails with a nice fella who had a 87 Honda FourTrax. He had converted it from a thumb to a twist grip throttle control. He is an avid motorcyclists. But I think the reason had to do with the "automatic clutch" on these machines. Maybe it mader easier to shift. It is the only ATV I've seen with a twist grip throttle control.

David

 

I've seen twist grip throttle conversions advertised but never actually seen one. My problem with them is I don't think I could keep it steady going through the whoop-dee-doos. Just hanging on is a chore sometimes when you hit one after another with nothing in between. I can imagine accidentally goosing it every 2 seconds.

 

Having ridden motorcycles for 45 years a twist grip throttle feels natural. Rode my quads for 2 years with the thumb throttle but it never felt natural and my thumb got sore. Made the conversion last year and wouldn't go back. No problem with the twist throttle on any terrain. The quads are 250cc manual clutch so the controls are just like my bikes. I just used cheap pit-bike throttle assemblies from ebay.

 

This week we're filling in some of the facts on one of the industry's first aftermarket suspension companies and one of the few that will sell you a shock without a spring:

https://atvconnection.com/articles/a...facts-know-19/

 

Another interesting industry fact. Thanks! Fox makes the shocks for the 2017 Ford F150 Rapture pickup. It has crazy off road capability. Earning a spot as a Ford supplier is NO easy tasks, I speak from experience.

David