I own 4 Polaris Scramblers - 2 400s and 2 500s. I have ridden them hard over the years and have had a few interesting breakdowns but none were major, mostly wear & tear. It never ceases to amaze me that these bikes can take the punishment and keep coming back for more. So don't write off Polaris. Could be that lots of problems discussed on the forum means lots of users and lots of miles rather than some inherent design flaws.