Ducky,

my comparrison will be from experience plowing BIG N/E snow.

i have owned many 500/700/ and now a 700EFI Sportsmans. i will say that the 500 has never left me wanting more power. it pushes BIG snow with plenty of BIG power and torque. the 700 just pushes a little more.

did i NEED the extra power plowing? no

do i want the little extra power? ego says yes! LOL

one thing that i personally like VERY, VERY much about my 700EFI is the EASE of starting. the one thing i liked better about my 500 was the quiet exhaust. (700 much louder IMHO)

both 500 and EFI are E-X-C-E-L-L-E-N-T machines. you can't go wrong with either.

good luck Ducky![img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

-MT[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

Ducky,

I just purchased a Sportsman 700 EFI. It is a fantastic machine. I have 25 or so hours on it and it is a puller. This past weekend I went to my place in the country to find a huge hickory knocked over. This tree was 60+ feet tall and 40+ inches at the base. I filled my trailer as high as I could with the big stuff and went right up my drive - and it is a steep drive, 500 ft long. I could have pulled more weight if the trailer wasn't bottomed out. The 700 EFI would pull it as fast I cared to pull. The most important thing for me, however, is that the 700 EFI is more fun. It starts right up and the power is addictive. As someone else said, you won't miss the power until you need it. The first time you need it, you will kick yourself in the butt. Go with the bigger bike and you will smile every time you open it up.

Mike

 

i have launched and retrieved a 17' searay (approx. 2100 pounds) with my 2004.5 500 h.o. using low range and 4wd. i know it's way over it's tow limit but there was a need to due to being blocked by other trucks and not having room for mine. people watched and made a few derogatory comments, but were soon silenced. since it pulled the boat out with virtually no problems, i have sinced launched and retrieved the boat, (make sure you have all the straps off of the boat! the brakes and wieght of the 500 are not enough if the boat wants to pull it in.), using the 500 h.o. when the need arises. not something i would do on a weekly basis, though.

i also, pull a trailer (1200 pound capacity) full of block and wood all the time with no problems... not to mention towing a few atv's a few times.
[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

I went to the dealer today and they let me take a new 500 HO and a 700 efi out on a track, run them both one after the other, testing smoothness, take off, etc. Then we hooked them up to a larger trailer and tested them that way. There was no comparison. The 500 was good, but the 700 EFI was wonderful. Much smoother, and stronger. However, I didn't like the regular 700. It was rigid and really not as enjoyable as the 500. I have decided, and the 700 EFI Camo is it. Thanks everyone for all your help.

 

a BIG congrats Ducky!!

[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img][img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

Duckmaster,
Congratulations. I'm curious about what you meant about the 700 being rigid compared to the EFI.

Also, I'm sure many people including myself are interested to hear more about the comparison of the trailer pull. How heavy, how far, and the rest of the details.

Thanks and your answers will be very useful to many people since you did a back to back comparison.

 

The trailer was a 16 ft tandem trailer that weighed around 1000 lbs. From a dead standstill, both atv's pulled good, but the efi was better. I was most impressed with the quick response of the efi. It had absolutely no hesitation and that was my concern. I was afraid that the efi would need to get going and hit a certain rpm in order to pull strong and that is not true. It's an absolute beast from the getgo. As far as the efi being less rigid, I cannot explain it except when I reved the motor up on the 700 carb, it vibrated much more. It actually made the racks and fenders make noise from the increased vibration. The efi didn't do that. I have no doubt in my decision. I honestly believe that in a few years, their will be no carbs left on anything except low end bikes.

 

Just for information though....

Both the EFI and the carburated versions of the 700 run unexpectedly rough when cold. Once they warm up, they are butter smooth running engines. They will both vibrate the racks before they are warmed up. That's what we've seen.

 

That is a good point. We did not let the carb 700 run but a few seconds. Now that I think about it, my old 500 was the same way. Once it warmed up, much better. The EFI was smooth, though, as soon as it started. I do like the idea of simply hitting the key and not worrying about cold starts. I do fear, though, the problems that COULD arise with a sensitive computerized EFI system, especially in bitter cold weather with a load hooked to the back. I guess it could happen to any bike, though.

 

You will not be disappointed.. I told you there was really no comparison.. 700 EFI rules.. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-tongue.gif[/img]