Ive been doing alot of research on this wesite lately. This site is awesome, Ive gotten good answers from good people And have to thank those that have responded. A person cant help but notice that many here have quite a line-up of bikes. Maybe this goes to prove the old saying"All unhappiness comes from comparison". This leads to another question that continues to linger in my mind, I hope it can be answered, so here goes.
Polaris claims to have the best 4wd system out there, easy to operate any time at any speed. Great suspension, towing capabilities and an awesome 500HO power plant. It comes with belts for life warranty. However it is lacking on engine braking and known to be hard on belts. So my question is if Polaris is all of these why are so many other bikes(utility) of prefrence to others. Is it styling, handling, durability or is the awd system not what its all cracked up to be? Is a locker better? Do others have some sort of advantage other than engine braking? I posted this question on the polaris forum because so many of you have a variety of bikes, and its not my intention to buy 10 to get the one I want. Please respond.

 

The biggest thing is to know what type of riding you intend to do. For instance, I recently bought a SP700EFI. The reasons were many, but I'll share just a few. After test riding the grizz660, the twin peaks, and the Sp700, I picked the most plush ride and the quad with the most planted front end. You see, I ride double with my wife on the back alot and I don't need a front end that will be lifting and tippy with her on the back. Next, I knew I am not a super mechanic and did not want to have to rejet the carb everytime I went somewhere new to ride or when the temp changes. Thus, the EFI. Lastly, I liked the ease and efficiency of their AWD system. When I ride, I don't want to think about hitting buttons and pulling lockers. I just want to enjoy mother nature, look around, and have fun. Like I said before, You need to look at how you want to ride.

 

It's kinda like CHEVY and ford people

 

Polaris brought a lot of new ideas to the plate. It took a while before it caught on and now everyone is doing it. Today, people like what they like. I don't think I could ride any quad and say it's perfect. Every quad has its own "personality" and it just comes down to personal preference and feel. That's what is comes down to today. Some people still prefer a more primitive and simple quad, while others want the latest, greatest, biggest and baddest.

When it comes down to it, this is the best time ever to buy an ATV. There are soo many options and different models to choose from. Ride them all and see what you like.

 

I'll be honest with ya, when my wife and I first started looking at getting a set of quads I was originally going to buy the yamaha wolverines until I found out that they are all time all wheel drive, this was not appealing to me cause I wanted the ability to choose 2wd or 4wd. other than that I liked the overall appearance and size. then I went to a few local dealers who had honda, yamaha and polaris. they had a yamaha grizzly 660 with a big tire kit and polished rims. that sucker looked sweet, but I didn't like the overall looks(appearance) and feel. I looked at the honda rincon and thought I had my mind made up but then noticed that for about $9k the quad didn't have much ground clearance and suspension rebound. I sat on it and it wasn't comfortable to me. I went to the next dealer to find the Polaris sportsman 700EFI, my first thought was great an atv with a computer which would be something else to go wrong down the road. but then after looking at the quad, sitting on it and test riding it, I fell in love with the overall handling, feel, and awesome looks. I really liked the EFI feature which was the main selling point cause they is not re-jetting to deal with, no more choke and if you add a filter or pipe or even just change altitudes the computer compinsates for it without any jetting. the features I was looking for in a quad were:

*easy to use/shift
*front and rear Independant Suspension
*heavy duty framing/parts
*4wheel drive/on demand(no stopping to switch into 4x4)
*and of course great looks(appearance), handling, comfort, feel

I found all these features with the polaris sportsman 700EFI, now they have an 800EFI but I think the 700EFI is all a person really needs, to be honest if polaris offered a sportsman 500EFI I would have gotten it cause in reallity the 500H.O. is perfect but its carburated. alot of people say stuff about the sportsmans weighing to much and affecting performance but in reallity the extra weight comes from the sportsman having a heavier duty frame/parts than the comparing brands(yamaha, honda, kawasaki). not intended to bash other brands just stating a fact.

 

As previously mentioned, its a Ford/Chevy type of thing
Take each item that means a lot to you and research all the quads. For me it was the weight of the Sportsman, kind of like a tank, tough. Belt issues are more or less a thing of the past. I do a lot of steep downhill riding. Having only rear ebs is no big deal to me, you learn to use what you have. Low gear on a Sportsman is low gear, it will climb a telephone pole if you can keep it glued. The 500 HO is probably the best machine ever built, wish I had one

 

My scrambler doesn't have the clearance or ride that the sportsmans have, but I do have the four wheel drive system that is unbelievable. The statement of what kind of riding you do is right on the money. I like to buzz around trails quickly, hill climb and tackle the mud. The scrambler is perfect for that stuff and the 4X4 is as advertised! I have friends with yamahas, suzukis and hondas. I've riden them all and prefer the ride, handling and looks of my scrammy. My next purchase will be a sportsman so that I can have one of each. I wouldn't own any other quad...................and I prefer mopar over chevy OR ford! [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

What do you want to use the quad for?

 

Your responses are great. To answer what kind of riding I do-OK heres everything out on the table. I have tractors for hauling heavy loads and use atvs for wood splitters, small trailers etc. We also do a whole lot of trail riding in the woods. I have two older polaris 2 stroke and chain driven. The only thing original is the plastic and engines. I have learned to hate polaris as a result. But its time to replace. I was looking at sra's for towing but now people tell me IRS is just fine. Thought the 3wd Eiger would be great. Then the wife buys a Bruin,gets it stuck in the creek, I have to pull it out with the dinosaur 300 polaris which lets me know that true 4wd is necessary. So we look at true 4wd, nothing about it is simple, slow down or stop-engage 4wd-queeze lever or push button and resume travel if you have any momentum left.Add a shifter in there and then your really busy. What ever happened to keep it simple. Personally I prefer the belt drives of the yamis or zukis, they dont make a big thing about driving in low at certain speeds etc. I also prefer their engine braking-it works. With polaris I had to make sure things were right between me and God before decending down a hill.
Am I confusing you? I know I am. The sportsman is ugly with tupperware racks and has a belt drive system I cant stand. But its a work horse, trail rider with ample power and an awsome simple to operate awd system. If polaris looked liked a Yami, had the belt drive of a Yami with the performanc and awd of a polaris I would be in ATV heaven.I think so would alot of other people. So Im just confused and wandering around this website looking for one more good reason to choose one over the other.
I have a wife and three kids that all ride, that is one reason why I like to keep it simple, Getting them to ride slow in low dont work, giving them a dozen leavers and buttons to push dont work either. Ok I gave you an earful of my confusion, obviously nobody makes what I want. somebody help me!!!!!

 

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