The local Polaris Dealer here also deals Bombadier's. While waiting on service today, I was given the chance to test ride one of the new 800 animals. Low end torque and power in general is awesome. Too much to be honest. The throttle is too touchy. Least bit of throttle and the front wheels are off the ground. Plastic looks very cheap, have always to me, but for almost $10k I was looking for a little more. The dealer told me they liked the power of the engine, but the bike was not enough to handle it. They said the front springs are too soft, comes with cheap rims, not enough storage, winch mounting is too low, and has a very weak frame and undercarriage. They said the perfect setup would be the Bomb engine in the polaris bike. I asked them their preference, and they said the extra 40cc wasn't enough for them to reccommend it to anyone, unless it's just what that individual wanted. They said they have already sent several complaints or suggestions to BRP about this quad. As a matter of fact BRP is having to replace all the 800's front springs because of so many dealer complaints.

 

I agree with your dealer, I looked at them and drove one....the power is awesome.....but my dealer said the same thing.....the suspension was weak, no storage and the racks weren't much......I do like the looks and setup of it, but looks don't do me good when out 30 miles from my truck...

i can't believe that the manufacturers haven't followed Polaris' lead and put storage on the front and rear.....I was really going to get the Outlander 800, but after driving it I changed my mind, I'll stick with my '05 700 EFI.....Thats okay though, I think Bombardier will work out the quirks and recalls, the motor is awesome....once they make it as a true Utility machine, then I'll go for it, but then again, since Polaris bought in to KTM....I'm waiting on the 900 Sportsman....2007, I bet....

 

wouldent that be a 950? maybe polaris will get smart and use a manual tranny for it, then it'll be the most powerfull because of the drive train efficency. thats like an 85 horse motor too, so what, maybe 75 horse power to the ground? HOLY SHAT talk about CRAZY

all polaris needs to do is rethink their transmition and drive train for more efficiency and pull off an Steel Aluminum hybrid chassis and the sportsman would be PERFECT

 

I agree, the auto limits all of the current ATV's.....my friends 350 Yamaha Wolverine, even though and Auto, it is a 5 speed, you have to shift, the damn thing goes 55 mph....thats pretty quick for a 350....just think if they made a Sportsman Auto that you have to shift....that would be awesome...

I do like the pure automatic, the clutch adds to extra maintenance though....

A 950? You could be right.....I think they are getting more powerful than I need.....what I would like to see is my 700 EFI engine, or even the 500 EFI motor in a 550 pound machine, think about it.....my 700 EFI weighs around 750 pounds...but with all the crap i got on it, winch, extended rack, two sets of gun racks, and of course gas and oil, it probably weighs around 850 pounds or more.....i can imagine if they just made it lighter, but i think it will also pull away from what polaris stands for....the strongest frame and suspension in the industry.....

also, the outlander is over 100 pounds lighter than the 800 EFI Sportsman, the Outlander claims 639 pounds.....

 

yeah but the motor puts out 66 horses, and maybe like what, 40 to the ground? the liberty 800 puts out 55 horses and puts like 35 to the ground. if polaris could rethink the drive train to get 50 horses to the ground like in a manual think of how fast it would be without sacrificeing rigitity of the frame or htings that make a sportsman a sportsman

 

They said the front springs are too soft, comes with cheap rims, not enough storage, winch mounting is too low, and has a very weak frame and undercarriage>>>>>>>

This is BS. LMAO. Weak frame? Your point of reference please??

 

Here are some interesting tidbits about the drive train. The CVT is anywhere from 90-95% efficient depending on speeds torques. The manual transmission is anywhere from 90-97% efficient depending on the gear. The subtransmission is good for another 5% loss, the 90 degree gear to the shaft is good for another 5% loss and the 90 degree rear end is good for another 5% loss. That totals up to 70-80% efficiency for the shaft drive CVT. This is the big reason sport quads don't have shaft drive and they gain at least 10% efficiency because of it. However, I don't think anyone wants to trade their shafts for chains!!
Bryce

 

i dont belive that, because CVT transmitions take 35% of the motors power because of inefficiency, thats what ive always read to several different magazines. there might be truth to what yous ay through varying types of CVTs, but thats what ive heard as the standard

 

LOL, that seems to be a common misconception, but that number isn't even close!! The very best gear set in the world loses 3%, a run of the mill gear set loses 5%. With at least 3 gear sets in the drive train, a shaft drive loses 15% right off the bat. AEN says the 800 is good for 55 hp. My calculations give at least 70-80% to the rear wheels. Which translates to 38-44hp to the rear wheels. Now if we add in the chain loss in the transmission and the front drive loss, I might expect to see maybe another 5%. Which puts it at about 35-41 hp to the rear wheels. So you can see these calculations don't show a 35% loss in the CVT, but they include all the well known gear losses. 35-41 hp at the rear wheels are numbers I have seen for the 800.
Bryce

 

if the 800 came with a manual transmition though, like a 6 speed or a 7 speed having first be super low or something like that, i would buy one in an instant, i would like, sell my soul for one, hehehe