The '99 Sportsman 500 that we have is really very reliable. We have 4 Polaris quads in our family and have not had any troubles that you might hear about from some. Those that have problems seem to have a lack of regular maintenance or just simply beat the crap out of their quads and expect them to hold up. Abusing equipment usually shows up pretty quickly.

If you are comparing, the Grizz is a slug, don't even bother. They are dogs to start with and they just don't perform well. the steering is the pits. I had an opportunity to ride a Grizzly over a two week period back in '98. It told me one thing. Don't buy it. I think the Rubicon might be a good choice though. I haven't tried one, but when I was searching and riding several utility quads back in '98 the Honda 450EX was my second choice behind the SP500. The Honda just didn't have the guts back then.

 

I've had my 2000 SP about 3mo. It has about 400mi on it. No problems yet.
One thing I didn't like about the SP was the wt. (700lbs). But the smoothness of the ride and the size to fit a 6ft 200lb rider I really liked.
I rode a Kodiak and thought it to be small.
The Rubicon was bigger but the 2001 was $1000 more than the SP. One thing I didn't like about the Rubi. The dealer was bragging on the new auto tranny. I asked who worked on them if there was a problem since they were new to the market. The dealer said it would have to be sent back to Honda. I really didn't like that idea.
Test drive an SP. It's the smoothest riding quad ever.
P.S. Previously owned Yamaha, Honda and Suzsuki quads.

 

Jack, you say the Grizzly is a dog? it's a slug? hard to steer? I don't wanna start anything but if your interested in a Grizzly it's a great, simple, low maintainance machine and it's hardly what i'd call a dog or a slug. I had a 2000 Grizzly and put over 900 miles on it and I was very happy with it. It's very easy to steer in 2 wheel drive and not bad in 4 wheel drive either. Sorry to get off topic, but if someone was thinking of a Grizzly vs a Sportsman, they are both nice machines, if taken care of they should both last a long time with few problems.

 

Grizzly a slug!?!?!? I've ridden quite a few Grizzlys and the one thing they aren't, is a slug! I really liked the Grizzly. The steering was a lot easier the a Sportsman by a long shot. All my friends that have raced their Sportsmans against Grizzly's got there butts kicked.

 

Eaaicf, The quads you mentioned are all good ones. I don't know what Jack meant when he said that the Grizzly is a dog. I've ridden one and found it to be very peppy. It is a bit noisier and hotter running than most (which is fine in the winter), but I found the steering quite light. If you want a 4x4 that is geared as much to the "fun" side of riding as it is to utility, consider the new Kawasaki Prairie 650 V twin, which will be out this spring. From all that I have read about it, it will be very fast and powerful, with great brakes and if the quality is the same as the current Prairie, it is as good as any ATV. (I have a /97 Prairie 400 4x4, and it is very well made, comfortable and reliable, and plows snow extremely well). Like Deej said, test ride as many as you can. I test rode several before I bought mine, and thats why I bought the Prairie. From all that I had read at the time, I was going to buy a Honda Foreman, but I was shocked at how rough it rode, and I wanted comfort as much as utility. Polaris's quality scared me off back then, but it sounds like they have come a long way. A friend of mine has a /98 or /99 Sportsman 500 and he has had no problems. The independant suspension gives it a terrific ride as long as you look after it.

 

Exmxer, you totally scared me to death!I may never go out for a ride by myself ever again unless Search and Rescue knows my planned route first.LOL

 

Not trying to scare anyone,...just telling my experience. It's hard to believe that so many people have these machines without the same problems I had. I realize that some of the problems were due to me, but not all of them. I guess I'm just the unlucky one.....I wish everyone continued success with their Polaris, because if mine were still running...I'd still own it!

 

i had some overheating problems with mine. It's still a good machine.