I know there is a huge differance in HP, but was wondering how the power is for the 550. I am curious about the real world comparison numbers for fuel mileage between the two. Also am curious for any input from anyone that swapped out their old 500's compared to the 550. I currently have an '04 sportsman 500 and like it very much but have been getting the itch to get a new machine, but don't think I need the 850.

 

my xp850 burns 2 or 3 liters more fuel than my wifes xp550. Thats on about a 75 km ride.

 

Going from the 04 500 to the 550 xp should be a big improvement in the MPG department!

 

It all depends. Do you want a V6 or a V8. what type of riding do you normally do? Hills/Rocks/2 tracks. I'm partial to the 850XP. Side-by-side riding next to my buddys 550...No comparison...IMO. Another thing to think about is resale. The little x-tra you pay now will be two-fold when it comes time to sell it.

 

The 550 is a great machine for those of us that have no need for a big bore. You get less fuel consumption and 27 HP less, but you get the same machine minus one rear brake, one less tail pipe in the muffler, and 300cc less.

 

My wife has a 850LE with EPS and I ride my old 2002 500HO. Both go over 60MPH, climb anything we want to go up or over and will go over 75 miles on a tank of gas. If I buy a new quad it will be the 550. When my wife rides behind 2 up on the 850 I see no difference in speed or power than when I ride it alone because of the extra hp. If you don't plan on a second person with you or a load all the time I am sure the 550 would make you very happy.

 

I was in the same delima, I never even rode either, just went with the 850, couldn't be happier.

 

How is that? The 500 get 20 mpg and the 550s extra 4hp will not help fuel milage let alone improve it "big".

 

The 500, 550, and 850 get real close to the same mileage. The EFI will improve the MPG the most coming from a 04 carb. Any of them are very efficient, especially for the weight they are pushing around so well.

 

I went with the 550 because I feel like mine gets great fuel mileage and the feared the 850 wouldn't. We went out on long rides a few weeks ago and I went around 75ish miles of slow hard riding and has 2 bars left on my gauge. I also feel like it's a little stouter than the 850, meaning, I think most of the part numbers are the same for things like axles, driveshafts, diffs, etc. So the assumption argument can begin since it would seem to have a better tolerance to breakage due to the same parts with 27HP less.

Basicly it depends what you need and want. I promise you I can hang with 850's on trails with my 550. DO you want bragging rights for the biggest "cadillac" ATV? I'm sure the 850's exhaust sound far better, really deep. Do you ride short distances where MPG doesn't matter? I think the 850 is something like $1500 more than the 850, I'd rather buy the 550 throw some guru bumpers, bighorn tires, ITP wheels, HID's, front storage, gun rack, and winch on there for that much money

Either way you will be happy