I plan on doing all of my own maintenance and repair work, so I bought the service manual. One thing, that is driving me bonkers, is trying to figure out the different types of fluids to purchase. I will definitely use 100% Polaris fluids, but find them rather expensive.

The ride is much nicer than previous Kawasaki and Yamaha ATVs, although these brands weren't a bad ride.

The service manual appears to be very thorough. I bought mine as a download and it only cost $12.00. I was able to print the 450 pages here at work.

I've heard that they aren't as reliable and it takes a long time to get the parts delivered. I'm hoping that the reliability is related to people who don't follow the maint requirements and not due to cheap parts or bad design.

 

Well, if it helps ease your mind, I have a 2006 Sportsman X2 500 with over 2000 miles and 200 hours on it. Abusive miles with rocks, snow, ice, soft sand, mud, deep water, and hardpack. Other than one minor problem it's been excellent. I managed to jam the rear brake pedal down too hard and seized the rear cylinder. The guys at my dealer said that the brakes aren't on so don't worry about it. Other than that, it's been perfect.