We have 9 polaris' that range from 96' sportsman 500's (first year) all the way to '09 550xp's. We have never had any major problem with them, minor wear and tear yes, but no engine overhaul and what not. Mileage on our machines are up to 6,500 miles.

The xp's only need 1 rear brake caliper as caper put it. I have NEVER been on a surface that the tires don't lock up on when I mash the brakes hard. Therefore people who say 2 calipers are better than one ( on a locked rear axle machine) never use thier brakes hard. 1 calpier or 2 either way the tires will slide LONG before the extra caliper would even help

 

We have owned Polaris models dating back to 1992 and in my opinion they have come a long way in terms of reliability. The early years we had issues with the 4x4 front hubs, belts, brakes that wore fast, etc. Lately the sportsmans have been problem free for the most part, although my 2006 800 got stuck in AWD and I had to replace a part. Now we have Rzr's and so far so good! I think Polaris has caught up to Honda / yamaha lately in terms of reliability.

I for one, hate any product that does not hold up well. Thank god for continuous improvements in engineering!

Brandon

 

I have friends that had Polaris snowmobiles that were always broken down. That was in the 90s I don't know how they are now. A another friend of mine had a 08 RZR and sold it because it was always braking something. I want a RZRs but im to chicken to get a Polaris.

 

You cant comment on how your friends rzr held up if you didnt see how he drove it. People think they are just like sport quads beating the hell out of them forgetting they weight a lot more.

 

Polaris eliminated one of the rear calipers to cut costs not because one is better than two.

10 square inches of braking surface is better than 5. Anybody can lock their wheels up. I can even lock mine up with old drum brakes so I guess using your reasoning disc brakes won’t stop you any better than drum brakes because they will both lock up the wheels.



IMO Polaris is still behind even Can Am as far as depenability goes. Every manufacture builds good and bad machines, some just build more bad one than good ones.

Polaris came a long way over the years as far as dependability goes but the way they are replacing metal parts with plastic I see them going back the other direction.

Who in their right mind would make a carrier out of plastic??

 

ive got a 00 scrammy 500,02 scrammy 500,99 sport 400. the 00 gets hammered on. its the community bitch. the 02 is being built to be my main trail rig and the 400 is just all. other than a starter on each of them i havent had to replace anything special. hell the 00 fell off a trailer traveling 45mph. it went end over end for 50 yards. it was trashed but fired right up.

 

Perception is a really difficult thing to change and it takes a long time to change it.

From my personal experience I've noticed that to be the case with Honda and Polaris specifically.

Back in the late 80s and early 90s Polaris machines weren't very reliable and tended to have more problems than other brands. Honda on the other hand tended to be just rock solid reliable. Fast forward to today and the machines I see in my area with dismal reliability are Hondas with Polaris being one of the best. Despite the actual conditions on the ground and what most people see and experience the perception still lingers that Honda ATVs are reliable and Polaris ATVs aren't. Polaris has yet to live down their reputation of poor reliability despite the situation that exists today. Likewise Honda is still riding the perception of rock solid reliability despite that not being the case today.

There is also the issue of pride and the fact that some people desperately seek reassurance when it comes to decisions they've made. If you've just spent nearly ten thousand dollars on an ATV you don't want to hear that it has some sort of defect or less than optimum attributes.

Some people also tend to wrap their entire being, manhood and self worth up in their cars, trucks, boats, motorcycles or ATVs. When that happens they have a difficult time accepting facts or admitting that there may be a deficit or issue with the item they now see as an extension of themselves. That sort of mindset gives us our rabid ford, chevy, dodge, harley etc owners who won't so much as entertain the idea that something else might be superior to their machine in some respect or that their beloved brand may not be all that they believe it to be. They view any issue raised or legitimate criticism of their beloved brand or that object as an attack on them personally.

 

[quote=Specta;2984883]Polaris eliminated one of the rear calipers to cut costs not because one is better than two.

10 square inches of braking surface is better than 5. Anybody can lock their wheels up. I can even lock mine up with old drum brakes so I guess using your reasoning disc brakes won’t stop you any better than drum brakes because they will both lock up the wheels.


That is exactly right, the fact that the rear is a solid axle has nothing to do with it, they were just being cheap by removing one of the rear brakes. Just like there being cheap by using a plastic upper steering stem bushing on the newer models. Personally i would prefer to have two rear brakes, and its just a matter of time before the steering bushing is going to wear out and have to be replaced.

 

But if one rear brake does the job why do you need 2?

 

Disclaimer * I am not a mechanical engineer - Outty's have a bad wrap for loss of braking in wet, muddy conditions because they only have one brake. Also if you are braking one wheel and relying on the gears to stop the other side, does that not put a lot of stress on other parts?

I had to check my x2 and to my relief it has two rear brakes. Love the X2!