2001 500 sportsman...12's front, 10's rear
 

I have a 01 500 sportsman...it has 12" wheels on the front and 10" wheels in the rear....is this normal?...factory?

That was the factory setup on earlier models. Same on an ATP 500 my son had that was a 2005. I think they changed it on the Sportsman in 2005??? Not 100% sure though.

10-4 On Factory set-up...strange...gotta make sure ya know that tidbit when looking at new tires ...lol

Thanks for the confirmation

Plenty of tires made for 10" rimes if you look around on line, but changing to 12" rims would not be real expensive and give you much more tire options.

I have had my tires off doing boots, greasing and washing down, after reading this about different size I looked today. Bought these 2 500s in 2002 and never noticed the difference but now the rears look tiny.

yea the earlier models had the 10" rears(god only know why) and like mentioned you could change to the 12" rears to have then match.

The 10" wheels gave the tire (cross section) profile a more rounded shape instead of a wide oval.

Hows that? A 25" tire is a 25" tire no matter what the rim size. I have seen a 27" ATV tire made for a 10" rim.




I don,t mine the 10" rims, a 25" tire on a 10" rim makes more sidewall tire hight for the rough trail cushioning before the rim dents on a rock than a 25" tire on a 14" rim.

Here is a 27" Vampire for 10" rims Cheap Deal on Vampire Tire, 27x10-10, 4-ply Interco Vampire Tires Big Discounts

Vampire Tire, 27x10-10, 4-ply

http://traxms.com/images/vampire_300.jpg

I,m in the same boat, I changed my front tires,Mudlite XLs 25-9-12 but there are plenty of 25x10-10 and 25x11-10 and 25x12-10 out there. I,m looking at the Duro Buffalo's (top) currently,not sure if I want 11" wide or 12" all are six ply. I had 4 ply Duro Excavators (bottom) on my Big Bear and liked them.

http://www.tiresunlimited.com/images...DI2010BUFF.jpg

http://www.tiresunlimited.com/images/duro/HF274EX.jpg

I JUST had a guy who's driveway I was plowing ask..."why are you running smaller tires on the rear"?? This was the second guy that's asked. They aren't, just an illusion.

Wenty

Different rims yes but if there stock tires the front and back tires should both be 25". Goodyear P trackers I would guess.

If not change them, the tires on a Polaris Sportsman AWD system should have the same hight front and back.

Here is a 2002 with 25" tires front and back.

Front: 25 x 8-12, (5 psi)
Rear: 25 x 11-10, (5psi)

http://www.atvreviewnetwork.com/powe...tsman500ho.jpg