I was checking out the 2012 500 sportsman's this afternoon and to me Polaris has took a step back . Unlike my 08 the new 2012 have no clock , no recoil , no work lights and the front box is all one piece . Personally I like the features and the looks of the 08 to I think 2010 better . Dam I wish I could get a carbed XP in camo .

 

yeah that battery dies and yer screwed. not cool.

 

That's one reason I like the back up recoil starter battery dies just pull it over .

 

does the 2012 550 have a recoil??

no clock???? wtf??

What does that cost?? 5¢

on edit the 550 does have a clock

 

The 550 has a clock I'm not sure about the recoil tho I kind of doubt it . It's the newer 500's that Polaris has now removed some features that use to be standard .

 

I hate it when that happens.

We have a few RZRs and they don't have clocks. when out doing tours it would be nice to know what time it is because you're on a schedule.

I rode every 2011 Polaris at their 2011 introduction back in June 2010 at a private ranch in Montana.

My two favorites were the RZR S (which being wider than 50" is useless to me) with power steering and the 850 Touring EPS Graphite. Both were nice rides.

Persoanally I would buy a used Honda 350 Rancher before I would buy a new 500 HO "value". I did not enjoy riding that at all.

 

Back to the original question about upgrades get it with a winch so you can't be blamed for electrical problems and void warranty.

A must is A-arm gaurd s get rid of the plastic pretend ones that will rip your cv boots when they are broke and pushed in. After market call Thor

Second is rear bumper to protect you from others that are not paying attention get the guru from Thor as well

Then if you still have money buy Garmin 62S gps with ram mount

After all that save your money for new tires after the old one where out and front springs that will sage after a couple of years

 

A water temperature gauge is nice also I look at mine all the time very easy to install .

 

Just had to use my winch yesterday to get out of headlight deep mudhole. It's a must have. I also recommend a good GPS. We put about 86 miles of difficult riding in yesterday and ended up getting back to the truck well after dark. It's amazing how different the trails look when it's dark out opposed to in the daytime. Not sure we would have found our way back without the GPS. If we did it would have taken us hours more due to wrong turns.