Not everyone needs an 850!!

Where is 'out this way'?

 

I live at Big Rock Candy Mountain Resort right in the heart of the Paiute Trail; the largest ATV trail system in North America.

 

Howdy Specta!!!!.......so , you figure the 550 is not the way to go and the 850 is? What are some the deciding factors for you? I would like an 850 on my new quad this year, but I keep talking my way out of it for a 550 for some reason. (I'd go nuts on it) My experience on an 850 was putting around in a paved parking lot once....not over any rocks or trails. On my 07 X2 500, I've rode some pretty rough trails and I've had "throttle blip", to where the handle bar whips to the right and the thumb throttle hits my knee.....and being in low range, crawling on something a bit less than boulders, the quad "leaped" a little......that was a little unnerving for the position I was in. So, in other words, how is the sensitivity on the 850 throttle for crawling rocks and such? Did you find the 550 to be more "forgiving" than the 850?........Happy days to you Specta......NoJoke

 

Hello NoJoke (great name by the way )

Everybodys likes/wants different things so these are the facts based on my opinions.

The engine and trans (clutch or whatever it is/was) in the 550 was obnoxiously loud to the point where I had little confidence in long term reliability. At times it almost sounded like it had an undersized piston on it or something, not a ping and not a knock - just a lot of noise. The technician at the dealer assured me that the noise was normal for a 550 - that was it for me.

One other thing that Doug did to the 850 was he removed the rear sway bar. At first I did not like the way it handled, especially at speed in the corners. It now has real "IRS". The rear wheels are not independent of each other if they are connected and their travel is limited by a sway bar.

Where removing the sway bar pays off is in difficult terrain like climbing over downed trees and over large boulders and transversing deep washed out ditches - the suspension works a lot better in these situations minus the rear sway bar. Now I don't even notice the difference in the handling.

The huge difference between the two is that the 850 is quieter and smoother. Funny thing is the clutch on the 850 bangs and clanks when descending steep loose hills like the value line clutches do - something the 550 didn't do.

Power. Power. Power. Minus the sway bar I have no trouble coming out of corners on three wheels like a sprint truck. Not that it's important to me but I've had the 850 up to 78 mph on the HWY.

The power is great in the snow enabling the ATV to stay in high range so you can take advantage of the speed to cut through the deep stuff. It's also a HUGE bonus when you're climbing a steep hill and need power right now!! Its there when you need it.

Here are two videos and I think both will give you an example of the power and the advantages it has. I would have never made it through a lot of the snow with the 550 where the 850 powers through it. Had I been riding the 550 I would have had to use low and there wouldn’t have been enough speed to get through it. This is around 10,000 ft in elevation too.

Forest Service Trail 1095 - YouTube

The first video above is going up a small isolated canyon and I was the first one up this year, no tracks to follow. (sorry, the camera lense was wet)

climbing out of Chicken Creek Canyon - YouTube

In this second video above you can see where I was straddling the ditch and when I pulled out the ATV was not climbing out and when I jumped on the throttle it climbed right out. The 550 does not have near the throttle response the 850 does and would have just lagged along.

Once you've had the power it would be almost impossible to go back to a smaller cc ATV.

 

besides, it's only $1000 more

One thing that you mentioned is going crazy on it and I feared the same thing for me.

I find that I ride it like every other ATV and I don't "go crazy" on the 850.

What is nice is that "when" you want or need it its there and you will never be able to say or do that with the 550.

My last two rides have both been close to 50 miles each and I have averaged 15 mpg.

I could get better gas mileage but I don't want to.

 

Howdy Specta......thanx for the in depth reply. Now by viewing your YouTube links, it gives me a good perception on the throttle feathering. I thinks I should pursue an 850, why not.....we shall see what the 2013 lineup looks like soon. Oh, and that part about not "going crazy"......was that before or after the 78 mph?...... ........NoJoke

 

Until you have a chance to ride an 850 out on the trails, it's hard to understand what a good trail machine it is. It doesn't have that instant "snap" when you blip the throttle, but it has a great steady pull when you get on it. Very manageable and great for technical riding. Mine has never lacked for power, even at elevations slightly over 13,000 ft. I have no idea what the top speed is and I don't care to find out. Have been just over 60 mph a couple of times and don't care to go any faster. High speed plus a short, wide wheelbase = disaster waiting to happen.

 

Here's the wrap up on the 2012 550 Touring EPS. I have just over 900 miles on the 2012 850 Touring EPS and close to 300 on the Kawasaki Brute Force 300.

2012 Polaris Ranger RZR 570 test review. ATV Television. ATV. UTV. SxS. Tests Videos and Information. Latest News. Product Reviews. Ultimate Adventures

 

Thanks for all your efforts.

Doug really seemed to hammer the ADC problem for about 6 min. of the just under 10 min. video. Yikes.

 

Its frustrating - it worked less that 25% of th time on both 2012 Tourings and we couldn't get it fixed.

There were more issues with the EPS and with the 4-wd not disengaging on both machines and not working in reverse on the 850.

Lots of things to like but they were both brand new and both had problems almost from day 1.

The 850 is quieter and smoother than the 550 and if I owned an ATV with a sway bar it would come off the day I brought it home.

If anyone takes their sway bar off ride it more than once before you put it back on.