As the owner of a 99 500cc 4x4 Sportsman,I must tell you guys of my bitter dissappointment with it.In the last 3 months my quad has spent about 10wks in for repairs.My clutches have been replaced twice,my cam chain and adjuster replaced,tie rods twice,three belts,one cv boot,three sets of brakes,water pump and seal,starter bendix,and a charging system problem.Not all of the above has happened in the last 3 months, but thats still to many things to go wrong with any new quad.And now I think im using to much oil.The quad has 850 miles on it.I called Polaris and told them I wanted a new 99 4x4 Sportsman because I felt I had a lemon,they told me to get ahold of the dealership.I did,and the dealership told me if I were to purchase a new 2000 model Sportsman that they would sell mine for me,BIG DEAL.Polaris will never get my bussiness again, and I do intend to bash Polaris in the future.I explained to the dealership that I wanted them to GIVE me another 99 Sportsman because I seem to be the only one with a Sportsman that is having numerous problems,and im sick of making payments on something im incapable of riding because its in the shop so much.Polaris has lost me for good as a customer,my next 4x4 will NOT be a POLARIS.

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That's really dissapointing to hear about Polaris. I think as good as Polaris is doing sales wise, especially with the Sportsman, they should make a trade with you for a new one or at least get you some kind of deal.

I agree, buying a '00 Sportsman and the dealer selling your old one for you is nothing special at all.

Adam Dowden

 

Bill,
Sorry to hear about all your problems. I have always been a Honda man and a staunch believer in the bullet proof dependability of their machines. I bought a new 99 Scrambler 500 this year and could't be happier. I still have my Foreman 400 for a utility. I am not expecting the Polaris to be as dependable as the proven Honda, but I sure hope not to see the problems that you have seen. I have never heard a bad word about the new Sportsman, on the contrary, people are raving about them. I would like to believe that your problems are a case of a disgruntled or hung over Polaris employee who put your quad together. Personally, the problems would not bother me as much as the response from Polaris. They SHOULD take the machine back and give you a new one (with a couple of accessories for your trouble). This would be a win-win situation for them. First, they would be able to take your old machine apart and find out why you had so many problems and hopefully try to prevent it from happening again. Second, they would be building customer relations and probably have a customer for life. Hope it all works out for you.

Rob Villanueva
"99" Scrambler 500 "96" Foreman 400

 

Thanks to everyone in here for their unending support that you's have giving a fellow ATVer.I have received some e-mails also,supporting me.I did [last night] as a last ditch effort e-mail Polaris with my problems,and I did tell them about the ATV forums and how I have access to ATVers from around the world.I told them it would be in their best interest to get this matter solved as soon as possible,heck, I even see a few of you guys e-mail Polaris and give them ''Hell ''too. Thanks SO MUCH for your support,and I will let everyone know the outcome. SINCERLY BILL

 

I think you are definitely getting the shaft Bill. JOHN SHAFT!! (that was a joke) No, really. The dealer should cut you some kind of deal, and if they dont, then Polaris industries should jump up their a$$. Ford motor company will get right in a dealers face if they do anything that might damage the companies reputation, or if they ever treat a customer unfairly. I don't own a Ford, but several friends and family members do. Their dealers give them great service because of this looming presence. Your Polaris dealer should have to do this too. If they can get away with it, then its just a crying shame, and Polaris Industries should be blamed just as much because they did nothing. I mean damn, 850 miles and all that crap! From reading your posts over a long time, you don't sound like someone who abuses his quad, or doesn't maintain it properly. You, nor any other person who pays $6000 for a top of the line ATV deserves to be treated like this. I have had no problems with my Arctic Cat 500 over 600 miles and I expected not to have any. With it, or any other quad I might have bought. Your Sportsman would have to be considered a lemon, and there should be some way of getting compensation for it. Good luck to you Bill. I hope you find a way to get a new quad without having to spend a lot of extra $$$. Its the small risks like this that kept me from buying a Sportsman last fall, and after hearing about your problem, I ain't gonna trade my Cat in for one this fall. I don't care how heavy it steers. Good luck.

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Andy Bassham *(1999 Arctic Cat 500 4x4, 1989 Honda 300)*

 

Bill,
I feel really bad for you. I copied all these messages plus added this following statement and E-mailed it all to Polaris.

Dear Polaris,
These messages are from the ATVing.com forum. I own a '99 Scrambler 400 & a '99 Trailblazer which so far have been great. However Mr. Ciliberti hasn't been so lucky. Isn't there a way you guys can make it right with him? I'm kind of ashamed to admit I bought ATV's from what I thought was a great American company and this is how you treat some one that buys your product. I can't believe you treat your paying customers like this....
sincerely,
Andrew Thomas
'99 Scrambler & '99 Trailblazer

 

Andrew,thank you for e-mailing Polaris and telling them of your unhappiness with the way they are handling my LEMON Sportsman.It is SO good to know that we ATVers have great support from this forum.I hope Polaris gets this straightend out real soon so I can report to you guys how they took care of me instead of how they did;nt.Andrew and everyone else,THANKS A MILLION ;;;;;BILL

 

I to went to the Polaris website and posted a email to them. As a new owner of a magnum 500, which hasn't even made it's way out of the garage yet, I let them know my reassurance that this won't happen to me needs to be reestablished. I owned Yamaha for the last 5 years and so do all of my friends. I've gone against the grain so to speak, I hope I haven't made the mistake my friends think I have and are waiting to pounce on me for. Keep us posted Bill.

 

Been there. I put up with it for 2 years before I finally sold it and bought another. I have had ZERO problems with my 99 but the 97 wouldn't run more than 300 miles without something breaking.

One problem is Polaris doesn't take any responsiblity over their dealerships. Everything is at the discretion of the dealership. Polaris can't "MAKE" a dealer do anything. That seems to be standard in this industry tho. I bought an extended warranty for $500 from Polaris Unlimited in Foley AL. They sent me a bogus warranty contract. I found out it was bogus when i called the warranty company, StarSport, to get it transferred to the new owner of my Sportsman, and they told me there was no contract. Now Polaris Unlimited won't do anything about it and StarSport still lets them sell warranties.

 

Bill:

I'm sorry to hear about your problem---unfortunately, a bunch of doo-gooders from this forum writing nasty threats to Polaris is not going to help.

If you write a formal account of what happened to your bike and send it to Polaris, chances are your cries will be heard. Again, the key here is to document what went wrong in a professional manner.

Best of luck!

Bob