Im sorry the thing frose up and then entered it 4 times

 

I had a 98 Sport 400 and just traded it for a Scrambler 500. The sport is faster-no doubt. The Scrambler 500 is also very fast however. I definately like the Scrambler over the Sport. Better all around ATV without a doubt. AS for a Scrambler 500 vs Scrambler 400 its simply a matter of 4 stroke vs 2 stroke preference. Dont let realiability be a factor, they are both reliable. I chose the 500 because i like the low end torque (Thump, Thump). I think its better overall and especially in the mud and on slow steep hill climbs. Just speaking from my experiences. 00 Scrambler 500

 

I had a 98 Sport 400 and just traded it for a Scrambler 500. The sport is faster-no doubt. The Scrambler 500 is also very fast however. I definately like the Scrambler over the Sport. Better all around ATV without a doubt. AS for a Scrambler 500 vs Scrambler 400 its simply a matter of 4 stroke vs 2 stroke preference. Dont let realiability be a factor, they are both reliable. I chose the 500 because i like the low end torque (Thump, Thump). I think its better overall and especially in the mud and on slow steep hill climbs. Just speaking from my experiences. 00 Scrambler 500

 

Ford400 & Steve,
I will attempt to expain myself.
My wife & I own a 500 & 400 Scrambler. A friend & I ride together alot. He doesn't have a bike so he rides one of mine when Marie doesn't ride, but he is very experienced on a 4wheeler. The 500 does feel slower. ALOT SLOWER to me. Almost like a utility bike. THe 400 feels much quicker, but line'em up, and no matter who is on which bike, the 500 wins every time. I guess its like 2 identical cars from the factory, one will always be faster than the other. I am familiar with the review on the 400 vs the 500. They do say they are equally as fast, but like I say, when you own both & ride both, one's bound to be faster. My dealer has told me (which he has lied before) that the scrambler 2 stroke motors are a little stronger than the Sport. He didn't elaborate as to why or how, but thats what he told me. I have raced 400 sports on the 400 scrambler and beat them. Not by much, but enough where they couldn't catch up. The one thing we have changed on the 400 is the clutch. We put a utility spring (the blue one) in and it made a world of difference. (see if this makes sense: most riders put clutches in 400s that hook up at higher RPMs to give them a stronger launch. What I see happen most of the time...high RPM, strong launch, lots of wheel spin, loose the race on take-off. Happens more times than not, plus you have to always stay on the throttle when you're trail riding, personally, that sucks. Been there, done that). THe 400 with the utility clutch hooks up right off idle, its perfect for the trails, that is why I can carry the 400 through the woods faster than the 500 (that and the 50 fewer lbs). But the 400 now has zero engine braking. It also launches much harder now, but didn't appear to adversly effect midrange or top end, you just have to put your n*ts on the headlights when you're racing. It picks the front end up so hard that it slams the rear rack into the ground and can knock it out of gear. No joke, normal riding conditions, the 400 FEELS like it has more torque than the 500! I know you think I'm lying, but I'm not. You don't have to keep it in the power band, its almost like you have to be careful to keep it out of it, that is how I've been hurt on the 400, forgeting that once that utlity clutch unleashes, it hooks at about the same RPM the powerband comes in, its like double the powerband. It hooks really hard. It makes it lots of fun to ride, but I have flipped over backwards on myself playing. I can go on & on about the 400s & the 2 strokes, I think this one is great, but line'm up with the 500 and I just can't explain it. Leaves it every time. Steve, if we ride at Uwharrie you'll have to convience Marie to let you on the 400, its a fun bike. Its not like most Polaris 2 strokes. Anyway, getting late, I just finished helping my brother put front brakes on his Honda 300 4x4, what a bear! Could they have made it much harder?----Oh yeh, forgot about the question, which is better. I've thought about it all day. Having both is perfect, but I have reached a conclusion: I do prefer the 400 with a utility clutch spring over the 500. Modify the airbox, bore the carb, rejet, you would still have a quite, tame, extremely ridable 4x4 that would probably smoke the 500. This from someone that until a year ago HATED 2 strokes.

Goodnight all

Jerome Coker

 

Hey Jerome,

Where did you get that clutch? And how much did it cost you? I've got a 97 Scram 400 and I love it!

 

Actually,

Just take your quad to the dealer & let him do it. He'll know what you're talking about. Mine charged $35.00 for everything.

Jerome Coker

------------------

 

Jerome,
Where do you get the 50 fewer pounds thing for the 400. Polaris lists the dry weights as 519 for the 400 and 542 for the 500. I've picked them both up (front and back) on the showroom floor and they feel pretty close to the same weight. With the 500 feeling a little heavier.

I own a 400 and have never ridden a 500. I know on the trails and in the woods I prefer my Trail Blazer. With pipe, filter and clutch kit it will hang with a stock 400 off the line and at 80lbs lighter (Mine is actually over 100lbs lighter due to alum. wheels and lighter exhaust) it is much easier to maneuver and less tiring to ride.
Scott.

 

I guess not quite 50 lbs huh? To me it feels 100 lbs heavier when trying to go through the woods at break neck speed. My wife had a '99 or '98 trialblazer before we bought the 400 scrambler. It was a really fun bike. My brother had a 300EX and we would race for time around an MX track. He would run it 30-32 seconds. On a stock TB I could run it in 32-34. If we didn't need 4x4 I would probably ride a sport or TB, but how & where we ride, 4x4 is a must. Polaris has a vey diversified lineup ,thats another reason I like them.

Jerome Coker

 

"Justhonda", it looks like your going to have to change your name to "Justpolaris" or something like that huh? Just kidding. Anyway dont worry about blowing up a 400. I know people have been riding for 3 hard years & never did anything to them. If you dont like to put on add-on parts & hop-up perfomance items then get the 500. If your like me & look forward to having a different ups package waiting for you after work each day then go w/ the 400. I like to tinker w/ things & add on performance parts. For $300 for a pipe/clutch & air box you can beat the 500 & it will be much, much snappier & quicker & this is just the begining of possible add on mods. For about $6-700 you can have 50+ HP that can still be putted around all day w/o fouling plugs & you can still crawl slowly over stuff if you want. It's all in what you want.
Good luck
Jim Maloney 98 400 scrambler

 

OK. Question: Why do 80% of questions asked always lead to a discussion on which quad is faster? Justhonda asks the question of 500 vs 400 Scrambler and everyone leads to a discussion of which is faster and how to make one beat the other. My piped up Sport was certainly faster than my new stock Scrambler 500- but does that make it better. No- i think the Scrambler is a much better machine for how and what i ride in. And we shouldnt always consider a heavier machine to be a bad thing either. Case in point- i was riding with a 300ex guy about 2 weeks ago. We were going up and down some pretty steep hills. These were hills were you could not get a running start to get up them. What we found was that there some hills he could not make it up because his front end would not stay on the ground-meanwhile my Scrambler 500 never lifted and conquered every hill thrown at it. Obviously heavier quads ride better across rough terrain as well. Now dont get me wrong- i still like Sport quads and like to ride fast from time to time. I also dont like quads that seemingly weigh more than my car. But it is important to remember that there is often a happy medium and what is the best quad isnt always as easy as speed and weight. To each his own.