I do a lot of riding in steep mountain terrain. I am just wandering how effective the EBS system really is on steep decents.

Also, I believe I have been told that EBS is an option on all the quads that don't come with it standard. How effective is it on 2x4's? 2-strokes?

Can clutch mods still be done and work right after EBS is added?

 

Duster:
I was just out yesterday up in the mountains with the new AC 500 Auto. I was kind of worried about the automatic, and going down steep grades, as I like being able to choose gears, yet it performed flawlessly. The engine in the AC is made by Suzuki, who I've been told makes the best engine breaking system. Don't know if that's true or not, but all the local dealers seem to agree on that topic.

Anyhow, some of the hills we were going down were actually pretty nasty. There was still quite a bit of snow as well, so we only made it up to around the 3,000' level or so. A couple of the hills were so steep that I was literally laying flat on the back rack, and barely able to reach the handle bars. In 4 wheel drive, low range, the 'Cat just crawled down to the bottom, over rocks, stumps, logs, etc. Not once did it slide, or break tread, and I never touched the breaks at all. In fact, I even had to give it a little gas, to make it over some of the logs. My Dad tried it in High range, and because of the higher gearing, it went a little faster. He almost tipped it over forward, going over the logs, but still never used the breaks, or broke tread.

When we found similar grades up higher in the snow pack, it acted a little different. Because of the snow, and the machine sinking in a couple inches, you actually had to give it gas in low range to get down. It was kind of nerve racking going down a hill that steep, and having to lean forward far enough to reach the throttle.

All in all, I was very impressed with the EBS. It is nice to have, since you don't have to use your disk breaks hardly at all. This is perfect for the type of riding that I do, which is mostly mountains for hunting and exploring. Mostly a lot of crawling and different terrains and grades. Yet, for a rider who likes to go quite a bit faster, it may slow you down a bit. It kicks in every time you let off the throttle, so you start to slow down immediately, even in 2 wheel drive, high range. Hope this helps.

Mike

 

I have the Sportsman 500 with EBS. I wouldn't ride in the mountains without it. The problem with it is the EBS only effects the rear wheels and on the really steep stuff it's like riding down the hill in a rear brake slide. Of course, this depends on traction available. Still lots of snow around here so traction is at a premium.


Glenn.
Y2K Sportsman 500

 

Glenns put the nail on the head pretty well they ebs really slows you down maybe too much on the sportsman 500. To keep it from breaking traction you have to give it gas. I also own the AC 500 which I must say I like the EBS system better, there is an article I posted on here called if you ride down steep hills try this just do a search with my name atving and look up the article there is suppose to be a way that you can trick the sportsman into using all 4 wheels for EBS but I have not got to try it yet. In a fair honest evaluation between the AC and the Sportsman the AC seems it doesn't have enough EBS and the Sportsman has to much but I think a lot of it is due to the height of the Sportsman coming down steep stuff and I do mean steep stuff you can't hardly stand on with rocks sticking out of it. But I must say the Sportsman climbs better but the AC comes down better...I don't know about the mods if you are talking about adding springs and weights to the clutch I don't think it will be any problem cause they specify the aftermarket springs for particular bikes and mention nothing about ebs.

 

OK guys,

I really don't fully understand the PVT and EBS system. I'm trying to learn as much as possible about the system before investing in a Polaris. I have general knowledge of how it works. But there are so many parts that it all gets confusing after a while. Where are the EBS parts located? Since everyone seems to think the EBS is too much on the Sportsman, would it be just right on a 2-stroke or not enough compression to work effectively. Also couldn't this problem on the Sportsman be resolved with clutch springs? Wouldn't RPM level that the clutch engages effect how the EBS operates? See what I mean about getting confused? I think I'll start a new topic to increase my chances of actually learning something!!!