I'll be buying a new ATV in about 3 months. Been doing a little research. I'll be using the atv for making food plots ,getting to my bow stand in the deep swamp and maybe trail riding once a year. I'm not too impressed with my buddies Polaris500-just not enough, (smooth ride though). I was thinking about getting an Articcat650 but a little concerned about the tranny issues I read about on the AC forums-any suggestions?

 

i have a cat and its great machine.

 

No more tranny issues, that was fixed for 2005. Even in the 2004 all you need is a new CDI and you won't have any problems. Seems like the 650 would be good for what you are doing, AC's are great for going in the woods, food plots, etc. Mine brought out a moose last year, through tundra, trees, and creeks. Totally impressed with them.

Also, later this week Arctic Cat is suppose to have their new H1 650 out. It will be Cat's own engine, with the Duramatic tranny. See if you can check on of these out. Good luck!

 

The 04 & 05 650 AC are having problems with the frames cracking. Looking under the seat at the storage box. Cat is trying to fix em but from what I ve read I think this is going to be a huge problem as more and more people learn about it and get more miles on them. The cat maybe a good atv but they have lots of bugs to work out before I would consider one. Just my $.02

 

04 650's had a frame crack problem. It was fixed on the 05, and Cat is replacing 04 frames as cracks appear.

Been my experience that Cat stands behind it's products. My 02 500i has been bulletproof, and crawls anywhere I need to go. Best rough ground machine I could find. Killer ground clearance. Very smooth ride, too.

 

Do yourself a favor and stay away from arctic craps. They look good on paper but that is where the buck stops. About the only thing the ac has going for it is ground clearance.

 

No the 05s have the problem too. Just now started to get reported. They thought they were fixed but they didnt get that lucky. The 05 were made before they knew of the problem. Now mid 05s maybe fixed but not the earlier ones.

 

There are lots of good machines out there. Many are faster than the AC, or have more of this or that, but AC does have one of the, if not the, strongest racks around (hopefully you'll be carrying a nice buck back from bow stand) and is one of the best utility machines out there. The 500 probably has a better reputation than the 650 and it could be argued a better over all utility machine, but the new H1 may be the ticket for you, if you want the bigger engine. The Duramatic is bullet proof. The H2 transmission has had its problems but those are fixable if you want to spend a little time. The guys on the AC fourm know the fixes.

No one has mentioned the dealer. I'd check with owners of all machines with dealers near you. Quad dealers are no different than any other, talk sweet when they want to sell you something, but when it comes to service.... You may find a near-by dealer of a brand that you had not considered with a good reputation and that can have a big impact. Do your homework and you won't be dissapointed.

 

ahhhh yes, the H1. I sure would like one of those in my garage. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img] As for the tranny issues with the 650 V2, those were mostly due to the Kawi trans and that should have been fixed when the H1 came out since the motor is now built by AC.

 

And MRP racks, biggest gas tank, smooth ride, locker, etc. Don't see one in your sig, so your opinion is pretty weak from an owners standpoint. I see you run Suzuki's, AC uses a lot of components built by them, so in some peoples eyes you could be shooting yourself in the foot. The DVX is a rebadged LTZ-400. You must hate the stickers or something.