I rode a 450 wolvie. I liked it!

 

Here's my $.02 Try a Sportsman 500 HO. You save some $$ over the big bores. It's a big machine but it's fairly nimble, comes stock from the factory with very good tires, it will pull 1225 lbs, has IRS and probably the best ride on the market. It's got good sized racks and a (sort of) sealed front box. If you choose to put a winch on it the stock mounting location is nice and high. Oh yeah it'l wheelie in low range with a little technique, if ya put a heelclicker in it you would have no problem pulling consistant wheelies. Of course it does weigh 700 lbs so if it comes over on you it's gonna smash you like a bug...

 

QBall is "spot on"!

The Sportsman 500 does everything you want to do at least as well as any other machine.

And does one important thing better then any other machine - gives a smooth comfortable ride.

There may be resaons not to buy a Sportsman, but they have nothing to do with the machine's performance.

This is the benchmark machine that the other manufacturer's are just now copying.

 

Most of the riding on my farm is dodging trees - it's mostly a hardwood forest. I had a 350 Big Bear for a number of years - it just kept on running, I couldn't kill it. Bought a big bore IRS quad a few years back, Cat 500i, and noticed a few things right off.

The Bear was definitely more agile when it came to dodging trees on flat ground. Turned in quicker, turned tighter, responded just a bit faster to handlebar movement. The Cat was better in just about every other category. Definitely faster over rough ground - a rocky creekbed had the bear jumping all over the place while the Cat just glided over it. Smoother ride, more in control when the ground got rough - any rough stuff tended to cause the bear to spaz out and start hopping around. Better ground clearance - my old bear couldn't possibly get over the new trails I made with the Cat - it got high centered very quickly. However, Cats are more like a Hummer H1 - they're rough ground eaters, rock crawlers, not built for fast handling and high speed. I love mine, but can't say I'd recommend one for what you want.

From what I've seen, the answer to your question is no - there really aren't any sporty handling quads that have IRS. Why? Keep in mind that you're asking for the extreme ends of quad suspension in one machine. You want agility and quick handling, which means live axle, but you also want IRS, which means high ground clearance, long suspension travel, great rough ground capabilities, but not quick handling. Also the IRS sticks to the ground too good - it's hard to break the rear end loose on an IRS quad, usually they roll before the rear end slides. I was surprised to learn that IRS on a quad is not like IRS on a sports car. It doesn't help flat ground handling.

I was on a Suzuki Vinson, which has the same engine as my Cat, and it was definitely an agile machine, about as quick handling as my Bear, but live axle on the back. I have heard good things about handling on the Outlander 400, but never been on one. Griz is a big IRS quad, and feels like it. Good machine, but not a tree dodger. Really, anything over 500cc is going to feel heavy and definitely won't turn as quick as a wolvy, because of the extra weight. Simple physics in action there, more weight and/or higher center of gravity means it won't change direction as quickly.

Unless you need the high ground clearance, stick with a live axle sport/ute for better handling - Vinson, Scrambler, maybe even another wolvy.

 

Just what is it with the new 450 Wolvy? Some people say they love 'em, others say stay away. What makes 'em bad. I have seen them and they look like a good mix of ute and sport.

 

The ones that love 'em are the ones that own one.
The ones who say stay away.........dont own one.

 

I think I know what you mean by what you almost said.

 

Best IRS sport-utility out there is the BruteForce 750. It's not a tank like the 700lbs polaris's and it's power is great. It's not as ugly IMO as the other utility quads out there, it will do everything great. And before anyone says it... EFI is over rated, carbs have been working great on quads for a long time. I rather have the ability of slapping on a pipe and install a few 2 dollar jets in than buy a pipe then another few bills on a power module. If you want a nice quad that you'll have for years to come = BF750

 

From what I've heard the BF 750 isn't the best IRS 4x4 ute out there, the King Quad 700 EFI is better since I've heard of a lot of people switching from a BF 750 to a KQ 700 and they are glad they did. The KQ's suspenison/handling are better and the KQ's 4wd system works instantly unlike the Kawi's. You may think EFI is overrated but I don't think it is...I had a carbed 4x4 ute last year that I plowed my driveway with and it took forever for the carb to warm up and it usually stalled a few times and it made me not want an ATV. Now with my KQ 700 that has EFI I can start it right up and go...there's no necesary warm-up time plus I get great gas mileage so I don't think EFI is overrated.

 

From what I have seen the brute 750 in stock form is an ill handling quad............good handling is an important part of sport riding.
Having tons of power isnt everything.