Has anyone noticed that most mags give wins to machines that are faster and handle better at high speeds. It has nothing to do with work ability or durability, but just plain power and how light the machine is.
Last year the Polaris 800 got most of the wins, well this year their writing the same stuff for the new winner which seems to be the Bomb 650/800 in most cases. I've compared some mags and they contradict themselves from year to year, its frustrating as someone who is looking to buy reads them and gets an idea but it can be totally off.
I would like to see a long term utility/work/mud/water/pulling shootout done and see what machine's could work the best without problems instead of racing shootouts

I have seen and recorded a pull contest for example where a Poaris 800 out pulled everything by 20 feet, and then I went to another one and the Bomb only lost by a couple feet, so it does depend on track conditions that's forsure. But the Polaris 800 seems to be able to get traction to the ground better, and all the machines were weighted down to weigh the same.
I don't own a 800, I have a Bomb traxter that can work with the best of them but am looking at all the big bores right now and I'm getting a bit frustrated reading what seems to be alot of BS. The guys testing them are Sport bike riders not Utility guys so of course speed is the big concern.

 

yeah i agree 100%

 

Amen Brother!!!!! I like my Vinny's power/handling and all, but it is NO racing machine. Why does everybody want the BIGGEST, FASTEST quad? A 4x4 machine just ISN'T made for "racing". I guarantee most of the people buying those "insane bore" quads can't ride them hard unless it's in a straight line drag---which requires nearly 0 skill whatsoever!!! I mean, who can't nail the throttle and hold it there from a dead stop? Try tossing a nearly 800 lb Sportsman around a tight corner. They just aren't made for it!!! And YES I agree that most mags DO contradict themselves.

 

most of the mags prolly get paid by the companys to put what the companys want the people or buyers like us to hear about theyre machines ..The companys that pay more get more good stuff put in their bout their machine and not that much bad stuff about it..thats what ive heard before by many people and im starting to believe it.

 

you are 100 percent right and 2 years ago it was the 750 bf cause it had the largest displacement and most power so i guess that automatically makes them machines with the shootout. oh did you guys read the one between the 750 bf the 760 sportsman and the 800 outlander, big suprise there the outlander won. if you are serious about getting a big bore and have say 3 of them to choose from go to the respected forums and ask the people who own them what they really like and what they dislike. you will get real life answers by people who put time and miles on them.

 

I choose my AC! I like the Outty, and i admit it over powers me by a mile, but i bet in the mud, or on the rocks, or carrying equipment(speedrack) I can match, and even beat it alot of the time.

 

They could never do a durability test because there are too many hidden variables. They "try" to stick to the more factual info like 0-60 times and such, but we all know how those turn out too. Read the magazines but talk to the actual riders and decide for yourself what is true or not true.

 

One moto rag does a loaded down test through a rock patch whenever they do a shoot out. This test is actually very valuable information for potential buyers but only results in criticism to machines doing well such as Arctic Cat.

 

lol those magazines always criticize the cat. one helpful place to test out the utilities is in the mud and they never do. if you own a utility one time or another you will have to use it in the mud no way around it but they won't test them in there. and oldturtle is right loaded down the cat does well in rocky terrain but it just ends up in more criticism. i take whatever they say with a grain of salt and know that i got the perfect machine for me and what my uses are.

 

Guys: here's the deal.....When you talk about magazines/testers roaching the utes out in "race" type situations, understand one thing: The manufacturers are slanting towards SPORT/utes. If these quads can withstand the abuse we bestow upon them, they can take the work you guys want to dole out. Albeit, I agree that we need to test these things w/ the racks loaded.....Please respond to this post w/ honest input, because, believe it or not, I am an advocate of the UTE side of Sport/utes too. Don't get me wrong, I love to blast these babies at race speed, but I also understand how most folks use a 4x. Just my .02 here. Feel free to blast away, but also be true to yourself.