irsonly, Its funny that you call the Prairie a sport/racing quad since It has a towing capacity close if not better than all the previously mentioned quads in this thread. If this is your attempt to bash the Prairie you will need to try another aproach, that one dont hold water. Now if you simply dont like the looks of the Prairie thats a different story, everyone has there own taste and no matter what anyone says, that will not change. Dont say its in a different class just because its a little faster than the others.

 

rivermud,
my posts was not intended to bash the prarie, the reminder
that this is the utility post is simply because people seemed
to be concerned with top speed and which is the faster atv.
I find that ridiculous for a utility post..

There's nothing wrong with the prarie as a sport utility
atv.. it's very well made and people are having good luck
with them.. I've just got to have irs in a utility machine..
You might want to check your owners manual.. the sportsman
600/700 has a towing capacity of 1500 lbs.. I don't believe
the prarie is that high.. your owners manual should spell
that out.. it's good to check before posting..I realize we
can all get attached to our machines and sometimes say
things emotionally without checking the facts... that's ok..
I've been guilty of that myself...

 

That is why I was careful to say "close to if not better" instead of just better. Its tow weight is close to the Polaris and better than all the others, ie Honda, yamaha,Artic cat, suzuki, and Bombardier. You will notice in all my previous post I did not refer to the Prairies top speed. I talked about off camber stability, Mudding ability, weight tranfer off the solid axle, and hill climbing abilities. I believe all of these topics are relevant when talking about a utility ATV.

 

I find it odd that you took this personal,
my other posts were not directed at you.. some folks
just seemed to be enamored by top speed and that's not
what a utility quad is all about... if they're concerned about
top speed, buy a sport quad... they'll be happier in the long
run... again, the post was not directed at you...the
prarie is a fine atv and if kawasaki could bring themselves
to think out of the box and get away from their sport quad
style (straight axle) fits all attitude, and decide to put irs
on the prarie, they'd have on of the best if not the very best
atv in the industry..yamaha did this with the grizz successfully
even though they have some other reliability issues on that
atv.. suzuki(vinson) and kawasaki(prarie) have yet to do it..if
they ever decide to do it, they'd really put a dent in polaris
and yamaha sales.. if suzuki put it on the vinson, it would be awesome,
i think it's the best looking quad on the planet..
They did it on their king quad, they could certainly do it
on the vinson, but they'd need to increase the travel as the
king quad irs was too short..

 

I agree with you 100%. They should do much like polaris did where they made both versions, they have the Sportsman series with IRS and the Magnum series without. But they should put the same engines in both of them. Then they could cover both ends of the spectrum to fit anyones needs.

 

I agree, except Polaris stopped making the magnum series last
year, just couldn't generate enough sales.. not surprising since
it was competing with the sportsman with irs... if kawy ever did
put the irs on, i think you'd see them eventually drop the straight
axle.. the majority of folks just can't get over the difference in ride
once they try it.. usually they're hooked for life, never to return
to the yesteryear of straight axle utility quads again...irs is a great
advancement, i don't want to go backwards by riding another
straight axle quad,, even those with two shocks in back don't
even come close to the ride comfort of a machine with irs..arctic
cat , yamaha and honda are seeing the light.. it won't be long for
suzuki and kawasaki...

if you need an atv for racing/sport riding technical trails at
fast speeds, by all means go with a straight axle sport machine.... folks
just shouldn't try to make a utility quad a sport machine... if the ride
comfort doesn't bother you riding a straight axle machine, I'm glad... but,
it sure bothers my ole aching back....irs all the way....

 

I just cant figure why you all think the swingarm rear suspension is so bad compared to IRS. I am more than posotive that the irs rides better, but the swingarm on mine seems to be good enough for me, and i also think they are more reliable, and that they are more suited for utility work. I have never rode a IRS machine, but for some reason i just like the swingarm rear suspension. I read in atv magazine a few years ago, and they had a comparison of the bigger ATV's. They said they liked the polaris magnum better than the sportsman because it was sportier feeling, and that it pulled better than the sportsman.Now im not saying IRS is bad, but for some reason im a fan of the swingarm. I do like the new honda rincon with IRS though, so who knows.Some day i may own one.Just ride what you like.

 

rednecke, bad is a relative term.. I don't think anyone has said
it is bad... it's just not nearly as comfortable... comfort is good
but straight axle is not "bad"....just becoming obsolete on
utility quads...

I need comfort... and that's irs...regardless of the make of atv..

 

More 2 cents..
I own a 03 Grizz, Riding partners both have 02 Sportsmans. We all have about 500 miles since we bought them at the same time.
Heres my take on the comparison: The Grizz seems to climb quite a bit better. In moab, cruised around quite a bit in 2wd, rarely used 4wd,and used 4 lo even less.
It seemed to stick to the rocks pretty well. The Polaris- Had to use low quite a bit, we are now thinking it may be a problem with the weights in the clutch. All 3 are jetted and clutched for altitude since we are in Colorado. It just seems to be working hard to climb hills. One of the Polaris' is on his second belt, had to tow him about 8 miles. The other polaris is always low on coolant, I heard something about a plastic water pump? The polaris does have meatier tires, they are listed as the same size, but they are slightly larger. The polaris has old analog/digital speedo and no fuel guage. The grizz is all digital. Yes, my griz does have the fuel boil problem, but it has not affected the performance yet, well see as we get into the summer months. My grizz also had both head light bulbs fall out in moab. no big deal, but just a little inconvienence. The dealer replaced them with a new style..
The polaris has nicer cargo racks, with the side rails.
Overall, I would say each has its benefits and downfalls.. I would say just like everyone else, ride them and see what you think. I am not an expert, but these are my experiences so take it for what its worth...
Then go buy yourself the Grizzly...