Big Bear 400 vs AC 450EFI vs prairie 360
 

Hey fellow atvers,
In the next few weeks I will be purchasing a new atv and I'm stuck between the three atvs listed above. I don't want to have a slow atv but I would like to have one with a semi auto(Big Bear) but if it's a snail of an atv I might have to settle for an auto. So what are your opinions about the three atvs listed above(or any others). I want to have an atv to learn on before I go buy a Outlander 1000XT. My riding style is pretty hard on an atv so it needs to hold up pretty well.

EDIT: What about the Fourtrax Foreman 4x4? Can you add a diff- locker?

As you can see I have no idea as to what atv I want but, the only thing that is pulling me to the honda is the larger CC engine and the semi auto (not esp) and those 2 are the highest on my list.

Why is it you want to be a semi auto? If its reliability I wouldn't discount most CVT's out there. Plus this will open many more choices.

Sold my 08 Big Bear 400 about a year ago...when I bought it new in 08, i went that direction b/c i wanted to stay with yamaha and I wanted the semi-auto transmission. A couple things about that quad...the gearing is low...about 0-5 for first gear and you may be able to hit mid fifties at top speed. The locking diff it nice, the simplicity of the mechanics is nice, the steering is iffy at best (and wheel bearings go relatively quickly). I bought my Grizzly a year ago and have put 2200 miles on since then and would not go back for anything. The auto trans is great and the machine is much better handling and much more though through on the mechanics. If you are just buying to get experience and then move up to a different machine I would just get on CL, buy something used for a good price, get the experience that you are looking to get and then hope to sell and get most of your money back!

I would start out with a 500cc bike to train on. For the most part, they have the same frame size, steering and handling as a 1000cc. The other bikes have smaller frames (shorter in length, width and height) and you wouldn't be learning how to sling around a big frame bike. Look at a used Polaris 500 Sportsman EFI, lots of them out there and it'll hold it's value pretty well. It shouldn't cost much to own it for a year or two as a training bike.