ATV advice

[WildRose]

Dad still has my old 2000 Yamaha Wolverine 350 4x4, and it still runs like a champ. We got it used (about 6 months old) back in 2001, and I've rode the hell out of it over the years. Ran it so hard, back in early 2007 I had to rebuild the top-end because it was getting tired. Punched it .040" over and put a 10.75:1 Wiseco flat-top in it, a hot cam, jet kit in the carb, HMF pipe, K&N intake kit of the air box, and an Outlaw clutch, and it spins all four 26's like it's nothing. I love that old 4-wheeler. I hope he never sells it, and that I inherit it again someday.

Back in 2014 I bought a used 2009 Can-Am Outty 800R... Guy sold me a cobbled-together previously-sunk and well-abused 4-wheeler (he did a great job of hiding all the issues), and it ran good, idled good, but then it crapped-out on the 2nd long ride...Fried the ECM and the top-end. It took everything I had not to drive to Pass Christian, MS and whoop his ---. But it's been in the fixing process for a few years (tight on funds, and not a priority) and should finally be up and running before deer season. Put a MrRPM 840 Big Bore kit in it, and now all that's left is replacing & custom-tuning the $1000 ECM. Should be putting down nearly 100 RWHP when it's done. I don't blame Can-Am for that, as that abuse and damage was all done by the previous owner, not a testament to the machine itself. Every other Can-Am i've ridden, been around, know the owner has been an excellent machine.

Between me and dad, we've had Hondas, Yamahas, Suzukis, Kawasakis, and a Can-Am, and they were all good. But the power of the Can-Am, the IFS & IRS and ground clearance, and the offroad capabilities are just insane compared to the rest of what we've owned. That little Wolverine is the 2nd best 4-wheeler I've owned. It's light, agile, and with all the upgrades it's pretty powerful for it's size. Back in 2005, It outran a brand new Polaris 700 Twin in a drag race...Before mine had any engine work done to it.

I had a new 2003 Honda Rincon 650, and while it was strong, and really nice for trails and rocks...It was carbureted and cold-natured & ornery. Once it got warm, it was good to go. It was heavy, and it got high-centered all the time. It just had no real mud capability (and in Alabama, it rains ALOT during deer season). It was so heavy it would sink, and even with IRS and 28" 589's on it, it would still just sink to the bottom, frame-out, and dig, and not go anywhere. Break-out the winch... That brand new (at the time) fully-automatic transmission was super-smooth and really nice...Shifted fast, like a dual-clutch supercar. If you stuck to farmland or ranching or property repair and doing actual heavy duty work with it, it would be an awesome machine. The weight and power had no issues pulling my 16' tandem trailer with 2 other quads on it. But for a mud toy or hardcore offroad machine, I wouldn't recommend it.

Those are just a couple of the ones I've owned, typing the rest would be a whole page. So, I'm not going to do that.

I prefer simple and as close to non digital as possible especially with offroad equipment. The more reliant you are on electronics the more expensive and complex repairs are.

The Suzuki is like our old 69 Landcruiser, a pair of pliers, a spark plug, and some bailing wire will get you out of just about anything.

I'll keep running that bike as long as I possibly can.

 

[WildBillG]

I have noticed the same thing Creedmore. I am like you except I had 1 bad Polaris the rest have been great and did not beed mods like the other machines do to keep up with the Polaris. It seem ironic Mud you do not bad mouth that beat to death Can Am but can only rag on Polaris which you have never owned. If that Can Am had been a Polaris I bet you would have blamed every thing on Polaris. The useless Honda auto matic Rincon even got a good revue from and I a had a Honda dealer tell me they were crap. Maybe ride a Polaris and see what a smooth ride and smooth useable power is like.

 

[J E Custom]

I think there will always be at least three types of ATV owners. some will always chose the biggest and fastest, unfortunately they are heavy and have a high center of gravity and are not suitable for ultra uneven terrain.

Then there are those that want something in the middle horsepower range that has moderate speed and a low center of gravity with manual transmissions that has many gear selections.

Then there are those that want just enough to do what they want/need
And price is very important. This type will not do everything as well as the first two types, but will do everything they need.

I feel that if well maintained most brands will last a long time, but some will have more failures than others. In many years of hunting with many people with different brands, My experiences have been that the Honda was the most dependable of all and worked when others wouldn't as a rule. They weren't the fastest, the biggest, the most Expensive and even with abuse, they seemed to always be dependable, So my choice was simple. I don't have anything against any brand Because I would buy the one that gave me the best service and the one that was the most dependable no matter what brand they were.

Like bullets, there is no one ATV for every use.

J E CUSTOM

 

[Creedmoor shooter]

If I'm not mistaken, isnt Polaris the #1 selling ATV? I'd hate to believe they got there by being junk. Hondas just seem like your paying 2019 price tag on a 20 year old machine. Although I don't have a crap ton of experience with ATVs. Always been into dirtbikes more.

 

[therifleman556]

Hondas just seem like your paying 2019 price tag on a 20 year old machine.

Fitting since they're the safest bet to make 20 years old in the first place. Personally I'd rather pay a premium for bulletproof than for fancy features or a little extra horsepower.

 

[Creedmoor shooter]

Fitting since they're the safest bet to make 20 years old in the first place. Personally I'd rather pay a premium for bulletproof than for fancy features or a little extra horsepower.

I'm just saying I think for what they are vs the competition I think they should be priced better. But hey if that floats your boat go for it!

 

[MudRunner2005]

I have noticed the same thing Creedmore. I am like you except I had 1 bad Polaris the rest have been great and did not beed mods like the other machines do to keep up with the Polaris. It seem ironic Mud you do not bad mouth that beat to death Can Am but can only rag on Polaris which you have never owned. If that Can Am had been a Polaris I bet you would have blamed every thing on Polaris. The useless Honda auto matic Rincon even got a good revue from and I a had a Honda dealer tell me they were crap. Maybe ride a Polaris and see what a smooth ride and smooth useable power is like.

I've ridden and drove plenty of Poo-laris equipment...Just because I was never dumb enough to spend my own money on one, doesn't mean I don't have any experience with them, several family members have had them (all had some sort of issue(s)...Fuel, fire, mechanical), LOTS of friends have owned them (most went back to Can-Am or Yamaha after owning only 1 Polaris). The local dealership's service department head even told me that Polaris single-handedly keeps them busy and making lots of money, even during the off-seasons. When the head service writer at the Polaris dealership tells you that, you know your smart for not owning one.

Why would I bash my Can-Am that is only broken because some jackass beat it to death and passed-off his money-pit to me, and I got duped into buying a pile of problems. Buying something used like that happens to everyone eventually...And sometimes buying something new that happens, as well (my Weatherby Accumark being a prime example). That's not the machine's fault. Every Polaris I've ever seen with issues was never electrical, it was always defective mechanical from either ****-poor engineering, or cheap pot-cast aluminum parts.

I never would have bought a Polaris, and never will, so I would have never had the chance to blame all the problems on it. But nice attempt at subverting the insecurities.

Also, I thought it was funny that an old Yamaha 4-wheeler with literally HALF the engine, and had been beaten on pretty hard for 5+ years, had no problems beating a brand new Polaris 700 Twin. When I say "brand new", I mean, they picked it up earlier that afternoon from the dealership. BRAND NEW.

When my Can-Am is finished being fixed it will put down more power than that Poo-laris, so smooth ride, and nearly 100RWHP from a tuned big-bore 840 is going to be more than enough for a 4-wheeler. If I need more, and feel like going into debt over another play toy, I'll just go buy a Defender HD10 and slap a turbo, a lift, and some 35" BKT's on it.

 

[MudRunner2005]

If I'm not mistaken, isnt Polaris the #1 selling ATV? I'd hate to believe they got there by being junk. Hondas just seem like your paying 2019 price tag on a 20 year old machine. Although I don't have a crap ton of experience with ATVs. Always been into dirtbikes more.

Yeah, that's sort of like Ford claiming the F-150 is the #1 selling truck, yet you see way more Chevy 1500's running around.

And it's almost about like that fake (made-up) JD Power award that Chevy claims to get for every vehicle every year.

It's all sales ploys and marketing campaigns. Everything is made to be subconsciously subversive to get you to buy or spend because it makes you THINK you need it. That's how marketing works.

 

[MudRunner2005]

Always been into dirtbikes more.

I raced motocross for 10 years in my younger days... Rode Red for many years, and then went Green (Kawi), and never looked back.

Dad also bought a new 2000 Kawi Prairie 400 4x4 and it was SUPER reliable. Never a single mechanical problem. In 14 years of owning it, the only complaint we ever had was the full-time 4x4 made steering a pain in the *** in tight spots. Other than that, awesome ATV. Never owned or rode one, but I've heard a lot of good things about the Brute Force series, as well.

 

[Spinner]

It is Sunday evening June 16th. I see on ebay a Kentucky dealer has a 2017 Honda FourTrax Rancher 4x4 with 912 miles and a pretty good looking set of aftermarket wheels with a buy it now price of $5k

 

[Buck Buster]

I just listed our machine on Facebook, it is a Husqvarna UTV made by Club Car, they also made some for Bobcat ! Mine has AWD and a three cylinder Kubota diesel engine in it !It has a governor on it and is geared low, top speed is about 25-30 MPH but it will go where you have the guts to take it! It cost $11,000 new and we have some add on things we bought for it ! It has less then 200 hours on it and on a trail ride last week end we followed one of those long six seater Hondas and noticed its rear wheels spinning a lot and we could tell our wheels were not spinning ! It has better traction I believe then most do, but my wife wants one of those long @#%# so we can take friends with us ! I do believe Hondas are good quality, but most either have too much power that makes them spin easier then ours does, or are geared higher! Ours also Has an electric dump bed, fold down windshield when you want more air ! I listed it at $8,900 and my wife said lower it $1000 so the first $7,900 takes it ! It looks and operates like new. We are in Lock Haven PA, near State College, GO LIONS ! I feel most of the 3 or 4 big name brands are all good quality machines, anything that is recreational will drain your wallet fast when buying or repairing !

 

[therifleman556]

Yeah, that's sort of like Ford claiming the F-150 is the #1 selling truck, yet you see way more Chevy 1500's running around.
.

Look up the sales numbers, Ford sells more trucks than the Chevy and GMC nameplates combined (909k vs 805k in 2018).

 

[Creedmoor shooter]

Yeah, that's sort of like Ford claiming the F-150 is the #1 selling truck, yet you see way more Chevy 1500's running around.

And it's almost about like that fake (made-up) JD Power award that Chevy claims to get for every vehicle every year.

It's all sales ploys and marketing campaigns. Everything is made to be subconsciously subversive to get you to buy or spend because it makes you THINK you need it. That's how marketing works.

I dont own a quad so i dont have a horse in the race. When I buy a quad it will most likely be a Yamaha grizzly or a Suzuki king quad just because they have all the options I'm looking for and seem to have a good reputation

 

[Creedmoor shooter]

I raced motocross for 10 years in my younger days... Rode Red for many years, and then went Green (Kawi), and never looked back.

Dad also bought a new 2000 Kawi Prairie 400 4x4 and it was SUPER reliable. Never a single mechanical problem. In 14 years of owning it, the only complaint we ever had was the full-time 4x4 made steering a pain in the --- in tight spots. Other than that, awesome ATV. Never owned or rode one, but I've heard a lot of good things about the Brute Force series, as well.

I've always rode Kawi. Way back I started on a 83 kdx 80. Then I went to a 83 kdx 200, then to a 2000 kx250, and my current bike is a 2013 kx450f that I've owned since 2015. That bike is a BEAST. I dont actually race but I go to the track some. Mostly enduro guy though.