ATV - Polaris/Honda/Yamaha

[AMR]

Hello all. I am new to this forum, migrating down from mostly the Kubota forum. A buddy of mine brought his Polaris 300 CC quad over the house the other day. We ran it around my 9 acres here in Western CT. I absolutely loved it, what a blast. We hammered on the machine, I couldn't believe what it could do. Did a number on the lawn and woods too.

Anyhow, as you can imagine I now have the bug. I am starting to shop for a new ATV. My uses will be cruising around the yard, going to a few places here in CT and trying to avoid being arrested and using at my old man's place in ME, maybe a night a week use and everyother weekend.

I have looked at the Honda 400 CC, the Yamaha Grizzly 450 and the Polaris 500 H.O. It looks like the 400 to 500 CC will be just fine for me and my wallet, I see them going up to 800 CC, huge. I am not a big guy and I don't need to go 100 mph, just need to be fun in the woods. I like the machine on the smaller side to navigate the woods also. I have a total of 45 minutes under my belt.

1. I am sure there are lots of opinions but any basic comments would be appreciated on brands/sizes.
2. Any ideas where I can use this thing?
3. Any must do's or don'ts?

My initial thoughts are, including thoughts from my buddy:

1. Rear independent suspension looks like something I want
2. I really want automatic transmission
3. 4 wd
4. I think I can live with a carburator
5. I am trying to stay around the $5,000 to $5,500 range
6. Boy, I really like new stuff

thanks for the input

 

[Slacker]

I've had wonderful luck with my 05' Honda Rancher 350cc.
Mine is a base model, 5 speed, no clutch. Light enough so I can get it unstuck, but it'll haul a loaded trailer just fine. It sips fuel, air cooled, simple as a brick and easy to service. I bought mine based on what the .gov uses. Game wardens, rescue teams LE etc all seem to have the Ranchers.
I'd avoid the "ES" models (electric shift), I've heard alot of bad stories about them.

 

[Old Coot]

I'm sure no expert on ATVs but I can tell you, I bought my Yamaha Big Bear 4X4 in Feburary of 1987 and it is still running like a champ. Only problem I ever had with it was the cable, mounted up on the fender,they used for changing from low range-high range-reverse.

 

[GaryCrowell]

I live in deer hunting country and pretty much everyone owns an ATV. Most people eventually end up with Honda. In my experience, and that of virtually everyone I know, the Honda's hold up better in the long run. Yahama also makes a quality ATV. You coundn't give me a Polaris on a bet. Everyone I've known who has owned one has hated them after the first couple of years. They're generally regarded as cheaply built junk that spends more time in the shop than running.

 

[biggerten]

I've got a Polaris, a Honda and a Suzuki, and have had all of them for over three years - the Polaris I bought new in 2002, the others I bought used.

I can't complain about any of them. Regarding the junk comment, the Polaris has a plow which gets used a lot, also ride it for pleasure. It's a 330 4x4 Magnum, I'm a svelt 300 pounds. No problems in nearly 6 years.

 

[wally040]

Yamaha all the way! You won't regret it. Over 2000 hard miles on my 660 Grizzly & absolutely no issues. Had a Kodiak prior to that, same thing. Same with their outboard motors & snowmobiles. Suggestions for the ATV: a winch, trailer hitch, plow, hardcover rack storage, & handwarmers. Gotta love making those trails through the woods & hills. Navigate your way through driving over everything in your path. Bring a chainsaw & clippers & follow up with a pull behind trail cutter(brush hog). Awesome. Can't take away my Grizzly.

 

[Dargo]

Don't take my response as any sort of expert on ATVs. My last ATV before my recent purchase was a 1988 Yamaha TerraPro. It actually had a PTO and 4' Woods finish mower that attached to the back from the factory. My only issues with it was that it was only 350cc's and lacked some power for mowing and was only 2X4; which left me stuck in mud a few times. I only sold it when my son (who is now 19) flipped it when I was teaching him to ride it and, to keep it off of him, it broke my left femur.

After all these years I got the itch for another ATV to go along with my UTV's and bought a Suzuki King Quad 700. Holy cow! What a difference!! Fuel injection, gobs of power and tons of suspension travel to soak up the bumps. I'm really impressed with the King Quad and was able to get a couple year old unit with low miles for under your price range. So far it seems fantastic!

 

[1badXUV]

AMR,
I own an engineering company that does a lot of site inspections and we have a 2005 Honda Rancher 350 4x4, a 2006 Honda Foreman 500 4x4 (my personal machine), a 2007 Honda Rancher 420 4x4 w/EFI and an old 1995 Honda Fourtrax 300 4x4. As you can see, I am somewhat partial to Honda's.

The Rancher's are in the price range that you are looking into and would be a great bang for your buck. We use these machines several days a week every week of the year and have never done anything to them except regular maintenance. They are wonderful machines that are extremely reliable. They do not have independent rear suspension which makes them ride just a tad rougher than ATVs equipped with IRS but that has not been an issue and reliability and functionality are much higher on my priority list than a Cadillac-like ride on an ATV. A new Rancher would be my recommendation for your price range or you could try to find a nice 1-2 year old Foreman for about the same price as a new Rancher. I really like the Foreman as it comes with a few more bells and whistles and has more power. Just be careful that you don't buy something that has been abused. Sometimes it's worth it to get a smaller, newer machine to get the warranty and then at least you know it hasn't been abused. Good luck with whatever you choose and enjoy your ATV.

 

[kenmac]

Polaris 400 sportsman. Wish I would had bought the 800 sportsman. If you can, test ride B-4 you buy ! I love my sportsman. Very good ride

 

[IllMarty1]

Do you have a girlfriend, wife or sweetheart that might like to ride along? If so, think about 2 rider machines. Arctic Cat, Polaris, and Can Am/Bombardier make ATVS for this type of use. Much safer than riding 2 up on a 1 up machine.

I have 2 Can Am/ Bombardier 400 2 rider machines and my brother has one. They are plenty fast even with 2 peolple on board, automatic, 4WD, and IRS. Ride like a dream. Lots of room riding 1 or 2 up.

If you only need a 1 up machine, Honda(have one), Can Am(have 3), and Yamaha( have one) are all good brands. My first atv was a 96 Polaris 300 4x4. Not very reliable IMHO.