chaikwa

That's the whole idea... they cost so much now if you mess them up, you'd rather be dead!

ktpauley

Back in 96 I bought a Polaris Sportsman 500. At that time it had the largest engine. I thew a winch and a 50" Cycle Country V-plow on it to do the driveway and pull small trees up from the woods. Did routine maintenance on it. The only problem I had was a year ago had a wire short out. Fixed it and sold it to a friend for what it cost to fix. Bought a Ranger Diesel put a full cab, Boss 6'6" plow in it. Cut my plowing time down from 4+ hours to 2 hours. eith

Bark

. I just dont get it though. I rode trials bikes for years. Every year they still get more powerfull, agile and most important, lighter, thanks to new materials and technology.
Four wheel drive ATV's have gotten more powerfull but they have also gained a lot of weight (ya I know, so have I so shutup).
Like you, I would love to find a new-old Suzuki or similar.
They didn't go sixty mph but they got you there without killing you.

patdaly

Wish I could offer something more valuable, but quite frankly, I can't justify replacing the old 1986 Suzuki 230 quad that won't die.

Oh yea, I have to put a battery in it every couple of years, and it doesn't have 4WD, but it won't quit................ Guess I could always "accidentally" put a .45 thru the cases.

I have a really good Polaris dealer within a mile of the house, but I think I would get another Suzuki......

Dieselbuilder

I see JD makes a side by side anyone own one and how are they???

klx650a2

I had a 97 sportsman 500 that was an electrical nightmare, the polaris dealer took it back in trade on a 98 500. While the 4 wheel independent suspension was awesome and the belt drive was great, at 4500 miles, the cv joints needed to be replaced and every single ujoint was worn out. I maintain my equipment and it was fully greased every 250 miles (and they were not hard miles either, lots of trails and infrequent towing). I would not own another one. Plastic racks that break when tying stuff down, plastic body panels that break in the winter, stators that need to be replaced every 900 miles (lots of fun getting towed back by my dads 1990 honda 2wd, not a cheap fix either). Cooling fans that don't, I did like the big soft seat for riding 2 up and the 4 wheel drive was nice as all 4 wheels locks which provided massive torque steer, but you usually got out.

railroaderone

Own a 2001 polaris sportsman 500 ran get for 5000 miles till I overheated it a blew the motor, replaceded and still runs great.
also have a 2005 polaris sportsman 600 with 500 miles and no problems.
Uncle owns a Can Am 800 Thing must me made out of Titianum he uses it on his farm has over 8000 miles and the only problem has been a ripped off strut.
Im rerady for some Hatfield McCoy trails myself

Hvytrkmech

Thanks for all the info folks. I went with the Suzuki King Quad 750AXI. Dealer is right in town and sweetened the pot with some accessories.

Here is pic of the same machine that I just bought. Going to put a front brush guard on it and a back rest for the Wife to start with.

HMX-1

We have a lot of the Polaris Rangers out here in Iraq, and I don't care for them. They eat up tires rather quickly, and the last one we had at my site could never find high gear. It had 700 hours and was a 2003 model, and we even had the vendor try to fix it, unsuccessfully.

I would stick with Can-Am or Honda ....... as a matter of fact, growing up I had the first year Honda TRX-200 (1984) which was a 2WD shaft driven quad. It was still running when I gave it to my little brother in 1997, and the only thing it ever needed was oil changes and 2 rear tires.


-Kris

Hvytrkmech

I had the exact same quad, red and silver. It ran great for what it was. I had to change out the rear shaft cause I bent it. I traded it in on a 1987 KX250 and never went back to a quad till now.

chaikwa

Pretty smart decision for a Tru... naaaa, I'll be friendly, kind and considerate!

Hvytrkmech

, why change now??

chaikwa

Very true! TRUCKIE!

Tallguy67

I have owned a Suzuki 400 Eiger (not brand new but I can't remember the year). I can only say good things about it. The previous owner put a winch and a snowplow on it. I have since put a gunrack on the front and an awesome rear seat (from BassPro) on the rear. It is now what I would consider a perfect quad, lot of power, super reliable and the nieces love it when Unca takes them for a ride on the quad.

bhuffstutter

750 kawasaki brute force for me love the FI