[SamUK]

1000cc CanAm here is £15,000 with mud tyres similar to yours Mac.. No way in hell im spending that for a toy, the Mrs would leave me! Ha!
Can pick used 500's & 700's up for around £5000.

Question is, is the cam am 500 or 700 going to be better at the off-road park than the Honda 500? Apart from tickling around the farm that's where mine get most of it's use.

 

[fishfiles]

Sam , you don't want a Can-Am if it was a half price sale , believe me , I ride with them every weekend , great ride , lots of power , good looking bike , but they don't last and when they go down and not in warranty it is big bucks , my buddy has a 570 and his son a 1000 Outlander , with 117 hours the 570 is going into the shop this week , which will be the last time for his warranty , for axle bearings and pinion bearings making noise and popping , the coolant fan is burned up , engine runs hot even when the fan was working , last weekend when the fan went out it boiled over big time and it may have engine damage now as it don't sound good ---- the 2 + year old 1000 with 400 hours is on it's 4th rear end job , also been thru 2 front differentials , cooling fan twice , and now the cylinders are burnt up from the rings seizing into the piston and it is apart getting a bore job ------the brakes last 20 hours , the tie rods break every other trip , keeps burning out the belt , and that's the better Kevlar belts , the plastic is cracking up and falling apart ---------- maybe they are better in the frozen tundra and snow , but in the tropical weather and water we have down here , they don't last and will eat your wallet --------

 

[alloutdoors]

I personally like utility ATVs' and likely stick with a Honda but would consider a Kodiak, Grizzly or possibly a Suzuki.

 

[mac102004]

If your not mud riding them they seem to last a lot longer. My buddy's old man has a 650 and hasn't had a single issue with it other than a punctured tire last weekend, unlike my buddy and I he stays out of the mud and the machine was left stock. I think he has about 2000kms on it or a little more.
Compared to my buddies 800XMR he's been through several axles, front shocks, rear diff, front diff, belts, and a-arm bushings.

So if your going to mud them, even the XMR needs some carefully planned out mods. I won't going into too much detail this is a Honda forum after all.


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[SamUK]

The CanAms do look stunning, there's no denying that, if I could afford one I'd probably buy one. I'm still steering towards Honda with Yamaha my second choice. I have seen a few Suzuki king quads about but there's not many reviews on them, only the dealer who says it's their biggest selling ATV.

 

[mac102004]

The king quad is a good machine, very comparable to the Grizzly 700


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[Nanook12]

We use ATVs as main forms of transportation in the Bush, off the road system. Hondas rule in the North because they run forever. You will pay a price for the higher hp/torque rigs in that they break and wear out faster. Gas mileage is also a big factor and Honda rules there.
If you did a survey of ATVs in Alaskan Villages, Honda is over 90%. When you go into the more urban areas, Honda drops to @50%. Hunters who are dragging big camps out and Homesteaders who are always dragging supplies in are using the big 6X6 and high hp rigs and they are constantly breaking drive parts pulling extreme loads.

 

[mac102004]

We use ATVs as main forms of transportation in the Bush, off the road system. Hondas rule in the North because they run forever. You will pay a price for the higher hp/torque rigs in that they break and wear out faster. Gas mileage is also a big factor and Honda rules there.
If you did a survey of ATVs in Alaskan Villages, Honda is over 90%. When you go into the more urban areas, Honda drops to @50%. Hunters who are dragging big camps out and Homesteaders who are always dragging supplies in are using the big 6X6 and high hp rigs and they are constantly breaking drive parts pulling extreme loads.

If I had to depend on it I wouldn't buy anything but a Honda, in fact when I worked as a surveyor in the bush of northern Alberta I ran Hondas because I couldn't afford downtime. But, for the weekend warrior a guy and get away with some of the more powerful rigs, but your definitely going to be wrenching on them more than a Honda.


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[SamUK]

Going to have to be a TRX500 I'm thinking, I'm not really swayed by anything else so far although I do like the blue Yamahas, shame they don't do blue fenders on the 500.

 

[HondaGav]

I Love the Suzuki. It isn't as powerful as the other machines but they are reliable. Think I'd go with a 750 though just so I could finally blow the boys away when I ride with them. Usually I just putter around in the woods, pull trailers and I plow a lot of snow. Wouldn't even think of a Honda, everyone rips on the belt drive but with the constant tension system it's a slick ride and perfect for pulling trailers and plowing snow. Also Diff Lock is a thing I quite enjoy when I need it.

 

[mac102004]

Going to have to be a TRX500 I'm thinking, I'm not really swayed by anything else so far although I do like the blue Yamahas, shame they don't do blue fenders on the 500.

They do have blue fenders for the 500


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[shadetree]

Going to have to be a TRX500 I'm thinking, I'm not really swayed by anything else so far although I do like the blue Yamahas, shame they don't do blue fenders on the 500.

They do have blue fenders for the 500


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I remember you telling me this the other day on my '05 trx500fm, but I went with red..lol. they also offer a black metallic color as well, but not for my year, but they do offer it.

 

[mac102004]

Yes 05-11 you could get red green yellow blue black camo and white. The black was just normal plastic.

14-Current would be red green camo orange blue yellow black white and metallic gray

Might have missed some.


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[shadetree]

Yes 05-11 you could get red green yellow blue black camo and white. The black was just normal plastic.

14-Current would be red green camo orange blue yellow black white and metallic gray

Might have missed some.


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I noticed on the newer plastics, they changed the way they look in certain area's ?, or am I just that damn blind ?..lol. looks like some things/places on the front fenders on the newer plastics for this make/model are not the same as my '05 trx500fm ?, I guess they all bolt on the same way ?. mine is red, plain, colorful , and '' pops '' !..lol.

 

[Freedomflyer]

I'm not sure what model would fit this description but would be looking for a Honda that was manual foot shift transmission, power steering, independent rear suspension. If not a Honda, would probably go with the Yamaha Grizzly 700.

I do know I sure like the fuel economy of my Rancher 420's and anything else that I would buy is probably not going to be as economical to run. I owned a Grizzly 400 before I bought my second Rancher and when we took both of them out and the Grizzly burned a substantial amount more fuel going the same miles. Not sure if it had to do with the automatic transmission or not.

 

[mac102004]

Yes 05-11 you could get red green yellow blue black camo and white. The black was just normal plastic.



14-Current would be red green camo orange blue yellow black white and metallic gray



Might have missed some.





Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I noticed on the newer plastics, they changed the way they look in certain area's ?, or am I just that damn blind ?..lol. looks like some things/places on the front fenders on the newer plastics for this make/model are not the same as my '05 trx500fm ?, I guess they all bolt on the same way ?. mine is red, plain, colorful , and '' pops '' !..lol.

Only changes between 2005 and 2011 I can think of are the single vs Dual tail lights, change from silver to black engine covers, the later models ditched the silver bumpers for black ones, and some of the early EPS models used silver front bumper plastic instead of black. Other than that, not sure.

Resale red I call it. Always sells better then the other colours.


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[shadetree]

Yes 05-11 you could get red green yellow blue black camo and white. The black was just normal plastic.



14-Current would be red green camo orange blue yellow black white and metallic gray



Might have missed some.





Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I noticed on the newer plastics, they changed the way they look in certain area's ?, or am I just that damn blind ?..lol. looks like some things/places on the front fenders on the newer plastics for this make/model are not the same as my '05 trx500fm ?, I guess they all bolt on the same way ?. mine is red, plain, colorful , and '' pops '' !..lol.

Only changes between 2005 and 2011 I can think of are the single vs Dual tail lights, change from silver to black engine covers, the later models ditched the silver bumpers for black ones, and some of the early EPS models used silver front bumper plastic instead of black. Other than that, not sure.

Resale red I call it. Always sells better then the other colours.


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red rocks !!..lol.

 

[rodp]

Trouble with going bigger (I would assume but never had one) is you lose the "nimbleness" of the 300. Bigger has to mean heavier (?) and more cumbersome to handle.

I'm quite content with mine, nice and steady, smooth, light. :icon_wink:

 

[hodge5]

Trouble with going bigger (I would assume but never had one) is you lose the "nimbleness" of the 300. Bigger has to mean heavier (?) and more cumbersome to handle.

I'm quite content with mine, nice and steady, smooth, light. :icon_wink:

I agree. I've riddern bigger/more powerful, but I am very satisfied with my 300. I don't mud, or race, or have anything to prove. So, my 300 does all that I want, and more. It may not be as powerful or option-laden, but I bet that it is in better shape, and more reliable, than theirs! Actually, I'm referring to my brother... he has a Kawi Prairie 650, which is a used up basket case. His is broken down (currently blowing gray smoke), and mine still runs like new. He always brags and puts mine down. Jealousy is an ugly thing...

 

[fishfiles]

I am Honda old school and will always be , but if I was to buy something new , I would go with Yamaha ----but I am not looking for speed and power , just longevity on a utility quad to not have to wrench on it , I love to do mods but hate repairs when it is my own