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Posted by: Code54
I also looked at the cats and they seem like a great machine, one of the best for mud that is for sure. My riding is on way too many side hills and tons of steep climbs so I had to pass on the cat and get soemthing that is lower and a bit more stable. I also had a Prairie 650 and had a bunch of problems. I was smart and bought the extended warranty so that saved me about $1000 in repair bills. They do seem to love to overheat (and yes - I ALWAYS cleaned that darn Rad. - even while riding sometimes...) Good luck with the new toy and let us know what you think in the long run.
Ride safe
Posted by: mudblaster
bcnucs
didnt your p700 come with a 3 year warrenty.
here in canada they give that with all p700s.
why dont you get the overheating problem fixed under warrenty.
also it could be that the front of your rad is blocked with dirt mud and other stuff.
i have 1500 miles on mine with no problems to speek of so far.
also the irs is very nice but if you do alot of hills and such i wouldent recamend the irs.
i know i had one.
and i have two buddys with 650s one 04 and one 05 and my buddy with the 04 was looking for a new quad for himself and he was going to give the wife the cat but now that he has some miles on his new 700 hes looking to sell the cat and get another 700
the irs is very nice but the cats so big that on trails that have alot of tight stuff you will brake plastic (because its not very flexable) the irs sucks on side hills and going up hills it tends to pull the front end and go over if your not carefull.
heres an example.
my bud with his new p700 went up this very steep hill without a hitch and my other bud with his 05 650 cat went up and almost fliped his over backwords.
then i went up and i had no trouble eather.
the irs suspention has to much travle on big hills and tends to get to a point of no return and then your upside down.
with the sra it will only go so far and then it pushes your front end back down unless you lean to far backwords.
and anyone who dose that on a hill is stupid.
anyways im sorry you are not happy with your p700 hope you like the new cat.
i here nothing but good stuff about them.
but if there anything like the v twins are just remember what i said about hills and tight trails.
Posted by: mudblaster
my buddy has an 05 650 and his suspention is no differant then my other buddys 04 suspention.
and he is always pulling the tires on any up hill slope.
but as for ride and GC you cant beat the cat.
good luck with the new toy.
Posted by: mudblaster
i broke 4 with my 500.
but my two buddys with there 650s have had no problems.
and the 04 650 has 28" dirt devils and the 05 has 27" mud lites.
the 04s and up seem to have stronger axels.
but maybe the h1 has more torque the the 650V so they might have to make them stronger again.
who knows.
P.S. did you see the new 800 bombardier now that sounds like it could be interesting.
65hp and 52fpt wow.
Posted by: rooch
I know a couple of people now that own the 650 v2's and they have that tipping problem as well especially when they are climbing out of the creek beds, just like you said mudblaster. They got measuring up things and that night at camp they came the conclusion that the motors were mounted a few inches farther back than the others( a kawi, a couple of polaris) and that was what was giving them the most problems for climbing straight up steep hills. Never tried one for my self YET!
Posted by: ridinsmooth
Congrats on it.
Posted by: kawasaskirules
"i'll see you on the dark side of the moon" Pink Floyd
Posted by: Catterman
Near as I can tell the people buying the H1's are paying pretty close to MSRP. THey are so new that dealers don't have to go down much. I could be wrong though... What made you decide on the H1? Can you get me one too???
Posted by: Catterman
mudblaster a lot has changed since the 2003 500 of yours.
I am just the opposite of you, I won't go back to a SRA after having an IRS
I have no tipping problems in the mountains, just make sure the suspension is tuned tight.
Posted by: Catterman
BCNUCS, use that H1 with broken axels to get yourself a better deal. Tell the dealer the H1 looks like it might have some problems so he should knock off $200.
Arctic Cat did have an axel problem in 2003, then beefed them up in 2004, and again in 2005. They are pretty simple to change out, if one did break out of warantee replace it with a gorilla, those things are solid. Good luck on your purchase!
Posted by: Catterman
Congrats BCNUCS! Now it is time to change your sig and get up some picts for us!
Posted by: weez440
i have put alot of miles on arctic cat atv's 4 arctic cat atv's in all. 2 of them having oversized tires and i have never had axle problems. if both front axles were broken maybe he was overly abusing it like having a pulloff on the highway with another quad and put it in a power hop who knows what some people do to these things. some people buy them and not knowing that they need to be maintained and that if you use them incorrectly they will break. arctic cat has always been a great machine for me and i run with all the other manufacturors and some of them can't say the same thing.
Posted by: BCNUCS
Well I finially decided to trade in the kawi P700 and get the AC H1. What the prices everyone is getting. Just trying to see what a good deal on one would be. Any info would help. Thanks
Posted by: BCNUCS
I love the power of my prairie 700, BUT there are too many other things that really are not up to par. front diff probs, belt maint, overheating constantly, etc. I still love the quad but I myself want to ride the thing not work on it all the time. Plus the independent susp. and 2" reciever kind of sold me. The H1 looks like an animal in black. Gotta have one. I have been quoted 7400 otd. at one place and havent checked around. Thought I seen someone say thet got theirs for 6800 on this site or maybe arctic chat.
Posted by: BCNUCS
Well mudblaster, you have some good points. All fourwheelers are different in one way or another. The simple reason I bought my P700 is because I read so many good things about it on these forums. But if you look closely you can see where I am not the only one having these issues. I had a rubicon before the prairie. It seems like when I take my prairie out, in the back of my mind I am always worrying about it braking or overheating. Not that it always did but I had no confidence in it. I really did like the power of the unsurpassed V-twin, but too many other things out weighed the good. The 4wheel drive system really blows. You have to be rolloing at a speed of 1.5-3mph for the front diff to lock in. I bought mine with 40 hours on it and when I took it out the first time it had a blown front diff. The belt system never gave me troubles becuase I read how to set it up for big tires. Even though the squeel at idle can het on your nerves, it wont burn up any belts even at extreme times. Just wanted a big bore with good GC for mudding and less belt maitenence thats all. Plus a factory 2 year warranty at no extra charge is a plus and makes me think they stand behind their machines. Not bashing Kawi by all means, if the brute had a better 4wheel drive mechanism I would buy.
Posted by: BCNUCS
Well I went to the AC dealer yesterday to work a deal on a new H1 and I seen something that kind of troubled me. There was a H1 in there for service and I happened to look under it and seen that both front cv joints were broke, one of them even broke whst looked to be the hub. Thid quad only had 26" 589s. All this reading about broken cv joints has me wondering. I plan on puting 27" tires on the one I get. What do you all think about cv probs and putting that size tires on the H1.
Posted by: BCNUCS
Yeah, Looks like a winner. The only problem is that I read it will be in the 9000-10000 dollar range.
Posted by: BCNUCS
Well I went back to the dealer and fell in love with the lime green V2 650. So I bought it. Took it out today and I have got to say that this atv impressed me. I put the dg5 module from my prairie 700 on it and I really think it feels faster than the kawi. All I need now is some tires and I will be good to go. Thanks for all of the replies. By the way my brother in law bought the H1, so I will be able to compare for everyone. So far I have noticed that it is considerably slower but it can definitly pull any quad through the mud sideways. Two completely different machines, in a positive way.
