Hi all----I have been browsing many forums and reading what ever reviews that I could find online for the past week. You peeps on this forum seem to have a ton of knowledge and lots of unbiased opinions, so I have to ask you all a question that each has probably answered a thousand times. Which Sport Utility to buy? My usage would be trail riding, plowing my driveway, and pulling ice fishing equipment. I first started off looking at the Polaris sportsman 500 Efi. Than I seen the 550XP which I really liked minus no storage and thought, why not get the 850XP? I am not partial to any one brand, but was considering The Grizzly 700 EPS all though I have not personally seen one YET, and the 850XP. I am sure both are more than capable of moving snow and pulling 200 pounds across the ice, so the more valid part of it would be on the trail riding/durability/and fun. I see the huge weight difference between the Yama and Popo. For trail riding wouldn't the lighter one be better? Would the horsepower on the XP make up the difference of the power to weight ratio? Which one would be more nimble? It seems that the Polaris just by reading the activity in all the forums tend to have more problems? I did ride a 2009 500 X2 all weekend and it was a lot of fun. Was VERY basic trails though---actually snowmobile trails up in the U.P. of Michigan. Any thoughts and insights would be greatly appreciated including other makes. And sorry for the novel. I just like to make informed decisions before I purchase high ticket items so I don't regret it down the road. Thanks again!

 

Go with the Grizz, it is a great trail quad, lots of durability, and can also have a sporty feel for when you want to have fun.

 

the extra weight of the polaris will HELP when plowing snow.

 

I have a few more questions... I was told that the Yama was a little top heavy and for some reason had a tendency to stall, any truth to this? Does anyone have any thoughts on the durability of the Polaris?

Almost 15 years ago I bought a Sea Doo jetski that was late coming out, it was labeled a 1/2 year. This was when they first started putting big power in the jetskis. Needless to say I went thru 3 short blocks and 2 long blocks inside of 5 months. I was very happy with the performance when it would run, but getting towed back in just about every time that I used it was very disappointing. I had to sue the dealer and Bombardier for my money back which was very time consuming and a pain in the a _ _, and when it was all said and done I was given $3500 dollars back.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

The hugh weight differance isn't really as much as on paper and the weight does help snow plowing and ride.

 

Go with the Xp. You would beleive the ride it's so smooth you would never know it weighs 800lb's. You just need to go test drive one. It's rides nothing like the regular sportsmans.
All it will take is one test ride and you'll be hooked.

 

" All it will take is one test ride and you'll be hooked." too funny!!!!

The snow plowing really isn't that big a deal. I live in a regular subdivision so my property is not that big. My drive way is probably 20' wide, by 90' long. I have been doing it with a flapper snow blower for the past 3 years, just takes me an hour and a half to do. Was going to upgrade to a better blower when I decided to purchase an ATV. Helps me justify spending that kind of money on one ..

It sounds like the XP is going to be the way to go. Has there been any problems with the durability on this machine?

I appreciate all the feed back.

 

you should look into an outlander 650 or 800

 

But winter time is only part of the year, so why get a quad for ONLY that one part of the year.

 

" But winter time is only part of the year, so why get a quad for ONLY that one part of the year."

It isn't just for winter. I will be using it to plow a little snow though. Just one of the requirements that it must do---which I think they all will do just fine. I think the durability, comfort and handling is my top priority. Sorry for the confusion.