How old is too old?

[TakeEm406]

Looking for a used quad for goose hunting and snow removal.
Thinking Can Am or Yamaha. But being a novice to buying one of my own km clueless.

I tried an older 09 Grizzly 700 yesterday but it had almost 8000 miles! That sure seems like a lot. But it still had some gitty up! My uncle has a couple Grizzlys so I'm kinda leaning this way.

Tested out an Arctic Cat 500 that was an 06 with 2K miles. And the thing squeaked and seemed sluggish and slow. I'm guessing the kid had been hot rodding it for the past 2000 miles.

What do I need to look for in buying used? I'm not very savy in these things. I have a basic idea of mechanics but I'm no expert.

Seems Can Am is top dog??? Can't see much bad on Yamaha either.

How about Polaris? I read a couple reviews where they were burning up in flames. But my buddy has three or four of them.

Definitely want a larger machine, preferably a two up.

What about Honda?

My uncle ran King Quads in the 90's and they kept on going. How are the newer ones?

Power steering is a must.

I was surprised that 06 Arctic Cat didn't have power steering! Deal breaker right there and the fact that it was a pile. Still wouldn't mind an Arctic, just that one was junk.

Probably looking to spend no more that $6500.

Quackhead Lanyard Prostaff

 

[2013850xp]

Tho older polaris are not the best but anywhere from 08 to14 850xp is a very nice quad I love mine so far but everyone has there own preference haha if you want work horse and reliable older Hondas are where it's at I like grizzly aswell but I find the over heat to easy I ride with lots of them and it seems like they over heat to easy! And can am is a built strong quad I think as well but I still prefer polaris over can am cuz of all the storage options and accessories you can get lol, susuki it also a good quad to just a lil rougher ride then what I liked and then arctic cat lol If it's not the 1000 then it's very sluggish on power I find and I feel there built not as strong as the rest I have never road with one but heard a lot of horror stories but hey thoes could be just stories,might not be true.


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[AreWeThereYet]

If it's just going to get you around and work, I would look into a Honda,.. if you want to play with it I would recommend Polaris or CanAm

 

[TakeEm406]

Definitely will want to have some fun on it, but yeah the main chore will be for hauling goose hunting gear to the mystical X.
When I'm testing one out what should I look for?
Whatever I end up getting I want it to last for several years.
Are there any that do better in the cold? I'd like to put tracks on it. I'd get a sled but I have no use for one. I don't have time or money to hobby ride a sleds a couple times a year. But there are times where the snow is too deep on the farms in hunt to get to by pickup.
How well do these work in drifted snow?

Quackhead Lanyard Prostaff

 

[jjack]

if your going to plow snow go with the grizzly it starts in the cold not like a artic cat.polaris burns belts trying to push snow and Hondas are good but I,ve had problems with the new electric shifters,can get really expensive.

 

[TakeEm406]

I like how the 4x4 buttons are placed on the Griz...
And the power steering...
If Arctic Cat is made in the states ya think it would be better built...

Quackhead Lanyard Prostaff

 

[brutematt750]

Grizz is prob your best bet


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[somethingnuw]

Probably looking to spend no more that $6500.

Quackhead Lanyard Prostaff[/QUOTE]

6500 will get you a well maintained nice machine just about anywhere... i see yamaha grizzly's popping up all the time in the 6-8 k range all look nice... the problem is being in Alberta im always afraid those machines have sucked in dirty slough water somewhere... IMHOP i don't care how many times you change the oil its going to cause you problems in the future... Grande Prairie Yamaha had a couple of 2013's they dumped brand new for 7800 bucks... gives you an idea what your looking at used... try to find a bike that obviously is maintained by one of those maticulous kinda of people... a quick look in their garage will tell you what kinda person they are... older guys are great too cause they add after market crap all over the machine use it once and sell it three years later...lots of those bikes pop up on kijiji all the time... you just have to be willing to travel

 

[Big Jon]

Whatever used machine you are looking at, service records are important. The seller should also be fine with you paying to have a dealership or mechanic of your choice do a thorough inspection. 8000 miles on a Grizzly, is this a US machine? Or does the owner not know how to switch to kilometres? That's high miles for your budget, you should be able to find lower miles for that price. The Grizz is a workhorse that can still play, and power steering for plow work is almost as important as heated grips.