Pro and con to .....

[MuddFlinger]

Hey there everyone,

Im new to this form, have riden enduro bikes all my life in ralleys all over. Im not the best, but i keep up. Now I am looking at buying an ATV. I have done alot of research and realy unsure of the finer details. I know this is a hard question without making ripples in the feelings pool, however, Ive narrowed it down to this. I want a quad with 4x4/awd, 570-850 cc, (1000 is too much right now $ wise). 80% riding will be solo with friends doing dumb things on the trials with mud and rocks, and more than our required speed needs. the remaining 20% will be plowing, yard work and sunday rides with kids and Wife, maybe a small trailer for wood and camping gear (now where near the mentioned machines tow Cap) Ive narrowed it to Can am outlander or Polaris Sportsman.

Ive herd Can am have power to spare but over heat often after mud, Polaris i have not her to many bad things except you love or hate them

I like each machine equaly, but if i was to buy today would soely be based on dealer price and what they can do for the deal. What I have read both machines are faily equal across the board, some better at certain things than others, but by margins.

What i would like to know is pro and con to choosing either for intended purpose?

is one or the other less expensive to Fix?
is one or the other less expensive to mod?
Which has the better warrenty out the door? Will it still have warrenty if i mod? (Tires, 2"lift, maybe spacers)
which has better Customer service for say warrenty and issues?

If you have owned both, please comment on both, if not please stick to the one you know and give details pertaining to it.

Thanks for the help

 

[Zrock]

I ride arctic Cat and love my machine never had a issue with it at all. But in my opinion Can-Am is the top machine out their but also remember that their parts and service are much more expensive than anyone else. Im not a Polaris fan they seem to go every ware and have no issues but i find their advertised ground clearance is false, And why would they mount their battery up behind the front diff low on the frame and exposed to everything. Thats a accident waiting to happen

 

[KWIK RACING INC.]

they are all expensive to fix... dont kid yourself... whether its popo or can am or whatever... you really cant go wrong with either machine....
modding them is no cheaper on one then the other either...
find yourself a good dealer that will over look big tires and other mods for warranty cause if it was up to any of the factories.... any mods including bigger tires would void the warranty if they seen it... thats where the dealer needs to work with you... and says nothing.. then usually factory dont know...
another thing that comes into play here is more and more these factories ask for the old parts back or ask for an oil sample or similiar if something is wrong with the motor... then if factory finds out something is not right ... the dealer is stuck with the bill and warranty wont pay... but the bottom line is get a dealer that will not care of things like bigger tires and such...

i have owned both... popo before 2007 and since 2007 its been can am... i like can am cause of there power... we are all power junkies... dont kid yourself... otherwise we be all riding hondas or driving smart cars....haha .... got over 11500 k on my 2010 renegade and had 8600 k on my 07 before it got stolen back in 2010... i do some racing here in Alberta and if you really want a bike that does well there then Can am is the ticket ... although in cross country riding and racing the scambler by polaris holds its own very well and is a awesome machine... but only come in 850 and 1000....

do your research carefully and make sure you understand the 4x4 systems on each brand of machine... there are differences in most brands... again popo and can am have the best 4x4 systems avaliable out there....

 

[Klondike Mike]

I ride arctic Cat and love my machine never had a issue with it at all. But in my opinion Can-Am is the top machine out their but also remember that their parts and service are much more expensive than anyone else. Im not a Polaris fan they seem to go every ware and have no issues but i find their advertised ground clearance is false, And why would they mount their battery up behind the front diff low on the frame and exposed to everything. Thats a accident waiting to happen

What model/year are you referring to. My 2011 850XP has the battery mounted just under the front rack , in front of the steering column. You cant get it any higher unless you wanted to mount it on top the rack.

 

[Zrock]

What model/year are you referring to. My 2011 850XP has the battery mounted just under the front rack , in front of the steering column. You cant get it any higher unless you wanted to mount it on top the rack.

Not sure of the model but its a new 500 i think...

 

[SwampRatt]

I have owned both, as you said, guys either love or hate Polaris and I'm not gonna turn this into a rant, there's enough of that on here. Let's just say that I still have can ams in the garage. Not super familiar with their warranty, never had too many problems that weren't my own destruction. Any make will overheat when the rad is packed with muskeg, that's not just a can am problem, other than that, Kwik summed it up pretty darn good. I think you know my vote, cause who doesn't love power?

 

[Cummins610]

Not to derail but I will kind of be in the same situation soon. Will a 1000 sportsman hang with the 1000 canam? All my buddies run outlanders and I know exactly how well they perform, but you never see a sportsman on 30's ripping around to compare.


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[Bigblack]

Not to derail but I will kind of be in the same situation soon. Will a 1000 sportsman hang with the 1000 canam? All my buddies run outlanders and I know exactly how well they perform, but you never see a sportsman on 30's ripping around to compare.


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On paper and in a drag race the Sportsman goes around the Can Am....real world, well....

 

[arff]

I ran 30 zillas on my 850 sportsman with no issues.

Had some repairs in 4800 km.

I would buy polaris again

 

[800HMX]

Our Calgary ATV club rides with a lot of different machines. They are all good in their own way. Yamaha and Homda for reliability, CanAm for power and decent reliability. Polaris on the other hand have the most break downs by far compared to the others.

 

[j335]

don't ever expect as good as quality with a Polaris, just the way the company builds their machines to usually keep them lower cost over competitors. I wouldn't hesitate to buy a Polaris, just don't expect Can-Am quality. My 2cents

 

[1BIGBADSLVRAM]

I ride dirtbikes now but had kawasaki brute forces for many years and loved them. Got outa quads for a few years when I bought a rzr. Couple years back I picked up a 2013 polaris 850 xp and hated it. Good for mud or casual trail riding but definitely did not fit my aggressive riding style. Sold it and bought a 2014 can-am outlander 800 and absolutely loved it! Reminded me of my brute forces but on another level.
Just my .02

 

[Klondike Mike]

Our Calgary ATV club rides with a lot of different machines. They are all good in their own way. Yamaha and Homda for reliability, CanAm for power and decent reliability. Polaris on the other hand have the most break downs by far compared to the others.

Really? Oddly enough I ride with that club quite often and that sure isn't my experience. The biggest issues I see are flat tires and mud coated rads except for the ones that did a rad relocate. I've seen all brands of machine turn back due to issues but the only time I seen a major issue was on a side by side that lost a wheel during a night ride. I have seen a guy with numerous frame breaks on his outlander replace the frame and have it break again in a few months. Can't say I've seen that happen to any other brand.

To say that Polaris has the most break downs by far is a real stretch if not an out right lie.

 

[KWIK RACING INC.]

everyone has different experiences with polaris or cam or any other brand.... they all break down and are expensive to repair... it depends what you want in a machine.... you say will the sportman hang.... yes it will cause its not a competition... everyone out on a friendly trail ride will roll there wheels to the same place ... and someone said the sportsman on paper is better... i think its the scrambler he means.... that will hang well with the can am.... the sportsman still lacks a decent full adjustable shock like can am has and can am has better cornering and steering geometry....still more of uttility quad the sportsman....where as the outlander is a basic race ready utility quad for the beginner racer....... i mean in the racing world ... for mud or skeg running you dont see many popos.... its all can am and thats cause of the performance level can am is on.... polaris right now being the scrambler does well in cross country riding or trail riding and has won many titles now along with desert racing... when it comes to any pro mud running and can am out numbers popo by 10 to 1... now that said... the scrambler and the sportsman will hold its own when out for a friendly mud trail ride.... for all out performance thou can am still has the edge on that....

 

[doorfx]

Our Calgary ATV club rides with a lot of different machines. They are all good in their own way. Yamaha and Homda for reliability, CanAm for power and decent reliability. Polaris on the other hand have the most break downs by far compared to the others.

Isn't the Calgary club 90% can ams?

 

[KWIK RACING INC.]

Isn't the Calgary club 90% can ams?

No... quite the opposite.... more other brands then can am.... i would say the club has about 20% can am....

 

[doorfx]

Every picture I've ever seen of club rides it's always 90% can ams. I guess only the BRP guys take pics lol.

 

[rzrgade]

For power .... Honda 1 Yamaha 2
For reliability...Polaris
For pictures... Canam
For quality ....kymco
For 0 belt issues ....kawi
For constantly raising the bar..Suzuki
For great handling...artic cat





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[Billydozer56]

I don't have ether. But for quads I would pick the can am over the polaris. I've seen them both break but the can am seems to have better luck for reliability. Good luck

 

[800HMX]

Polaris for sure is the most prone to overheating (mud in rad just like the rest of them). Electrical problems of all kinds on the Polaris too for some reason. CanAm is good as long as they are well maintained (I have two of them-have replaced many parts). We don't see too many Honda's. The Grizzly seems to be a solid bike (not anywhere close to Polaris or CanAm for power). Not too many Arctic Cat Quads out there.

Polaris, CanAm and Arctic Cat seem to make good SxS's.

Really? Oddly enough I ride with that club quite often and that sure isn't my experience. The biggest issues I see are flat tires and mud coated rads except for the ones that did a rad relocate. I've seen all brands of machine turn back due to issues but the only time I seen a major issue was on a side by side that lost a wheel during a night ride. I have seen a guy with numerous frame breaks on his outlander replace the frame and have it break again in a few months. Can't say I've seen that happen to any other brand.

To say that Polaris has the most break downs by far is a real stretch if not an out right lie.