Hey guys! Newbie from Illinois. Bought my sportsman new a couple years ago to plow the driveway but never really took it out riding other than ditch banging. Took it to the cliffs today, did some missing and trail riding and man what a blast I had! Never knew what I was missing. Noticed a few of the sportsman issues but overall was very impressed with how it did. Looking forward to being a member of the site!

I have changed the drive belt it seems to do fine in low but it seems like it slipping in high gear

I have changed the drive belt it seems to do fine in low but it seems like it slipping in high gear

hi all, i am thinking about pulling the trigger on a 500 sportsman 2011.
it has low miles and is in great shape.
how are the polaris atvs?
i have had all the rest but not a polaris, 20 years of riding.
some good honest opinions would be fantastic!!! thanks

As you can see I couldn’t let go of my last ATV brand but I can be stubborn on some things. After selling my much loved quad for a zero turn lawn mower and living in a state with little four wheeling (IL) areas I finally moved back to Northern MN and decided to get back to riding.

After looking to get back into the sport i was looking at getting another Can Am in the 570 or 650 class atv. I couldn’t believe the prices people wanted for a used one let alone new and used with three to four thousand miles on them were out of sight. I do not subscribe to one brand being that dominant over another and they all have their strengths and weaknesses but Can Am prices are over the top.

So I branched out to other brands and found my Griz at a area Yamaha/Polaris/Honda dealer up on the Iron Range. Looked at Suzuki and Arctic Cats but they are not big players around here and did not have a chance to ride one. I ended up buying a 2014 700 Griz in camo with EPS for 1500 dollars below retail with 100 hrs and 710 miles on the odometer. As a test to help seal the deal I drove a Polaris 550 with EPS with 1500 miles on it and I thought it was used pretty hard since it shaked and rattled so much. Did not like the loose feel to the power steering and seemed you were always correcting the steering as you rode. I also tried a Kodiak 550 but it had oversized wheels and rims and no EPS. To much effort to steer for me and it was not a good setup for the machine.

I purchased the 700 and have put over 125 miles on it riding on area trails. First day was a flat railroad bed out of Superior, WI so it was just a break in cruise for me. The second trip was up to Silver Bay, MN and a little more of a challenge. Trail was rocky with some wet areas but not much of a mud challenge. A great ride for scenery and enjoyment.

First impression is that I purchased a quad that fits me to a tee. Plenty of power for me, handles well in rocky conditions and on the trail, and fairly quiet under 25 mph. Seating position is nice (I am 6ft 4) and I should not have any problem riding all day. The quad is stock so tires will be upgraded in the near future.

My only gripe but I don’t think is a big deal at all is the engine popping when decelerating and coming to a stop, Up graded to higher octane and that cut it down to hardly noticeable. Another is the cladding attachments (Screw and Plastic backing) appear to be weak. Has anybody used a different attachment practice to hold together the panels?

Upgrades for me are tires and a rack to help carry fishing gear this winter. If anyone can recommend a gps for trail riding post it up and I will look into it. I practice the KISS method to toy management so I am not planning any internal upgrades to the clutch or engine.

Couldn’t be happier with my ride and will be looking to get my wife a ride this spring. Looking at a 700 Kodiak with EPS because of the great pricing they have on them. Who knows I may go the Grizzly route and she can have the old one.

It will be fun reading and interacting with you on this forum. Looks like a lot of useful info and passionate riders.

When I had my 2010 850 we did not ever hear of the timing key issue or really any motor problems with the 850s. I see a lot of threads about these types of things now. Did the problem start in 2011 when they moved production to Mexico?

Hey guys im new here and I have a question regarding my honda 185 3 wheeler. The 3 wheeler wouldn’t start last year so I took it to a mechanic he replaced carb fixed recoil and adjusted valves. It ran for about 30 minutes and suddenly died. This time i wanted to try and fix it so i started with cleaning carb (even though it was new lol) replaced spark plug, replaced fuel hose and added a inline fuel filter and made sure it was timed (it was). Tried starting it a couple ways no choke, choke, starter fluid in air box and some in the spark plug hole it didn’t start (didn’t pop at all). It has a Compression (alot) and i also replaced the starter coil. Im pretty sure it has weak spark any ideas to fix it?
Thanks!

Went riding this week at tug hill ny. All the gas stations sold non ethanol high test. Is that better to run in the quads? Can that be mixed with normal gas?

I recently purchased a 110 polaris for my daughter. I changed the oil last week and had her run it around the yard a while before a trip we were making. Everything up to this point about this quad has been great. Well after driving 5 hrs. We unload the trailer and began riding. Within a few minutes I could smell oil burning on this 110. It wasn’t leaking anything, oil level was perfect. But at times I could see blue smoke coming out the exhaust when go up hills. What would couse that? Quad ran fine besides that, no lose of power? Quad is very well taking care of and only driven on seasonal roads or logging roads.

Hey everyone. I am desperately in need of finding some good rear plastics to fit an 05 honda 400ex. Any help would be great. Thanks!