has anyone seen the new polaris sportsman yet. they came out with a new 850 efi xp sportman and i checked it out on the polaris website and it looks sweet . wondering what everyone else thinks of how well this machine will be ..

alot of changes,new front suspension,new rad,power steering,sideways mounted engine,redesigned rear susp.claimed 70hp to rear wheels,i cant wait to get on one,all of the same features on the new 550 sportsman also.

I rode the 850 XP yesterday on a Polaris dealer only ride. Wow is all I can say, there is nothing that will touch the quality of ride and comfort of this new unit. Be it the 550 XP or the 850 XP Polaris has once again rasied the bar for the compition and is leaving the rest of the industry in the dust! I rode ATV's from Yami, Bomer, Handa, Kawi, and Sue, and other Polaris ATV's as well and the only thing that touches the new XP's is the other Polaris ATV's. The new XP suspension is tuneable to the riders style with adjustable shocks FRONT and REAR and the unit also features an new style drive train with "old school" snowmobile technology and clutching.

If you are presented the opertunity to drive an Polaris Sportsman XP, do so, especially if you currently are riding another brand, the ride, power, and feel of this unit is second to none. As for 2009 ATV's if Polaris doesn't build it you don't need it!

Hope they improve the quality of there wheelers as they are bottom of the barrel when it comes to reliability. Still an ugly front end on them and way to much plastic on the racks. Cat will own this machine in the 550 and with the thunderkitty to the 850. Game over!

Artic cat owns a whopping 2% market share in the ATV market and I also heard that they are in financial trouble especially on the ATV side of the company. I rode a 2008 Kitty 500/550 yesterday and couldn't wait to get off it.

Polaris has sold one million Sportsman 500's they were the first manufacturer to come out with IRS, a fully automatic trans, and has the best 4 wheel drive system on the market, hands down. The last manufacturer I worry about selling ATV's against is Cat.

The best line of the day yesterday was from one of the Boy's from Rosou, he told us that he and many other Polaris employees have alot af freinds that work for Cat and they ride sleds and atv's together alot throught the course of the year. During the Course of the winter they swap sleds all the time. during the summer the cat guys want to swap ATV's and the Pol guys Don't.

Its just like anything else you have to drive it to beleive it! I drove them all yesterday, and found out the reason why Polaris is the hardest working longest lasting ATV on the market.

Obviously a Polaris dealer himself.

From reading this post and watching other competitions on quads... Why is it that they never put any other quad against arctic cat?
Im not to brand loyal saying its cause that they know they cant win but is that it?!

CAT! Fastest growing ATV lineup and much higher than 2% so get your shit straight. Cat has not even released the 550 yet so for you to run one would be impossible. Polaris. Cant drive them in water more than 6" deep cause the belt will get wet and slip and then the starters will rust up (Neibor has one and has said it is the last polaris he will ever own) and plastic racks that cant take any abuse. Junk! Plain and Simple!

That would explain I was at a DEALER ONLY RIDE. While there I talked with many other MULTI LINE dealers and we all agreed that with product from all manufacturers there the best ride of the day was on a Polaris! One of the guys said he was at a dealer only Bomber ride and they had every manufacturer ther but Polaris. Take that for what its worth.

To be 100% honest until yesterday, I thought there wasn't much difference from one manufacturer to the next. Today I know I was wrong!

I won't disagree with that, but your line that "Polaris is the hardest working, longest lasting ATV on the market" still has me laughing!

Sure is funny when I talk to my buddies at Cat that are engineer's they are able to wreck all of the Polaris machines they test against the Cat machines, and they usually do it within the first day! Polaris isn't even in the game, the only reason they sell well is that they have a lower sticker price than most in their class. Oh and get it straight, they supposedly have 70 hp at the crank, not the rear wheels.

~ Fast

They need to get rid of those junk plastic racks. The "Worlds toughest" atv is all plastic and still weighs more than the competition, wtf??? I have ridden a few polaris atv's in the past and they all seem underpowered, well everything seems underpowered now, after riding my tcat

zl600,

Its interesting that you rip lane raker when he compares Cat to Polaris. Lane Raker never said he rode the 550. He said he rode all the other brands. If its not released yet, then it isnt made yet and therefore, it cant be ridden yet. logical? In the same token, you havent ridden either of the XP's yet (unless you're a Polaris dealer) either so how can you say that Cat "will own this machine in the 550" WHEN YOU HAVENT DRIVEN EITHER???

I am not a Polaris dealer. But you can bet I will drive one the minute I can.... and then form an opinion.... NOT BEFORE..

Oh an BTW, I can wreck any brand ATV you bring me so dont think the engineers at Cat are something special

Good post Lane Raker

Cause it is a Polaris and I have run enough of them over the years to know that they are building some of the worst machines out there and have a neibor with one with 1400 miles and it is already on its last leg and has never seen water besides a mud puddle. JUNK

I have that problem too.

I'm wondering what trail systems you can ride the big bore quads like this and the T-Cat. In MN if the engine size is more than 800cc it is not classified as an ATV. Does that make it a OHV?

reaching!!!

Can't wait for these!!! I already put one on order with my dealer, now just got to tell the wife I have I bought another quad..

Just my opinion but i think it is a bad idea to purchase somethign before it really has been proven a couple months after the release. Exspecially sence polaris has been known to have first year model bugs.(Not trying to start a fight, but they have had problems with atv's in the past, but i do hope the best to those who purchase them)

I guess me and my buds must of bought the only dependable and water proof ones that Poo makes give it rest zl you obviously have no idea what your talking about when it comes to quads ........ and maybe your neighbour should learn about the basic maintance that has to be done to any brand.


2500+ miles on my 06 800 Sporty and the only issue I've had was a broken motor mount the first week I got it, dealer put on the updated one and it's been flawless since. MY sons 00 250 Trailblazer hasn't seen a dealer since the day we bought it, dead nuts reliable. I ride with buddy's that have every other brand, and I can honestly say the Poo crowd has had less issues then all the others.

I am with you Nutter, I have owned a 2001 500ho sportsman, 05 800 sportsman and a 06 magnum 330 and have not had lick of issues with any of them. If you do proper maintenance on the machines you should not have any issues. A buddy of mine has a 2000 magnum 500 with 5000 miles and the only thing he ever replaced was a cv boot with regular maintenance. I GUESS POLARIS PRODUCTS ARE NOT AS BAD AS SOME PEOPLE THINK!!!! I have had friends that own bombies, kawi, and suzukis and when we go out they want to ride mine more than theirs.WTF????

my buddy has a 98 polaris 500 it has 10,500 miles on it. and it finally has engine issues.. but the machine is still solid and as soon as it fixed wil be going again..

That's funny, my 02' Sportsman with over 4000 rough miles on it has only had oil changes and a rear rubber boot in 6 years, plus it has no problem in mud and water up to the lights! maybe your buddy needs to learn how to ride!

i run my 04 600 twin in the water up to the seat and never even replaced a belt in 2000 miles.oil and filter only.oh ya 1 cv boot. rt.front

Just drove the new 09 XP 550 and WOW I was impressed. I can not wait to get my XP 850!