WOW, Got more people riding these things than I thought. I am purchasing the A.T.V. for trail riding and for hunting mostly.I have ridden dirt bikes and street bikes and the idea of going fast at this point in my life is not appealing, since I have to go to work on Monday!
The machine appears to have plenty of power for pulling the hills of the Adirondack's and the 11" of ground clearance is killer for going through the woods.I rode a buddy's machine a couple of weeks ago and went through snow like it was not there. The four wheel drive system works very well, the machine felt like it had an excellent foot print and the rack's are big enough to carry a lot of gear.The automatic transmission is great for the hills with mud, because the machine is already on the pipe. If shifting a standard, the chances of getting stuck or high centered due to the loss of momentum is much greater.Eventually (more like next winter) I will probably add a plow to it for snow removal.I certainly will appreciate not having to drag deer through the woods anymore, as I am getting to the age where people die of heart attacks suddenly from this sh**t.The Honda was a nice machine as well, but it is not a true 4 wheel drive system.
X-Kill, from the literature I read , the difference in the 500 to the 500 HO is a bigger carburetor throat and different camshaft. You might want to see if those parts are interchangeable and save up for those go fast parts.
The funny thing about this, is that I just wanted a 4x4.I went to look and found that the smaller ones had no independent rear suspension, the Sportmen 400 was the correct machine for me with the correct options. Well by God, its only a $500.00 price differnce from the 400 to the 500ho. Well while I'm at it, might as well add the rack's tube bumpers and the next thing you know, I am pricing out a way more expensive machine then I had anticapated. This is the same thing that happened when I started buying Ar-15's. I don't think the the wife is going to believe me when I tell her that one is pre-ban and the other is a post-ban and I really do need both of them.
Thank's for all of the replies guy's , you really are a wealth of knowledge on this board.
Jeff