I am looking to purchase my First ATV for the ranch, anyone have any recommendations on brands and what I should be looking for power wise. I hunt mostly flat prairie areas. Thanks

Polaris all the way. Most of the major brands you probably won't be too disappointed. For average use a 400cc will probably do everything you want. I like 4x4 as well. 2x4s can go most places but 4x4 is nice when you need it. Be prepared to turn loose some green though

If you check with all of the independent repair shops, the 2 brands that they recomend most of the time will be the Honda & Yamaha. I have a Yamaha Grizzly 660 that has been very good for me, I purchased it used and I have only had one repair done on it and that was a voltage regulator, which I did after I purchsed the reg. online.

Honda Foreman

Honda Rancher

I would look at a side by side UTV like the Polaris Ranger. They make them in smaller engine sizes that will cost about the same as a high end ATV. Much nicer in that you have a seat to sit on and can carry passengers and cargo in the bed.

i'm in the market soon myself. I have owned 3 atv's in my life and all i really do with them now is deer lease stuff and trail ride. here is what i've come up with.

Honda or Yamaha. Polaris has a good soft ride and they have started making better bikes as of 08 and up from my understanding, but i'm not looking at them. Yamaha makes great true (locking) 4x4 bike and are very strong. the motors are great and they have very very few issues. Yamaha does not have a fuel injected model under a 550cc motor, and it is out of my price range. Honda motors can't be beat, but they are only really a 3x4 bike as the front is limited slip just like my chevy Z71. The hondas are now fuel injected except for the rubicon. I am going to buy either a rancher or foreman becasue they are fuel injected and within my price range. the fuel injection is key for me because mine might sit for 3 months without being ran and i have had problems with the carb gumming up in the past. Good luck.

Thanks

Thanks for the advise

Use sta-bil if you're going to let it sit. Use the marine sta-bil if you have ethanol fuel.

Best deals I've seen on Hondas the last few years has been H&W in Marshall.

X2

Just bought one last week. Got a new 2011 for a great deal bc shops are trying to clear inventory. Camo Honda rancher 4x4 EPS/ES for under $5000.

I recommend getting electric shift/automatic bc it is really hard to shift with your foot if you've got waders or big boots on.

Keep in mind that the ATV market has since "evolved" into ATV's and utility vehicles, the first true utility vehicle being the Kawasaki Mule. Not sure how most people now differentiate between the two, but the core difference is that utility vehicles like the Mule have one or more bench seats, while a conventional ATV has the traditional motorcycle-type seat. Before the Mule came along, ATV's were divided between those for work (utility), and those more for speed (sport).

Today's utility vehicles include some type of rear bed (many with dumping capability), as compared to front and rear racks common to ATV's. Which one is best for you depends greatly on what type of work it will see.

What I find kind of amusing is that utility vehicles just seem to get bigger and will eventually (if not alrerady) become as large as a standard-size jeep. Wasn't it the smaller size of ATV's that started the whole thing?

One person says "Polaris all the way", I say I owned a Polaris ATV and will never buy another Polaris produce. To each their own but the Polaris I had was the coldest natured, hardest starting engine of any kind I have owned in my 64 years.

Yamaha all the way!

This no question....i love Yamaha but your not going to find better than a foreman for your money

And believe they run just over 5k.

The only reason polaris should ever pop in your head is there Ranger UVs...other than that never

No reason to get a bigun either the 350 has more than enough a$$

all i own our Polaris. IMO they have the best auto transmission on the market. I know they have the highest clearance. But, they are all pretty good I am sure. You usually get what you pay for.
The best advice I can give is if you can't get a farm exception, go to Oklahoma to buy one. The only costs involved outside of negotiated price is $12 acq. fee. Texas will kill you with taxes and fees and title , etc. I bought my new 2011 Polaris 400HO for about $4500 out the door last year.

My buddy just bought a 2012 Polaris 500 Ranger for $8800 out the door too.

BTW, I own 4 atv's and 1 side by side (UTV). The UTV gets used more than the other 4 combined.

I have used 4 different Rangers over the years and 2 Mules. Put an average of 100 hrs per month on one. Power, speed and ride of the Ranger hands down. New Mules are built well and easy to service and own but they are rough and slow.

I keep hearing "but the Mules are slow", if you are buying it for utility and hunting, why do you need speed? I will take functional over speed every time.

Slow depends on the size of the ranch. Rangers covered 5100 acres and the Mules about 1,000 acres. Just depends on how much work you want done in a day if you are using it as a work vehicle. I hunt on 70,000 acres now and I need the speed/power of the Ranger but the ride is key selling point. At the end of a 11 hr day hunting out a Mule or Ranger you will understand the choice that is made.
I will also add I have worked off a ATV and it is ok for a few hours here and there but not day in and day out work. Given the choice I will always take a UTV.

There was a time when Polaris would not even offer an extended warranty on their ATV's. Polaris dealers were forced to cover this fact by offering third-party warranties on their units. Now if the manufacturer doesn't believe their products are reliable, why should the buyer? I agree with those who say that Artic Cat is the only snowmobile manufacturer to produce reliable ATV's. And much of that credit goes to the Suzuki engines they put into them.