I voted Honda, but really the answer is anything but a Polaris. My dad’s family has always had nothing but Hondas and we’ve always had great luck. My dad currently has a 2000 Rancher 300 and a 2001 Foreman 400 that he bought from his dad. His dad has owned those, as well as a couple other Honda fourwheelers over the years. He ended up switching momentarily to a Polaris Rzr, but wised up and quickly dumped it after seeing the constant shop bills they tend to rack up. He now has a Honda big red side by side and has had great luck with it. Dad’s brother also owns several Honda 4 wheelers and has great luck. I just got a 1985 Honda Fourtrax TRX250 from my dad, that he got from his uncle, who purchased it new in 1985. It’s been meticulously maintained, and although it’s obviously an older machine, it runs like a top and shifts great. My father in law has a couple of early 2000’s Honda ranchers that he’s had great luck with as well.
Mom’s family had always been big on the Polaris machines. But they’re a constant bag of maintenance and seem to be more akin to a ticking time bomb than anything else. We’ve always been able to easily maintain our Hondas at home, but it seems like my maternal grandpa and uncle are always talking about taking the Polaris machines into the shop to get work done or to get a tune up. Couple that with the higher up front cost and it’s a no brainer to me.
Our Hondas have been as high as 12k feet and much lower as well and run like tops no matter the elevation (all ours are carbureted and not fuel injected). They fire up with the pull/kick starts almost as easy as the electric starts, are easy and cost effective to maintain, and they just flat work. They’re not fast, they’re not flashy, they’re not sexy, but they just work. They’ve hauled out countless animals and have had many trail miles on dirt, mud, snow, sand, rocks, and even asphalt. They run the same at zero degrees as they do at 100, and have never let us down. Call me a fanboy, I’ll never own anything but Honda ATV’s.
My buddy like canams as they have a lot of after market accessories. if ever looking for tracks go at least a 700.
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