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Bombardier Outlander 800 Carries Home The Trophy

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Our choice of a winner here asks the question: “Is power the most important criteria for winning this class?”.

Although many would disagree, common sense tells us power is the main ingredient driving buyers into the Big Bore category. Otherwise, given the current selection of competent 400 to 500cc ATV offerings, why would so many be buying something bigger?

If power is number one here, then we have to be highly critical of other features like ride, handling and the ATV’s load of amenities. The Outlander 800 is good enough to win this class even if it had less horsepower.

Its 4-wheel drive system is advanced, innovative and works impeccably. Its rear suspension is flat-out terrific and although its handling is not at the top of the heap, it delivers decent results for a large percentile of the public.

Its light spar frame, incredible Visc-Lock front differential, inboard brakes and unique rear suspension/sway bar design set it apart from the crowd with truly out-of-the-box thinking. Everything fades into the background when you squeeze the Outlander’s throttle.

There’s amazing power and torque available anywhere in its limitless power band. No Sport Utility ATV has ever performed like this one and it requires an intermediate to expertly skilled rider to harness it. This is the Porsche Cayenne of ATVs and it’s a winner.

Polaris 800 EFI Pays Back With Each Ride

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We have to give earnest kudos to the Polaris 800 EFI. It’s the kind of ATV you have to ride for an extended period of time to appreciate how well every aspect of its design delivers payback to its owner.

It’s the best overall riding ATV in the “Best Big Bore Sport Utility” class and has an awesome list of standard features.

Although its weight is off the dial, it feels relatively light and handling is not negatively affected.

With a better power-to-weight ratio, it would probably be our first choice in this category.

Tell us who you think should’ve won Best Pure Sport ATV in All-Terrain Vehicle Magazine’s 2006 Best In Class Awards. Scroll down the page and cast your vote!!

Sophisticated Suzuki KingQuad 700

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Suzuki’s KingQuad 700 offers lightweight mechanical sophistication that allows it to outperform every other single cylinder ATV in its class.

Although Suzuki hasn’t broken new ground with unique, never-been-tried-before technology, the execution of this ATV is outstanding and it delivers a riding experience tough to match.

Tell us who you think should’ve won Best Pure Sport ATV in All-Terrain Vehicle Magazine’s 2006 Best In Class Awards. Scroll down the page and cast your vote!!

Grizzly Still A Beast

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The Yamaha Grizzly 660 is the veteran in the Big Bore category, but still commands a lot of respect.

It could benefit from more power and the smoothness of fuel injection, but after four years its chassis design is still incredibly sound.

Ride and high-speed handling are very good and the elusive “fun factor” dominates because of its light weight and impressive low speed handling.

Our pilots did feel that dashboard ergos are due for change as the digital gauge is positioned way too low for quick glances on the trail and the Grizzly’s once sleek and class-leading appearance looks comparatively smaller when sidled up to other models in this category. We’d like to see Yamaha beef up this animal to bring out its true colors.

The Grizz still holds a place in our test riders’ hearts and the “quality” factor of this big-inch single shines at every turn of the trail.

Tell us who you think should’ve won Best Pure Sport ATV in All-Terrain Vehicle Magazine’s 2006 Best In Class Awards. Scroll down the page and cast your vote!!

Taken by Brute Force

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Power corrupts the All-Terrain Vehicle Magazine crew and the Kawasaki Brute Force 750 delivers it by the truckload.

Just to show how the “Best Big Bore Sport Utility” category is evolving though, our panel of judges had a tough time placing this relatively new Kawasaki on the finalist list.

The consensus was it needs some updates like EFI, a better diff locker and suspension recalibration to compete with the top three in this class.

It speaks strongly for the ATV marketplace and the pressure consumers are placing on manufacturers to deliver new and better products.

Tell us who you think should’ve won Best Pure Sport ATV in All-Terrain Vehicle Magazine’s 2006 Best In Class Awards. Scroll down the page and cast your vote!!

Poll Results

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Our last poll came right from the pages of All-Terrain Vehicle Magazine’s Best In Class issue.

We asked you Which PURE SPORT ATV deserved to win Best in Class based on the candidates from that category. The results were as follows:

35.17% – Suzuki Z400 QuadSport (249 votes)
21.61% – Yamaha Raptor 700R (153 votes)
18.93% – Polaris Outlaw 500 (134 votes)
13.84% – Honda TRX 450R (98 votes)
10.45% – Yamaha YFZ-450 (74 votes)

Participate in our latest poll! Scroll down the page to cast your vote!!

Crank Motorsports Give Lucky Canucks Fan Free ATV

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Press Release –

On December 9th, 2005 The Vancouver Canucks had their second overtime victory over The Ottawa Senators and Crank Motorsports made its presentation during the second intermission as Fin, the beloved Vancouver Canucks mascot slid onto the ice to give a lucky fan a free Unison 150cc Desert Cat.

The presentation lasted only a few moments, but was seen by thousands of spectators from all around. The exposure of the 150cc Desert Cat to the Vancouver Market went as well as it possibly could have, showing not only its cosmetic appeal, but also how easy the units are to operate.

The winners are avid ATV and powersport enthusiasts and Crank Motorsports wishes them good luck and happy riding!

Contact Crank Motorsports at (604) 779-9100 for more information about Unison’s ATV lineup.

BRP Heads South of The Border

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Bombardier ATV has announced it will be building all its formerly domestic ATV models (Outlanders and DS series) in Mexico.

The parent company, BRP, as a result of the acquisition of Johnson and Evinrude outboard engines, owns a state-of-the-art production facility in Mexico.

Currently, BRP builds one Sea-Doo model and some Johnson and Evinrude components in the plant. This move is the first time Rotax engines will be built outside of Austria.

The announcement noted no jobs will be lost in Quebec or Austria as a result of the move.

Vee Twin Revolution

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Seems industry observers are agreeing increased demand for Big Bore engines in the Sport-Ute segment will require manufacturers not currently offering twin cylinder motors to do just that.

With the reality of a 1000cc ATV not as far fetched as it was two years ago, what is the ideal twin cylinder configuration? If twin cylinder engines needed to deliver the kind of power buyers are willing to pay for, it’s looking an awful lot like a Vee-Twin world out there.

Why is the Vee configuration so suitable for ATV power? The width necessary to accommodate CVT transmissions demands a skinny motor. The V-twin design keeps the engine as narrow as a single cylinder to squeeze the engine and a CVT between the rider’s legs.

Clearly Polaris has done an admirable job with its parallel twin but these ATVs can’t afford to get any wider. Packaging realities will likely increase the use of the venerable Vee-Twin design.

A Bigger King

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Is it time for another King Quad? We wouldn’t be too shocked to see another variant of the 700 King Quad come along next year with a bigger displacement mill.

In fact, since it’s questionable whether Suzuki will continue offering the Kawasaki-based Twin Peaks next year now that the product sharing agreement between the two Japanese companies is on hold, we think it might be time for a big Suzuki EFI twin.