Upon close examination, Kawasaki has as almost as many models in the Big Bore Sport Utility category as Polaris, the leader in this segment with four big bore Sport Utes.
Kawasaki has continued to produce its KVF 700 Prairie using the potent 700 V-Twin mill and has priced this unit very competitively.
The new 650 Brute Force and the Brute Force 750 both occupy lots of share in the Big Bore sales game this year.
Last issue of All-Terrain Vehicle Magazine we published a photo of an impressive looking sport ATV from Dinli.
A couple of years ago, Dinli purchased the tooling for an advanced design 500cc, aluminum framed 4-wheeler with EFI from the now-defunct Cannondale Corporation.
Turns out, the photo we ran wasn’t of the Cannondale, but of a completely different sport bike Dinli is readying for production featuring an air/oil cooled 450cc 4-stroke, a tube steel frame and appears to be closer to a knock-off of Honda’s 400 EX.
The more sophisticated 500cc Cannondale developed wheeler is still scheduled for production and will likely see these shores within the next 24 months.
Our last poll asked you what 2006 pure sport ATV would be your first choice to buy. From a whopping 1,194 votes, the results came back as follows:
35.93% – Raptor 700 EFI (429 votes)
22.45% – Honda TRX 450 (268 votes)
17.00% – Yamaha YFZ 450 (203 votes)
16.92% – Polaris Predator (202 votes)
07.71% – QuadSport Z400 (92 votes)
To participate in our current poll as seen in the pages of All-Terrain Vehicle Magazine, scroll down the page.
Arctic Cat invested millions in a domestic ATV engine facility in its hometown of Thief River Falls, Minnesota about two years ago.
This summer, AC announced it will be going even deeper into the ATV (and snowmobile?) engine biz beginning almost immediately.
An $8 million (USD) engine plant is slated to be built in St. Cloud, Minnesota occupying 15 acres with an adjacent 40 acre vehicle test track.
Construction will begin early in 2006 and will be completed by next fall with engines flying out the doors early in 2007.
Check out this totally-custom-built-from-the-ground-up Subaru WRX powered ATV, the brainchild of New Zealander, Ken Brough.
This rocket ship of an ATV boasts a 2000cc turbocharged flat four with a 5-speed tranny, 4WD, street tires and is fully functional and where legal, can be ridden daily.
The only downside to this missile on wheels is Ken can’t legally ride it in his homeland. He is however considering bringing it to North America in hopes of finding legal road access here.
For more information visit stiatv.co.nz.
The biggest powersports industry news this summer was Polaris’ one quarter share purchase of KTM.
Polaris now owns twenty five percent of the Austrian motorcycle maker and has an agreement to buy the balance of the outstanding shares in two years time.
This move will empower Polaris dealers with off-road stable mates for Victory motorcycles, some pretty sophisticated 4-stroke single cylinder technology and the opportunity for Polaris distribution in European markets.
For KTM the deal offers instant access to the ATV marketplace with the world’s number two or three (depending on who’s counting) biggest seller, including access to both CVT transmission and IRS suspension technology.
Both companies are crowing it’s “business as usual” with no changes on the immediate horizon, but the reality of this amazing marriage may deliver some interesting slathering of orange paint on this side of the pond.
The Ontario Federation of All Terrain Vehicle Clubs (OFATV) is pleased to announce that the Central Ontario ATV Club is hosting the THIRD ANNUAL OFATV EASTER SEAL SOCIETY FUND RAISER EVENT.
DATE: Sunday, October 2, 2005
TIME: 9 A.M.
PLACE: Base Borden ‘Rod and Gun Club’ in Angus, ON
COST: $30.00 PER ATV
All ATV members and Non-members Welcome. Come and ride the Dunes, Forest and trails on the Military Base. Take Highway 90 from Barrie to Angus and follow signs to the Base or County Road 10 from Alliston or Stayner to Angus and follow signs
All ATV’s and riders must have the following:
* Valid Drivers Licence and obey the laws when driving
* Proof of Insurance
* Helmet
* Valid Licence Plate
* 4 or more wheels
* No alcohol on the machine anywhere
* No 2-up riding on the Base
Contact Tammie at 705-422-1408 for more information.
Press Release –
Yamaha YFZ450 racer Bill Ballance dared to do the impossible, and it paid off. Less than eight weeks after badly breaking his left ankle, Ballance rode to second place in the 11th round of the 2005 GNCC ATV series at the Unadilla Valley Sports Center near New Berlin, NY on Saturday, Sept. 24. It was a great finish, but the remarkable thing about it was that Ballance did it with seven screws still surgically implanted in his ankle!
This amazing test of mettle keeps the defending GNCC ATV champion and his YZF in the lead of the GNCC championship chase with two rounds remaining in the series. His nearest rival, Chris Borich, unfortunately did not finish the Unadilla round, allowing Ballance to pad his series lead by another 25 points. He now leads with 262 points to Borich’s 203 points. The advantage has come from winning, but also from consistency – so far Ballance has won five events but he has finished on the podium in nine out of 10 starts.
The weekend at the famous Unadilla motocross facility is the GNCC series’ only stop in the Northeast, after concentrating in the Midwest and South for most of the season. The event is a huge one – some 1000 amateur and professional riders, on both motorcycles and ATVs, were estimated to have entered.
Yamaha’s 2006 roll out was very impressive – particularly the all-new Raptor 700 EFI.
We were a little surprised Yamaha didn’t show a pumped up or re-done Grizzly.
Its no doubt the 660 Grizz is a huge seller. However, there’s room for Yamaha to market another big bore without undermining the current Grizzly.
We’ve had pretty clear indications Yamaha has not missed this point. If Yamaha doesn’t roll out an 800-900cc Mega-Grizz early next year, we’ll be pretty surprised.
Press Release –
Already a huge hit with 4×4 ATV owners since its introduction less than a year ago, the ITP C-Series Type 7 wheel line has grown longer with the addition of three all-new “Limited Edition” models.
The original Type 7’s bright machined finish with gunmetal gray accents has been joined by:
– A black powdercoat model with machined accents
– A highly polished model with black accents
– Our show-quality Type 7 with a dazzling chrome finish.
Personalized customization has never been easier!
All of the features and benefits realized in the first C-Series Type 7 can be found in these new models, including a rugged six-window design that’s manufactured through ITP’s high-tech Advancecast process.
The result is a highly durable wheel that’s significantly lighter than anything else in its class. Like all of ITP’s proven C-Series one-piece wheels, Type 7 Limited Editions are manufactured to rigorous QS9000 quality specifications—so you know they’ll perform as good as they look.
All three of these wheels are available in both 12×7 and 14×7 sizes. This sizing and a variety of bolt patterns mean all C-Series Type 7 wheels can be fitted to all late-model 4×4 and utility ATV models.
These wheels are also being offered in convenient pre-mounted tire/wheel kit form, using ITP’s radical new 12- and 14-inch Mud Lite XTR Extreme Terrain Radialtires.
Go to ITPtires.com.
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