Back in 1997 I bought a new Polaris Sportsman 500. It' s been pretty reliable so far.Polaris did replace the drive belt and cover because of the belt slapping the cover.It still does when first cranking until I give it a little throttle.Most of the 500' s have a knocking pinging sounds. I checked with several 500 owners, Polaris dealers and the Polaris Factory. This is a normal sound ,something to do with the gear on the oil pump.Approx 235 hours my tie rod ends were worn out.By the way they are very expensive little mother' s to buy.The Polaris has several grease zerks(fittings) and some are very hard to get to. I found taking the rear wheels off helps allot. The oil plug is a bear to get to. I' ve only used Polaris fluids since I got it. Their synthetic oil is no bargain @5.00 a quart. The oil filters are right at 10 bucks ea.I' m by no means a mechanic.I' m sure even a good mechanic would have his hands full working on these.Another thing I would recommend is since the Polaris 500' s weigh right at 700 pounds install a winch.I buired mine once in DEEP mud. There was no physical way to get it out. I had to get a friend with his tractor to pull that beast out. The next week there was a Warn 2000 winch on the front of it.This Polaris will probably out last me ,the little bit I use it. It still has less than 300 hours on it.If I were looking for a new 4 wheeler I would check the Honda' s out first.Overall I would rate my Sportsman very good,but there' s room for improvements.I have mine set up the way I want it and severs me well during hunting season,with no intention of getting rid of it anytime soon.
Ruger Redhawk