[Dixondodge]

Like it says I'm a potential buyer, I want everyone's honest opinion and thoughts. I have a good idea but want to do my due diligence. So I'm a rancher here in Oregon and I do all my checking cattle and gathering off a quad. I do all my hauling and pulling with my commander. So the bike would be used for just riding, and hauling two cattle dogs or the occasional bags of salt mix or drip torches. All my heavy hauling pulling it is not used. We live in hill country, so a lot of the ground I'm running on isn't even, and usually on side hills. With all that being said, how tippy are outlanders? How's their performance on off trail riding? Does anyone use them in a similar capacity as to what I want to? Any opinions, thoughts, observations are greatly appreciated.

 

[VenomLightning]

First of all welcome, I had an Outty XT before and a Grizzly before that and the Outty had much better handling and the center of gravity was better than my Grizzly, always felt more stable especially on hills and uneven terrain. Can't go wrong with an Outty, best of luck in your decision.

 

[Dixondodge]

First of all welcome, I had an Outty XT before and a Grizzly before that and the Outty had much better handling and the center of gravity was better than my Grizzly, always felt more stable especially on hills and uneven terrain. Can't go wrong with an Outty, best of luck in your decision.

Thanks, that's good to know. If the stability is there, I'd love to take advantage of the suspension and power. Long days on a bike riding with a solid rear axle will rattle your teeth out by the end of the day! I'd like to be able to soak up a little more of the terrain. Thanks again for your input.

 

[Rockhead]

Like VenomLightning, I had a Grizzly 700 before my Outlander Max. However, when I had my Grizz, it always had wider offset wheels and bigger tires. I had no issues whatsoever in off camber situations. When I got my Max, riding the same trails, I nearly had it on its side a few times with the stock rubber and rims. I have since put wider offset wheels and wider rubber on, and now it feels extremely stable. Climbing, descending, off camber, I don't think there is a better bike out there for that than a Max Outlander with wide offset wheels. 4+3 I believe

 

[elkivory]

I've had a Yamaha Kodiak, Honda rancher, Kawasaki Brute Force. All my riding has been recreational in the mountains in Colorado. Also had a Rhino SxS. If I was only riding single I would not go with the MAX just due to handling in tight places. I have also been frustrated with all the plastic you have to remove for simple maintenance. Changing oil should be 15 to 30 minutes but on outlander max took me about 2 hours and potential is there of damaging plastic getting it off. My opinion is that is ridiculous. Of all my atv's probably liked the rancher best for one person.
Just be sure whatever you get it has power steering. I have a 2014 Outlander MAX

 

[Dixondodge]

Thanks for all the insight so far. I think today I'm gonna run by dealer and pick his brain too.

 

[Cobyfiji]

the reason my dad bought a out and we are now a can am family is cause his buddy uses the for cattle and such, and they swore by them, and they have proven to be right...these machines are epic

 

[Dixondodge]

the reason my dad bought a out and we are now a can am family is cause his buddy uses the for cattle and such, and they swore by them, and they have proven to be right...these machines are epic

Thanks, that's the kind of info I'm looking for that's very true to my situation. Thanks

 

[Deadman]

If you just want a slow rugged machine that you can't kill, I would honestly look at a Honda. The Renegade will kill the Honda in performance, but it will also need some TLC down the road for maintenance, etc. The Hondas run forever, have little power and rarely break, so it depends what you are looking for.
I'd never buy a Honda because I'm all about performance and Can-am leads that pack.

 

[jmason]

Can Ams are fun machines but they could use a lot of improvements in the reliability category. I bought my Renegade for trail riding and I have fun with it, but Im not so sure I would want to rely on it day in and day out. Theres a lot of repetitive problems with these machines, and in 1000 miles of ownership Ive experienced quite a few of them.

 

[Dixondodge]

We've run Hondas for a long time, and the they are reliable as far as running when you need them to. The thing I've found with Hondas though is over the years all other companies are advancing their platforms, while Honda stays majorly unchanged. Sure they tweak their trans a little here and there but honestly those changes haven't advanced the machine any. The other thing I find is, the performance of the Hondas wear down over time. My current foreman just lugs down at the tiniest little incline unless your in the lowest gear. Which when your chasing down a wild @$& cow that can be frustrating. I know that Hondas are definitely the "ol reliable" way to go. I'm just looking into what my options are. Thanks for all your input keep it coming!

 

[rustyshakelford]

We use ours like you mentioned. Some things we've noticed are these are very maintenance intensive. I don't know if the other manufactures are like this but I think my outlander needs 3 servicing in the first 100 hrs. At 10 hrs I have to change the oil I'm the motor and diffs. Besides that we love ours.

Brett

 

[Deadman]

We use ours like you mentioned. Some things we've noticed are these are very maintenance intensive. I don't know if the other manufactures are like this but I think my outlander needs 3 servicing in the first 100 hrs. At 10 hrs I have to change the oil I'm the motor and diffs. Besides that we love ours.

Brett

When you make big power they need maintenance. Thats why the other manufacturers don't recommend as many service intervals. The Hondas for say can run a lifetime on an oil change because they don't make any power! lol (sarcasm)

 

[A10ThunderboltII]

I have also been frustrated with all the plastic you have to remove for simple maintenance. Changing oil should be 15 to 30 minutes but on outlander max took me about 2 hours and potential is there of damaging plastic getting it off. My opinion is that is ridiculous.

ADD another TWO hours to change the fluids in the FRONT & REAR DIFF and gearbox:th_smiliepullhair:

HARD SHIFTING: consistently for 2 1/2 years since new. Left at dealership 3 different times for up to a whole week but no improvement:th_smiliepissed:

To also QUOTE ROCK:
When I got my Max, riding the same trails, I nearly had it on its side a few times with the stock rubber and rims. FOR SURE!

SUSPENSION: I find the stock Outlander suspension TOO SOFT, even on the highest setting. On sidehills, one of the rear tires is often lifting off the ground and the "fronts" aren't stiff enough to stop them from "rolling under" and giving you the feeling that its GOING TO ROLL

With that and the "impossible" MAINTENANCE problem(s) listed above, I can definitely say: I wouldn't buy another or suggest any of my friends or Clubmembers do so either. Dunno what I would buy, but NOT a CANAM.

Many members here have found various FIXES for most of these problems but all involve removing and throwing away STOCK PARTS and paying for more suitable AFTERMARKET replacements.
For the $$$ pricetag of CAN AM, you/we shouldn't have to be BETA TESTERS and have to throw a bunch more money at them to make them perform STOCK as would be expected for a new top level machine.

DEALER service often sucks or is non existent and there's no way I know of to get a GOOD ONE for sure vs a Crappy dealer/service outfit.

Good luck.

 

[bad23]

We run a Can Am Outlander 500 Max Xt, and it hasn't let us down yet, despite a rough life. It has mostly been used to drag a brush on a footballfield, and the brush is pretty heavy. We now have about 2500 hours on it, and it still runs like a dream, and it has only been serviced three times.
So my expirience with Can Am's is that they are reliable machines, very handy, and with power whenever you want it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[idahoarcher]

I just did the 10 hour sevice. Replaced all fluids and filters and adjusted the valves. It took me 3 hours. Now that i have done it once next time will be much quicker. Probably 30 mins for oil and filter change. Power tools speed up the process immeasurably. Been a polaris owner all my life and after 20 hours on my outlander 650 max xt i dont think i will ever go back.

 

[Dixondodge]

I just serviced my commander today, the first time I did it it took me a while. But now that I've done a couple services it's easy to me. So maintaining the bike isn't a big problem to me. Thanks for all your input everyone, keep it coming