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Offline caveeagle

New Here, Still shopping for ATV/UTV
« on: September 21, 2015, 12:27:54 PM »
I started (seriously) shopping for a new ATV/UTV this past weekend.  After some web searching I visited three dealers near me.  I had might sights on a Polaris Sportsman 570 X2.  We stepped into the nearby Arctic Cat dealer and saw our first CRMoto products.  Honestly, they looked very impressive based on price and features. 

We went on to look at the Polaris and Honda offerings.  Honestly, on sat afternoon, I was VERY closed to buying.  My indecision about which model was what put me off to do some more research.

Seems like a fair amount of brand haters throwing mud against CFMoto,  with a few horror stories thrown in for good measure.  One of the other ATV forums, did not even surface up a reply on the CFMoto topic I posted for feedback.

So if anyone is here and watching the forum.  Try to talk me into (or out of) buying one of these.

Right now my favorites are: the CFORCE 800EPS  and the UFORCE 800.   I like the idea of a V-Twin motor, although I have not ruled out the smaller 500 ATV.

Of course, my concerns are quality, parts availability.

Mark
Mark

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Offline Jason

Re: New Here, Still shopping for ATV/UTV
« Reply #1 on: September 21, 2015, 01:48:13 PM »
Well from the standpoint of a guy who bought and sold a ZForce 800EX EPS and the a RZR S 900 I can say that the ZForce is a very capable machine.  It's not going to blow you away at any one thing, but it'll do a little bit of everything well.  The overall fit and finish is leaps and bounds ahead of the other Chinese competition from what I've read (I can't personally attest to that) and they are packed with standard features.

Looking back at my ownership experience here are my gripes:

1)  Routine service is a royal pain in the a$$. It should not be that difficult to access the oil dipstick and fill the case.
2)  The air filter and intake needs to be rerouted so that it's more accessible to clean the filter and so the intake isn't circulating hot air (see @NMKawierider post about his solution).
3)  The more upright driver positioning leaves some to be desired.  I'm tall (6'2") and the seat isn't adjustable, save some minor seat base adjusting.  Putting my foot to the accelerator required me to do some leg manipulating to get comfortable due to the close proximity of the pedal to the center console.  It's most noticeable on long ride when your shin starts to get fatigued from holding your foot in a dorsiflexed position.
4)  Aftermarket accessories are developing, but they're still not prevalent.
5)  Resale market value is very limited and you won't receive much on a trade value.  I happened to luck into a private party sale.

All in all, do I regret having a CF Moto?  Absolutely not. They're a good buy if you're looking for a budget-friendly and capable machine. What ultimately led me to selling was an opportunity to not lose out too much on resale value and being able to get into a RZR that I had tested from a friend who also owns one.

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Offline caveeagle

Re: New Here, Still shopping for ATV/UTV
« Reply #2 on: September 21, 2015, 02:24:42 PM »
Jason, thanks for the feedback.    Is the oil fill issue just on the ZForce Model? 

I am still trying to make up my mind on whether to get the UForce 800 or the CForce 800. 

I was originally interested in the CForce 500 just because its seemed like an incredible deal.  Looking closer at the 800, makes me think it would be much better for my needs.

My property is relatively flat, but we have lots of trees, and will need to do some clearing and pulling branches and logs around to improve the property.

I don't know if we will do any real trail riding.  Mostly we just need a good mule to get around our 8.5 acres and maybe get some work done. 

I am much more concerned about quality and maintenance than brand, image, or resale value.

I noticed the 800 has a wet clutch.  Is that a big advantage? anything other reason to go with the Uforce vs the Cforce model?

Mark

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Offline BearChow

Re: New Here, Still shopping for ATV/UTV
« Reply #3 on: September 22, 2015, 01:12:09 PM »

Seems like a fair amount of brand haters throwing mud against CFMoto,  with a few horror stories thrown in for good measure.  One of the other ATV forums, did not even surface up a reply on the CFMoto topic I posted for feedback.

So if anyone is here and watching the forum.  Try to talk me into (or out of) buying one of these.

Right now my favorites are: the CFORCE 800EPS  and the UFORCE 800.   I like the idea of a V-Twin motor, although I have not ruled out the smaller 500 ATV.

Of course, my concerns are quality, parts availability.

Mark

I wouldn't worry too much about brand-haters.  You can google whatever brand name you want, followed by the word "problems", and you'll get pages full of people telling you how awful that brand is, and how they'll never buy one again.  Literally every brand.  I can't think of a single one I haven't heard people hate on before. 

The question is, is the company invested in the future of their product?  Have they spent a lot of money to make sure that they'll be around for the long haul?  CF Moto has spent a lot of money on their factory, and they own their US distributor, it's not some flaky third party with nothing to lose if the US market doesn't pan out. 

The build quality seems to be as good as a Polaris or Arctic Cat, I've got nearly 1200 miles on my machine, and it runs fine.  It could do with some tweaks to the filtering, but nothing's perfect.

I think the biggest thing to worry about is your dealer.  A quality dealer will make or break the experience, regardless of who built the machine.  Check around, see what people's experience has been with the dealer you're thinking about buying from.  Do they stand behind their work?  Do they get to it in a timely manner?  Or do they have sleazy salespeople and incompetent mechanics?

For the work you're describing, I'd probably go with the U Force if I went the CF Moto route, just for the tilting cargo bed.  They're coming out with a 500 option in that chassis as well, so that may be something to look at.