Dave Beckstrom

    When Bombardier announced the new DS650 Sport Quad, the market reacted with a tremendous amount of enthusiasm and excitement. One look at this classy quad was all it took to be hooked. The petite raked front fenders, low profile rear tires and massive cubic displacement spoke to the heart of sport quad enthusiasts everywhere. Even while sitting still, this sweet looking beauty seemed to simply shout speed and handling. Like many of you, we couldn't wait to put it through the paces and see what this sleek newcomer had to offer.

"Even while sitting still, this sweet looking beauty seemed to simply shout speed and handling."

    ATVConnection.com Magazine opted to push the envelope inorder to bring you something different. We figured the dirt and dune tests were getting a bit tedious. While others turned tail and headed south for the winter we packed up our cold weather booties and headed north to Iron River, Wisconsin. Iron River is a favorite of Snowmobilers and winter ATVers alike.
       Located less than 25 miles south of mighty Lake Superior, the region is crisscrossed with dual-purpose trails, which can be ridden virtually year-round. During the winter months, the groomed snowmobile/ATV trails offer fast riding where riders entertain themselves by power-sliding through the corners and then hammering the throttle down the long straights. Wisconsin, unlike some States, openly welcomes ATVers by providing routes into the smaller towns where a rider may obtain gas and food without violating traffic laws. In fact, it's not unusual for blacktop roads to be marked as legal ATV routes! Wisconsin is most definitely an ATVers haven and should serve as a role model for other States.

"The trails were described as being suitable only for a Jetski."

We decided to schedule our DS650 ride test to coincide with Minnesota's Washington Ramsey County Wheelers annual ATV club ride. The annual ride typically draws over 100 riders, many of whom travel from distant states in order to participate. Unfortunately, due to heavy rains the week before the ride, nearly all of the snow cover on the trails disappeared. What remained was a nasty mixture of water, slush and mud. As a result, just 3 days before the ride, Wisconsin closed the southern part of the trail system that included a lake crossing which was no longer safe. The club cancelled the "official" club ride due to trail conditions. The trails were described as being suitable only for a Jetski. Perfect.  Early Saturday morning found us unloading the DS650 and preparing to ride. A few other hearty souls joined us and our small group now totaled six hard-core riders. Climbing aboard the DS650 the first thing we noticed was this machine was very comfortable to sit on. Unlike the Kawasaki Mojave and the Honda 300EX, which left taller riders feeling somewhat cramped, the DS650 provided very comfortable leg and seat positioning. The handlebars sat at a comfortable height and the plush seat contributed to the all around quality feel of the machine. Operating the choke lever mounted on the carburetor, while sitting in the seat, was another matter. After fumbling around for a while trying to "feel" the location of the choke lever, we simply climbed off the machine and bent down where we could finally see it. A handlebar-mounted choke control would be a welcome addition as the carburetor is tucked in rather tightly under the largish gas tank.
        A twist of the key brought the respectable sounding engine to life and a few minutes later we were cruising across the hotel parking lot towards the trailhead. A quick blip of the throttle combined with a jerk of the handlebars, surprisingly, did not result in the front-end lofting. A few more short tests on the blacktop confirmed that we were unable to loft the front-end without Herculean effort. Lofting a sport quad's front tires can be useful when approaching water or small logs on the trail. However, if you're running paddles in the dunes keeping the front-end planted on terra firma is often a problem. Therefore the DS650 may prove to be an exceptional dune machine!        Although winter riding is not the segment at which the DS650 is marketed, it's important to note that here in the north virtually every sport quad on the market is commonly used during the winter. People ride what they own. How does the DS650 compare in the snow to other sport quads? Read on.
     Our group of six riders shot down the corridor (a railroadbed converted to trail) towards the trails accessing the more scenic, wooded, areas surrounding Iron River. Our plan was to head towards a restaurant at the Valhalla recreation area. It appeared that we would arrive around noon, which by then would mean we would likely be ready to grab some food and it would also provide our only opportunity to gas-up on the trail.        The DS650 quickly took the lead and left the two Scramblers, the Warrior, a Polaris Sportsman 500 and the Honda 300EX sweating to catch up. The DS650 felt very strong, with the exception of a small hesitation in the middle of the power-band. The engine had not thoroughly warmed up thus the hesitation was not yet a concern. Braking felt very solid and predictable while the DS650's suspension did a terrific job of soaking up the bumps. The transmission felt solid and the manual clutch operated smoothly and reliably. Overall, the ergonomics felt good, and we found ourselves liking this machine-especially the powerful engine torque simply waiting to be tapped at will! In these trail conditions 4th gear offered plenty of performance, but it was comforting to know that another gear was available if needed.
   

"Though packed, the snow on the trail was somewhat soft and it was now that a problem in the DS 650's handling department became apparent."

   After regrouping at an intersection, we turned off the main corridor and onto a side trail leading towards Valhalla. The shade offered by the towering pine and red oak trees must have protected the snow cover to some degree as this trail had noticeably more snow. Though packed, the snow on the trail was somewhat soft and it was here that a problem in the DS 650's handling department became apparent. The back of the quad had a rather unsettling tendency to want to swap positions with the front of the quad. Almost as if the unusually wide front of the DS 650 was "plowing" or "dragging" in the snow and causing the rear to want to overtake the front. The end result was that the rear of the ATV would pitch left and right forcing us to continually counter steer in the opposite direction in order to maintain control. A brief stint on the other sport quads in the group confirmed that this handling characteristic was indeed unique to the DS 650 and not simply a result of the adverse trail conditions. We suspect that either the width of the front-end, the steering geometry or the castor/camber needs to be adjusted to improve the straight-line tracking. However, until we have an opportunity to conduct further tests in mud and/or sand we can't be certain that this quirk isn't limited to snow conditions.
    Riding in the snow, no matter how you cut it, is a blast! The routine goes something like this--you approach a turn at a good speed, just as you enter the turn you tap the brake lightly to maintain a controlled slide while reducing speed, as you exit the turn you hammer the gas and then set your body position to prepare for the next turn. It doesn't take long and you find yourself in a routine and thoroughly enjoying the opportunity to challenge your skills as a rider.        The weather was warm and our group encountered significant water on the trail. Though the DS 650's front fenders visually look small (but seriously cool) they offered reasonable protection from the elements and performed comparable to similar sport quads on the market. We had prepared for wet conditions by wearing rain gear over our winter gear and by slipping our feet into plastic bags before donning our winter pac boots. The constant onslaught of water eventually won out however, and apparently the plastic bags had torn, because our boots began to fill with ice-cold water. Cold, wet, feet wasn't about to slow down ATVers from a club whose motto is, "we'll go anywhere to ride." We steadfastly pressed on until we reached the Valhalla restaurant where we gassed-up the quads and feasted on a much appreciated warm meal.
    An hour or so later found us back on the trail heading towards our hotel. As the day pressed on the DS 650's mid-range engine hesitation became significantly worse. The engine seemed to badly "load up" and we would have to downshift a gear or two and then rev the engine in order to regain the power to pull the higher gear. It was difficult to determine if the problem was a bad spark plug or if perhaps the mid-range jetting was off. The machine Bombardier provided for us to evaluate was not new and, in fact, had arrived with broken plastic on the front shroud. The seat was also black with grime, lending us to believe it had seen some abuse. So we suspect that the engine performance problems may have been a result of a dealer who neglected to service the machine before we received it. Again, we'll need to conduct another evaluation with a new machine in order to draw a definitive conclusion.

As if the poor handling in the snow and the engine problems weren't enough to deal with in one day, before we reached the hotel the throttle began to stick. Several times the engine would not return to idle and would rev unmercifully until we wicked the throttle open and closed a few times.
       When we arrived at the hotel our group was tired, cold and soaked from head to toe! But we had had a great time riding! We all felt good that we hadn't let a little weather come between us and the opportunity to spend some time with friends while enjoying a sport we're passionate about.        This DS 650 hadn't lived up to the reputation of quality earned by the Bombardier Traxter. Our test machine had its share of problems. The DS has such potential to be a truly exceptional quad that we plan to conduct a more in-depth, longer term, evaluation with a new machine and featuring additional rider opinions.