Farms and Farm Machinery – September 2019

THE TRACTOR YOU WANT IS NOW EASIER TO FIND TradeFarmMachinery.com.au 53

its way to Fat Camp where Reg Grant and I work up opinions

on which ATV is likely to survive long-term farm service. We

flog the quads for a day, up and down, across and back, scaling

steep hills, driving through water, mud, dust and the biased sales

pitch some reps consider useful information. At the end of the

day we know which bits fell off the vehicle and why: a reliable

performance indicator.

GOT THE LOOKS

Generally speaking, the TGB machine is well made and well-

engineered. The XR500LE we had showed fit and finish on a

par with most of the opposition, at a time, I’d have to say, when

some of the better known brands are starting to look a bit tinny

around the edges.

It’s also a nice looking thing. The bright orange paintwork was

attractive and so were the matte-black, cast aluminium wheels.

The LE models get a headlight mounted on the bars as well as

body-mounted lights but the base model XR lacks that feature.

The 50mm receiver hitch has some sort of vibration dampening;

possibly rubber mounting but we’re not sure.

TGB hangs all the Xplorer’s gear on a steel chassis with double

A-arm suspension at both ends. Wheel travel up front is said to

be 221mm and 239mm at the rear. That’s pretty good. The newest

Yamaha Grizzly 700 has 193mm and 231mm of travel front and

rear and that’s considered more or less standard issue. Twenty-

six inch (660mm) tyres help give the Argo a ground clearance of

305mm so all things considered, this machine should be able to

handle rough terrain without spilling the champagne.

Only it doesn’t quite do that. Wheel travel might be sufficient

but the shocks seem valved more for load carrying than rider

comfort. The engine and drivetrain work flawlessly but ride

is rather lumpy compared to quads from North America and

Canada. The steering feels a little sketchy when the adjustable

power-steering is dialled in to maximum assistance.

These are not fatal flaws but performance details that Argo will

have to improve if it wants a foothold in a market where buyers

are spoilt for choice and awash with plush suspensions.

Power and torque from the single-cylinder, 503cc engine are

easily strong enough to get the job done. The 39 horsepower

(29kW) Xplorer is no more noisy than any other ATV Reg and I

have abused over the past 10 years.

Towing capacity is 590kg. We’ve never understood how

manufacturers calculate tow ratings. The latest Yamaha Grizzly

700 has a tow rating of 600kg, but another 200cc to pull it, so your

guess as to how they shuffle the numbers is as good as ours.

Two lockable storage bins either side of the handlebars give

you somewhere to stash small objects such as your keys, phone

and wallet. Steel racks give you maximum load carrying capacity.

One attention to detail the maker certainly did well on this

model was to ensure slick gear selection. The stubby lever has

a nice feel to it, doesn’t tie itself in steel knots trying to find the

gear you requested and is all-round smooth-as.

PolarisSportsman 570. 570cc, tidyunit.•QLD
0731711743

$5,000 TA854051

2016 ElstarCG250A. Cargo Quadbike,tilttray,

ATVfarmbike,Lock diff. • NSW 0261713875

$5,000 TA729098

2017 CFMotoX550 EPS. 500ccsinglecyl, 4

valves,4 stroke,SOHC. • VIC 03 85478574

$8,990 TA931248

SuzukiKingquad 400 2WD Man.400cc,manual,

goodtyres,runswell. • VIC 03 99984995

$2,700 TA861635

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TEST REVIEW

1. The layout is exactly what you’d expect
   in a modern ATV


2. The engine develops 39hp and that’s
   plenty for day to day farm work. The
   ride’s a bit lumpy


3. It’s well put together, looks cool and is
   easy to use


4. Gear selection is as smooth as it gets