Polaris Working on ATV with Anti-Lock Brakes

Are anti-lock brakes coming soon to ATVs? Could be, as Polaris applied for a patent for an ATV with ABS. You can check out the patent application for yourself right here.

Here is how the ATV ABS system is described in the patent application:

An all-terrain vehicle is disclosed having a braking system with an anti-lock braking control module and a first brake master cylinder hydraulically coupled to anti-lock braking control module. A first brake actuator is coupled to the first brake master cylinder and a brake caliper is coupled to at least some of the ground engaging members. The first brake master cylinder upon actuation provides anti-lock braking to either the first or second ground-engaging members. A second brake master cylinder is hydraulically coupled to the anti-lock braking module. A second brake actuator is coupled to the second brake master cylinder and a brake caliper is coupled to at least some of the ground engaging members. The second brake master cylinder upon actuation provides anti-lock braking to either the first or second ground engaging members. The vehicle also has a speed monitor with a gear ring positioned on an exterior surface of a stub shaft and a speed pickup positioned adjacent to the gear ring.

It should be noted that Polaris wouldn’t the first ATV manufacturer to offer vehicles with ABS. Can-Am actually introduced ABS technology on ATVs about a year ago, but this is strictly for the European market and was done to comply with European union regulations.

The European market may well be the target for Polaris’ ABS technology. European Union regulations greatly limit the top speed of ATVs that are not equipped with ABS.

However, it’s certainly possible we could one day see that technology in North America. Beyond being part of every modern car or truck, anti-lock brakes have also found their way to quite a few motorcycles – with European laws being a prime motivator for manufacturers.

As to how this might affect cost, adding optional anti-lock brakes to motorcycles in the United States generally costs about $500. We suspect it will be a bit more expensive for off-road vehicles, as the technology would be more complex due to the variety of terrain these vehicles have to deal with.