After totaling my '05 Polaris 700 Sportsman, I looked for a few months for an exact match to what I had - a Browning Edition 700 Twin, but the few that I found I was either not able to work a deal, get a callback or just found it was beat to hell and back. After a few months I gave up looking for exactly what I had and looked for the best quad I could find in my price range.
I looked at a hi mileage BF 750, a Grizzly 700 and a Sportsman 500. I eventually happened across a very well maintained '06 King Quad 700 with a bit over 600 miles on it with new rubber and rims. I got it for what I wanted to pay, and so far it has proven to be a super smooth, reliable ride once I've taken care of a few nagging issues that can plague those model year KQs.
First off, I will be honest and say the Sportsman was a much better ride than the King. Its a huge difference. Power-wise, they are equal, topping out at about 63-65mph. The KQ has 27" meats on it (stock is 25) so I'd say they were identical if the Sportsman had heavier than stock tires on it.
Storage (or lack thereof) is another weak point with the KQ. The Sportsman again gets the nod here. Easy remedy is a rear storage box, and I added one to my King that equals the capacity and then some of the Polaris.
Fuel consumption .... hahaaa, it's not even CLOSE !! My Sportsman would maybe get 18 on a very smooth trail, but I averaged 15 usually. My riding buddies were happy after I added 2x2g Rotopax to my Polaris, but I still had to stop a lot. The King .. wow .. this was as huge an advantage for it as the ride quality was for the Polaris. Not even close, with the King averaging 27 and getting about 30 on a smooth trail. That P-Twin was a thirsty beast !!
Now, if you have to ding the KQ for anything, it is the super light front end - guys who rode my quad thought it had power steering it was that light. Unfortunately, that lightness also causes some scary full lock handlebar yanks when you get in a rut on a steep downhill. I am aware of this and usually pull a deathgrip on my downhills, but a caster mod to the lower a-arms will fix the situation.
If I want to gripe about my old Polaris, I will always nag about that fuel economy, and complain about the low gearing that makes the Sportsman rev up to 3500rpm before it even moves. The KQ launches at around 1800rpm and it is just the smoooothest running quad, just like butter.
My F.i.L owns an '11 Sportsman 850 LE with all the extras, and he wanted to try out my King. As the miles went by, I hoped he would pull over so I could get back on my ride. His 850 with EPS gave me a strange disconnect from the feel of the trail. You never felt ANY feedback thru the bars. He finally pulled over and we swapped back to our quads, and he was grinning from ear to ear. He said, 'I'm really glad you didn't get another Sportsman .. you done good with this one. It's so smooth running that I didn't want to get off'.