hey ATV/qaud guys...need some advice

I personally, would not buy anything with a belt-driven CVT. They will drive you into the poorhouse. I have rebuilt,repaired,replaced, and modified hundreds and hundreds of them and there is just no way I would own one. If I won one in a draw, I would immediately sell it to someone not in my family.
That's my opinion .
And Cats have charging system problems all too often. Between a clutch a couple of belts, and a stator, you're in Honda territory.
And Yes old Hondas with enclosed drum brakes, have issues..... but mostly cuz the owners let them sit full of water. Same as their rear axles.
They have drainplugs for a reason! And if water gets in, that's telling you something, get it fixed before it costs money.
Polarises throw CV joints...... because of the extreme working angles, and when it's time to replace one, you come to find out that all the A-arm bushings are worn out too, and the electric front clutches haven't worked for a long long time. By the time you finish paying for that, you guessed it. you couldda had a Honda last year and would now be breaking even, and you wouldn't be feeling like you got taken.
I'm not saying Honda's are perfect,cuz I sold a lotta Honda parts. What I am saying is that, IMO, Honda's are not engineered to self disembowel themselves like most other stuff seems to be, and the labor costs are gonna be lower in the long run. Probably a lot lower.
I'd rather fit myself into a Honda budget by buying something a lil older, than some shiny newer non-Honda,lol.. and the cheaoest in the long-run will have a straight axle in the back, and NO electric-shift, forget that crappy idea. And not a first year 450EFI either; these were out at least a year too soon, and had too many teething problems.