Help. I was dead set on buying a new 07 Griz 450. For the type of riding I do anything bigger is tooo big for the trails. But....

My brother and his buddy both have 06 Kodiaks. My bro just blew the motor (rod bearing), and just shipped off the crank for a rebuild. His buddy's uses quite a bit of oil every week (~1.5 quarts). Granted they ride a lot, both have 3000 miles, 4-5 rides a week, and a lot of road rides @ 50 mph. My brother just put some big 26 inch mud tires on his, too, which looked and rode like too much tire for the bike. He didn't check the oil for a few rides (a week) and apparently burned it out. No evidence of leaks.

I had intended on buying one just like it in the next couple weeks, but after seeing one eat a motor, and another using a lot of oil, I'm starting to wonder.

 

I would guess that any quad that is abused could blow up at 3000 miles.

The Kodiak 450 is probably one of the most reliable quads on the market. I would even rank it above many Honda's....and I own both.

 

Ya - this is my first Yamaha Quad, but so far it doesn't use an ounce of oil (only 250 miles).

I wouldn't let the fact that oyour brother and buddy don't seem to maintain their rides / beat on them.. I can almost guarentee they didn't break in the motor properly... let alone change the oil at the right intervals. let alone even BOTHER to check the oil... There is no excuse for not checking the oil each ride.. new or not... it takes about 20 seconds to check the oil on a Kodiak/Griz 450

 

Definately a lesson learned for checking the oil every ride. I don't think these machines have been abused that badly. I'm sure the daily blast down the gravel road at 50+ for a couple miles is probably not good for them. As for how the break-in was performed- they say they broke them in properly, but who knows. I doubt they've been keeping the valves adjusted as much as they should. They've been riding 100+ miles a week lately.

I'm still set on getting one. I've got an 01 Warrior and it's been a solid quad, so I'm definately a Yamaha fan. I'm just worn out after spending a few hours on it, looking for something more suitable for the trails. A couple of the other guys we ride with have a 750 Brute Force and a 500 Sportsman, but those are just too big. They have to do 3-point turns around stuff that the Kodiaks slip right through. We've had to winch the Brute outta some spots, too and it was a huge PITA. I just think the 450 Griz is the perfect size. I'll probably keep the Warrior around for a back-up, too

 

I ride with bigger quads... and more often than not.. I make it up a trail no problem... I am very happy with my purchase! I hope Yamaha continues to make this mid-sized engine and mid-sized machine! it is the smallest in its class!