Hello all.
I'm in the market for a 4x4 quad and have a few questions so I thought maybe listing what are the most important items/options that you all look for on a utility quad could be helpful to myself and possibly others.

For me, i'm leaning heavily towards a used BF 650. (2006-2007) Also considered a Grizzly 660, and even a Rancher 420. The ones that I found in my price range have the IRS. It will be used for snow plowing my driveway, hunting, and recreational riding. I want a utility that can hold its own in the work department but still be exciting to ride when not doing chores.
My concerns are with the belt. What's the truth on belt driven quads? Do they slip or burn out alot? If they get wet (snow or creek riding) are they prone to making noise and/or slipping? Are they hard to change and maintain?
Would any of you hesitate on buying a belt driven utility quad?
Thanks all...

 

All three of the quads I've owned were (are) belt driven. You can get pretty deep on the Polaris, but the little Kawi doesn't do so good. I've read several posts in the Kawasaki section about BF's getting wet easy, though after driving two (a 650 SRA and a 750 IRS) I think the BF's are good machines overall. I've ridden a couple of Griz 660's and thought they were ok too, but not as sporty as a Brute, and due to the, um, tippyness factor, not fun on hills (up, down, or sidehill). Basically know where the intakes are, and be mindful of that height when going into water or mud.

 

Our family has owned a bunch of 4x4 utility quads ... (Rincon, Grizzly 660s and 700s, Kodiak 400 and 450s, Prairie 650s and 700s, Brute Force 650, Sportsman 500 HO, Scrambler 500). The only ones we had belt problems with were both Polaris quads, and we burned the belt on both of them. The Yamaha and Kawasaki quads had no problems with the belt at all. We did have a problem with the Rincon's transmission as well, and it started creaping all the time when in gear at an idle. The dealer had to replace the torque converter to fix the problem.

The thing I look for the most in a 4x4 quad is its ability to tackle extreme terrain, the nastier the terrain the better. It has to be able to climb near vertical, traverse crazy sidehills, and crawl its way over anything in its path, simply because that is the kind of riding we do. Our group of riders likes to find the crazyest terrain we can find, and rollovers are pretty common. The phrase "the bigger they are the harder they fall" is very true, and the really big heavy 4x4s have more problems on the extreme off cambers. I've seen more than a few Sportsman 800s, Arctic Cat 700s, and Brute Force 750s get wadded up. The old Grizzly 660 wasn't anywhere near as good of an extreme terrain ATV as the new Grizzly 700. Yamaha moved a bunch of weight down low in the chassis to improve the center of gravity, and it helped a great deal. The new Grizzly 700 is actually a very good 4x4 ATV

The best ATV I have found for the really crazy terrain though, is the Can Am Renegade 800. It is low and stable, which gives it a very sure footed feel, and it doesn't lift tires off the ground nearly as bad as most big 4x4s. It also has tons of power and aggressive clutching, so when you need a quick blast of power to get you up and over an obstacle, it is right there waiting to be turned loose. I don't know how it would plow snow, but it does have low range like any other 4x4, and it is geared lower in low range than most 4x4s are, so I suspect that with the right plow mount it would do just fine. It doesn't have good fender protection for mud though.

Good luck.


DesertViper

 

Very nice and informative post DesertViper! Posts like this are very helpful to those who are in the process of making their first purchase. Off camber hills are the hardest thing for me to negotiate for sure, and that is the one thing that makes me uncomfortable with my 700 Griz. It is a great quad, but it does give me the *****'s on extreme off camber trails. I also have a 450 Griz and if it had EFI and PS, It would be my primary ride. It is a bit short on power compared to the 700, but that it totally expected. As for belt driven vs gear driven, I personally would not even consider anything but a belt, and IMO Yamaha has the best that I have ridden. The engine braking going downhill is great, and it is smooth as silk.

 

Grizzly's are the way to go, they are cadillacs. Power steering is awesome.

 

Pretty much every manufacturer has power steering now, and some manufacturers have come out with what I think is a better system. I know the Can Am system is a two stage system that is adjustable on the fly, so you can chose how much assist you want. It also adds steering assist with the ATV sitting still; you don't need to be moving for the assist to work, like you do with the Grizzly. That makes a difference when you are rock crawling and you are stopped and hung up on a rock, and need to turn the handlebars when everything is bound up in four wheel drive. You want the assist to work when the ATV is stopped.

 

The Suzuki king quad doesn't have PS, Which sucked cause I was almost ready to buy that one. Maybe they will have it next year. As for the can am well, I can see now that I will need to own one sooner or later.

 

I can't speak for the other brands but my Yamaha with PS has power sitting still. I don't know if it is true or not but I was told that they all use the same thing. I haven't heard of the Can Am's system though. I wouldn't trade my Yamaha for anything and I have ridden with them all.

 

i just went and jumped on my grizzly and your right...it does power steer while sitting. Viper....

 

Well I just went out into the garage and fired up our 2007 Grizzly 700. With the ATV sitting still with the engine idling and the transmission in any gear the power steering does not work. Make the Grizzly move even the slightest (even less than 1/2 mph or so) and you can feel the power steering kick right in. That is also what I have read several places about how the Yamaha system is supposed to work. It provides the most assist at very slow speed, and the amount of assist decreases as you speed up, but it provides no assist when stopped. We've had two 2007 Grizzly 700s, and they are both that way. I haven't heard if Yamaha changed the system since 2007, although I doubt it.

I do know that if I start my Grizzly 700 and push on the end of one handlebar with one finger using light pressure, it doesn't move. When I did that to the 2010 Can Am on the showroom floor it was very easy to move the handlebar from lock to lock by pushing with one finger while the ATV was parked and just idleing.