ok guys...i will be buying a new fouwheeler...i have my atv list narrowed down to 2 atvs.....the yamaha grizzly 700 and polaris sportsman 850 .....now im looking for an atv that can be used for almost anything......mudding, racing, trail riding, and farm work.......does anybody have any suggestions on which one would be better to get? i need something that will not breakdown and leave me stranded anywhere and that i can totaly trust to get the job at hand done.....

 

Both will do what you want them to do with the Sportsman 850 being faster than the Grizzly by a pretty good margin. Yamaha is a bit more reliable than the Polaris. Both are great all around machines.

 

I believe that today Yamaha's are rated no 1 in dependability
and hands down the best belt driven transmission and clutch.

I'm sure the 850 Polaris is faster and probably has more power but it
would be my second choice out of the two, possibly even 3rd.

 

I'm not a fan of Polaris. The yamahas grizzlys are nice!

 

I like both so for me it might just come down to price.

 

If I was you. Id pick up a square body chevy or d250 cummins for bout $1000, a 450r for about $2500. Then who needs an $8000 quad thats 800 lbs, luggish, and quiet.
:-)
Just my 2 cents.. I'm just dead set against utilities.

 

If ride is really important to you, the Polaris is known for a cushy, comfy ride. The Yamaha has a simpler, less maintenence oriented drivetrain. With Polaris, you have hub fluid, Hilliard cages that break, hub clutches and magnets that need periodic adjustment, various fluids for different engine braking set ups, just a little more complex. The new XP set up puts the belt and clutch behind the motor, a little harder to get at than the Yamaha. Polaris tends to run a bit on the heavy side, in case that matters to you, so getting stuck could be more fun. See a lot of each on the trail, I am a Yamaha fan, so I got a Grizzly 700, and I am very happy with it, IRS is the way to go for any utility quad,hardly any SRA utes out there any more. Service is always a big consideration as well, do you have a good, reliable dealer or shop nearby that specializes in one or the other? it can be a major pain to have to haul it an hour or more to get it worked on when something major happens. Final decision is yours, you have to live with it, not us, so make sure you pick the one that fits your needs the best.

 

When I'm passing you in the rutted, muddy trail or logs and rocks, then have to turn around to pull your "fast" ride out of a mudhole that barely slowed me down, THATS when you need an $8000 800 lb quad.....lol. Fast is fun, when the trail allows it, but if its so smooth that top speed is all that matters, too boring for me. Just my 2 cents !!

 

I'm not the guy who rides through the woods on wet days making ruts so not much to worty bout. But I've never got stuck when I do go through mud. In my opinion. Utilities are for the.. cough cough... older generations.

 

If you never got stuck.....that aint mud, its damp dirt. I did things on my "old man" Wolverine that would make you stain your shorts....so utes and sport utes have their place, and some can be ridden just as hard as a sport quad if you know what you're doing. Go up against a V twin Kawi or Can Am, and tell me thats for old men.....lol.