Hey guys,
I am looking to purchase a new ATV.

So far I have it narrowed down to two ATV's.

Yamaha 660 Grizzly
Suzuki Vinson 500 Auto

Now I know that the Grizzly is bigger BUT, the reason I have narrowed it down to these two is that I have test drove both and like the way both handle.
I LOVE the way the grizzly looks. I know its a bit tippy, but I have found it to be an all around NICE 4x4. Also, very realiable with tons of accessories and upgrades available.

The Vinson is a great 4x4 as well with nice power.

What would you guys recommend as far as purchasing one of these goes.

 

i would go with the suzuki. i love suzuki and they build a good machine. the griz is a beast and the vinson is fast. i like the sra on the vinnie too i would go with the vinnie!

 

Does Suzuki make a good selection of engine mods for the vinson?

 

Well, you can get anything for any quad, its just a matter of your wallet size. Go with the Suzuki.

 

I love that locking diff on the vinson. Really nice work from Suzuki. Very reasonable price too at $6399

 

Jaykers,

I would have thought you would have bought a machine by now...LOL. The question is which do you like better SRA or IRS? Both are good machines and you shouldn't have many problems with either. Also as you know the Vinson is a little cheaper so with the extra money you could upgrade the tires and get a winch. It has also been around for a long time and you can get plenty of accessories for it.

Some Yamaha people will probably disagree but I think their best machine is the Kodiak 450 and not the Grizz. Yes the Grizz may be somewhat better but for the money you can't go wrong with the Kodiak. IMO the Grizz is just a bit pricey for what you get. If you are going to pay this kind of money why not get the King Quad?

If you ask for my opinion I would choose a Vinson because it's priced very well for the money. If I had the extra I would go for the KQ and if I wanted an IRS machine I would get the Kodiak.

You mentioned that you liked the handling of both machines so let me shair this with you. I raced a Grizz once on a tight trail. I was still stock and he had aftermarket tires. Yes he had more power but the Vinny more than made up for it with it's mobility and ability to slide due to the SRA. To make a long story short I won...not by alot but still won.

Good luck on your new purchase.

 

So I guess my question would be, for riding trails and climbing hills in Alaska, is the SRA going to be better than the IRS?

 

Also, I have not chosen the KQ for the low end lack of power that it has.

Even when I test rode one it was noticeable. The Yamaha doesnt have this problem. Not that I noticed anyways.

 

I hear this lack of low end from the KQ all the time but I can tell you that it has more than the Vinson, with 200cc more there is no way it could have less. I also bet that once a shootout comes out between these large quads you will see it's not as bad as everyone is saying.

Either machine will handle the trails of this state. I haven't seen one but you also might want to consider the 650 BF. You have more power than the Vinny and get to keep the SRA but you give up some ground clearance. I would have gottent he Blue Twin Peaks because it's an awesome machine but I couldn't get over the ground clearance issue.

The Grizzly will probably be better in the snow than the Vinny just because of the ground clearance and locker but you will still want to upgrade the tires. It also sounds like you are leaning this way so go ahead and make the plunge and get riding.

 

HAHA

Ya, i know I am taking a bit long in making my decision

I just dont want to jump the gun and make a bad decision and own a machine I regret having.

I am 95% sure to get the Yamaha 660 Grizzz.

For me, its the best choice.

I thank everybody for their two cents. Without it, I would still be figuring this all out.