Great posts. I hope to upgrade at the end of 2005. I am a die hard Yamaha fan but this week I stopped at a Polaris dealer and took a look around. OMG the Sportsman 700 MV! I fell in love. They had new 05 sportsmans in all sizes already with aftermarket tires, winch etc. I know... I know the grass is always greener on the other side...........

I hope to see a new big bore in the the 06 Griz....

 

How about a big bore for 2005.5 that would be even better. Like an 800 twin efi.

 

Get the SP700 EFI for the extra $400. I will be trading up to an 05' soon.

 

I wanted a Grizz bad until I rode a King Quad. Do yourself a favor and test drive a K/Q before you buy anything. You may be suprised.

 

Between the Grizz and the Sportsman, i personaly would want the Grizz. Its lighter, and most of all, the buds that i have that have polairses have had major quality problems, plus one wreck due to the "all wheel drive locking up when going down a steep hill"

 

I had the same trouble when looking for my quads. I had it mainly between the grizz and the sportsman. but then I stepped back and looked at the styling and function of the quads. I liked the sportsmans series and also liked the idea of the EFI, no choke to deal with anymore and no long warm up periods on cold starts.

 

What zirks are you talking about???? I can't find any on my 700.

 

I HATE the brakes on the Polaris, It scares the heck outta me when I go down a steep azz hill and the back end starts to come around, so I let off the brakes to get straight but then I gain speed so I mash the brakes and once again here comes the back end even worse...... I pray like hell I have a smooth landing strip at the bottom of the hill because im coming in for a landing after flying down it [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-shocked.gif[/img]

If Polaris would make the controls normal like the motorbikes standards (front brake right lever, rear brake right foot and add rear brake left hand instead of clutch) I would be happy, but the one lever does all thingie just sucks for anything other than a groomed trail

I hate the tranny on the Polaris, the neutral isn't neutral. While your tires might no rotate in neutral everything else does, the thing feels like its going to explode when you rev the engine while in neutral and you can't "free rev" your always engaging the belt once you hit the throttle even in neural.

I hate the extra 100-200 pounds the Polaris has on other machines in the same engine size catagory.

I hate the strut suspension Polaris has, replace one and you'll know what I mean [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-sad.gif[/img] The Polaris has only one a arm and the shock has the axle and acts as the upper a arm, it's an old system and needs replaced.

I talked to mechanics (one a friend I've known a long time) that work on both Polaris and Yahama and not just one shop but 3 different shops and every one of them pointed to Yahama as being better built and more reliable.


I love the tranny on the Grizzly, shifts easy and has great engine braking and has 4 wheel engine braking unlike the Polaris. The Polaris free wheels the front end while the *** end slides, now add that dumb 1 leaver braking and now the *** end is sliding around and you launch down the hill. The Grizz just eases down the steep hills never slipping and you can control which wheels brake or don't. The Tranny also shifts nicer than my Polaris, I don't have to use my foot to hold the shifter all the way forward to go into low range while I tap the throttle (how many Polaris owners use their foot to shift into low range while feathering the throttle to get it engaged???? heheh comon be truthful )

I love the lower weight of the Grizzly, 150 lbs less than the 500 HO Polaris and damm near 200 less than the 700 EFI. I would have to put a 200 pound fatass on the back of my Grizz and ride him around to get the Idea of it [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-sad.gif[/img]

I love the fact that Yahama uses auctual welded nuts and bolts to fasten things instead of those tabs Polaris uses, those damm tabs that fall off or strip out....

I hate how the Yahama clunks while going down hill if in 2 wheel drive, they say it's normal but damm it's annoying.

I like the Polaris lower swept front fenders, the machine "feels" smaller and you can see better, but the Yahama you stay cleaner.


I HATE the 4 wheel drive system on the Polaris, you push the button and hope your in 4x4, the thing messes up and you spin like mad then all the sudden SLAM!! it engages, or worse yet your in 2 wheel drive spinning around a corner or something then SLAM!! it engages and your like ohhh **** you were in a power slide with the rear end hanging out about 2 feet then all the sudden your in 4 wheel drive.... hahaa you can imagine that pwouch!!
The Yahama I can engage limited slip for most things and enjoy easy steering, very very rarely I need to engage full 4x4 but it's there and works !! never had it do anything weird like the Polaris!

I like the racks better on the Polaris, tube racks are out-dated.

so if your stuck between the Polaris and the Grizz, then it's not a choice in my opinion, the Grizz is better hands down. Not even close.

 

sounds like a biased opinion to me [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-blush.gif[/img]

 

yes it is biased, It's biased because the Griz has impressed me and I find myself wanting to go on long rides often. I don't honestly think that the Polaris 700 would have the same "fun factor" as the Grizz...

I had full intentions of purchasing an 05 Polaris 600 or 700 and hadn't made up my mind between the two, I wasn't going to buy a Grizz because they didn't seem as popular and I was already familiar with Polaris quads.. I did more research and talked to many mechanics and decided to buy the Grizz (still gritting my teeth and worried about it). I told it exactly how I see it biased or not in my previous post. All quads have thier strength's and weaknesess, Polaris needs to do something with their brakes for techinical stuff and steep long downhills, and they need to reduce the weight. They also need a more positive 4x4 system with more driver control. Most quad drivers don't need a "dummy proof" quad. I want total brake control, total 4x4 control in a powerful lightweight package that durable and capable of heavy work . The Grizz IMHO does that better than the Polaris and I think it has a much higher fun factor while doing it.