I am in the market for a new utillity quad and mostly have it narrowed down between the BF750, King Quad and the Grizzly. What I am wondering is with better tires and rims, how far apart are these in handling fast trails compared to SRA quads. My last quad was a Raptor and I have only ridden polaris IRS machines, so not to sure what I will think of IRS yet. My main goals in my next wheeler are, good trail manners, power for pulling (things like small trees and plowing snow) and reliability. I know that the Grizzly is suppost to be alot more stable with new wheels and tires, what about the other 2? I don't need raptor handling but I would like to be able to slide the back end around with out too much effort.
I would also like to know a little bit of first hand experience with reliability. I know the Grizzy is basically all figured out and has very few problems and probably the best tranny set up, but is also the least powerful of the 3.
The BF I am told is not the best in the handling department, but again, wheels and tires maybe the answer here? Also I hear the tranny is no where near as good as the yamaha, what is the deal on that? I am really interested in the motor on this one and I know they have nothing but good to say about that part of the quad.
The King.. used to be what I wanted but the reverse thing and what looks to be really high up keep cost, and the low end take off issue really bother me here, but this is suppost to have the best handling of the bunch...
Kind of a hard call but maybe you guys could clear up some of my unknowns and help me make my choice, who knows, maybe what I need is not even on this list....

 

raptor/ i believe all three are fine quads.i bought a kq last october the day the first one was delivered and so far no problems and no regrets what so ever.this is not my first zuki and probably not the last. ive read alot of different opinions on different boards that go from well thought out and researched to some really off the wall bs.you can look back on many different quads over the years that have had some sort of glitch that was taken care of.we are all very spoiled,we want what we want and we want it now.unfortunately when dealing with corporations things take a little time no matter which company.having said that ,i have ridden all three quads but only my kq on stock tires.obviously i would not ride my buddies quad like it was mine but in the mountans of kentucky or west virginia you sometimes dont have a choice. i love the irs, its a different ride than a srl but it sure helps my old back at the end of the day.the brute is the speed winner hands down.from a dead or rolling start it beats me every time.top end is basically equal at about mid 70s.grizzly brings up the rear but not far behind.brute has more ground clearance stock but grizz had a lift kit and 27 mudlites.in trail manners the kq runs away from both with the grizz and then the brute.hill climbing on mud or rock about the same any of these three should get you back to the truck if anything will.i really like the fi on the kq so much less hassle so far and if i go out west again this summer no need to rejet.rejet x2 on the brute.also the kq has some nice rubber guarding under the fenders which keeps alot of mud and debris from packing into everywhere.take the stock tires and wheels off and save them for goofing around the house.all three of us run mudlites on itp rims. i tried plowing snow with my stockers for about 20 minutes and changed back.no 4x4 is gonna do what that raptor does, but it wont do what these three fine machines will.which ever you choose have fun and gods speed. i love the saying that the only difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits

 

Check out the 2005 Kawasaki Brute Force 650. I am picking one up this weekend so I am biased, but I did a lot of research and was coming from a Sport quad looking for the same things as you. The BF650 has sporty handling for a utility machine, has all the power you need for pulling, and tested reliability because even though it has sharp new looks, it is the same model as the 2003 Prairie 650 so all the bugs have been worked out.

Best yet, you will save a $1,000 over any of the other quads and you can use that to buy any extras you might want to add. You can get the BF650 out the door (excluding tax and registration) for $5,800.

 

There is no perfect quad, but no matter which one you decide on, you will be happy with it. I have a 04 and a 05 Griz and wouldn't trade them for any other quad. That's not to say that the other quads aren't as good or better, it's just my personal preferance.
Once you try an IRS quad you will never want a solid axle quad again. You're going to have to trust me on this.

 

Starky, you went from a raptor to the grizzly right? What was it like going from the sport side over to the utilities? I know they can't have the speed and handling of a sport quad, but how does the grizz compare powerwise?

 

Raptor,

I think the best quad for you might be the Suzuki Twin Peaks 700. Lots of power and you get a SRA for that sporty feel you just can't get from an IRS machine. Yes the IRS machines are getting better but IMO they will never be able to match the sporty feel of a SRA machine. If I'm not mistaken this will be the last year of the TP so get one when you can.

 

Even though they have basically the same motor, you really can't compare the Raptor and the Griz. I can say this, compared to my Honda 300 Fourtrax, the Griz is a rocket ship.
Last year I was going to race the Griz in the Open MX class. I was practicing on our local track and was getting pretty fast. I couldn't hit the big jumps or the woops too hard, but I think I could have done pretty well most everywhere else.
I was trying to get the guys that put the races on to add a utility class to the motocross but they already had too many classes. I think it would be great, they could call it the Farmer Class.
Anyway, I'm sure the BF and the KQ are great quads too, but I wouldn't trade the Griz for either one.

 

Look at King Quad and Grizzly

They seem to be the best out right now with the edge going to King Quad. I don't *think* there is any more reverse problems if you buy the latest models of King Quad If your a Yamaha fan then the Grizzly doesnt give up much of anything to the King Quad, they are both "neck an neck" and either one would be fine. The BF does have the most for power but it doesn't handle as well as KQ or Grizz does. It's top heavy and tippy and the drive train is iffy.


With Radial tires these quads wouldnt give up anything to an IRS quad on a fast trail and would do better in other situations.

 

Well guys I had my heart set on the Grizzly for the most part, but I couldn't find them at a good price around here at all, If everything goes well on monday, I will have a new KQ in my driveway. I am a little scarred about the reverse thing, but I am sure suzuki will take care of it somehow. The Grizzly is a BIG seller around here right now, most dealers were sold out of them and not lowering the price at all.... Found a suzuki/honda dealer with the KQ on sale for $6499 so I took it. I can't wait to take this thing to some trail that I used to ride my raptor on, should be an experiance! Thanks for all the help.

 

Wow for that price get me one too!!!