When I had my stator problem I also found the same wires rubbing , I seperated all the wires and found only the ground wire had been stripped maybe 1" hard to believe plastic will do that to the wires.I friction taped it them electrical taped and tie wrapped it so it would nt rub, I wondered if any one else had that prob, he's right check them all.Ok on the other topic Yes the hondas are tried and true thats been proven well over the years and I think Yami has followed suit maybe thats why they have not come out with a new Griz for such a long time they thought they did not need to . , but I think the GRIZ is very reliable even though I have had a prob. or two.The tranny is unbeatable any other brand that uses a belt will go through many more in the lifetime of the machine.Oh yes the stock tires are not that great after market tires make the quad feel much more stable and comfortable , then U can really turn the beast loose. lafngas it would cost you too much $ $ to beat the machines you mentioned , I say this cause I have dunn the pipe thing and air filter and jetting and still cant take those machines did pretty good against a BF 750, got him out of the hole but he soon past me and at 1/4 mi. he had me by maybe 3 quads and he was still leavin. I was happy enough with that, I really dont want to cam or Big bore kit it .