Mike, since you are considering keeping your Grizzly, I assume you fixed your sticking rear brakes. What was the problem?

Tree Farmer

 

Yeah I'm wavering,straddling the fence as it were. My "double sealed rear drum brake" is,well, not sealed. I had mud and crap all plugged up on the inside.Must be me. When we ride, all my buddies go through the same crap I do but have no problems. Thats why I get miffed at my problems. I am not pounding this thing very hard,yes I've gone through some mud and water but nothing drastic.I have not totally given up on the Grizz.....yet

 

Mike, you are not alone--upon pulling my Kawasaki Bayou's brake drum, I've extraced enough rich, alluvial topsoil to make Israel's Negev Desert bloom.

I've done my best, sealing the drum with silicone (didn't seem to last too long) and again, with water-resistant grease as the manual suggests (I hope, I hope, I hope).

Honda appears to know how to seal drum brakes; I think Kawasaki, and from your account, Yamaha, have a ways to go on the brake drum sealing learning curve.

While I acknowledge the sieve-like characteristics of my Bayou's drum as a shortcoming, this limitation does not reject the entire machine in my view, largely because the excellent twin-disc front brakes are so effective. With capable front brakes and adequate engine compression braking, I find marginal rear brakes no operational disaster.

You must satisfy yourself regarding your Grizzly and your own standards. Good luck.

Tree Farmer

 

Mike,

You are correct that the Grizzly owners manual does state that you are to come to a complete stop to engage or dis-engage the 4wd as it may affect handling characteristics. I usually am not going over 10 mph so I am in and out of 4wd all the time. I would however think twice about pushing it a 50mph on hard pack.

The switch engages a little motor/selonoid that kicks it into 4wd and can be done on the fly. Trying to do that with a tank mounted lever that pulls a physically pulls a cable to engage 4wd may be a challenge while moving, if it is even mechanically possible at all.

When I am pulling a tree out and begin to pull a hill I may just flick it into 4wd if I begin to loose traction, if I don't loose traction I like to keep it in 2wd for the tighter turning radius. That is a feature I will miss. Polaris still has the best 2wd/4wd system in my opinion with the AWD system that will engage only if needed. I just demand a low maintenance, extremely reliable unit. I have never owned a Polaris, so I am NOT speaking from experience, but I have read/talked to enough to scare me away.

Take Care
Allen L. Grooms

 

Mike, I have had problems with "sealed drums" not beind sealed either. We finaly figured out why our Suzuki kept going through brake pads so much. The mud and water would fill the drum, and clog the drain. Somehow, somtimes, most of it would get out on it's own, sometimes not. The times it didn't, we discovered that was the problem with going through shoes so much. I haven't ever talked to a Grizzly owner about brakes, so I don't know if this is common, but overall "sealed drums" don't seem to be sealed very well.

Adam Dowden

 

My buddy has had problems with the rear brake on his Grizzly as well.It has been his only problem to date.I would certainly not let the rear brake be the reason for me to give up on the Grizz.Just the total amount of problems in such a short time that has me disappointed.

 

Mike,
To quote Clinton," I FEEL YOUR PAIN!!!.."
I owned a 98 Griz for a short while, wait, let me re-phrase, I made payments on a 98 Grizzly, the shop actually had posession.
Between the front wheel bearings, the constant overheating, and the clutch self-destructing.. I got FED UP... It is now somebody elses problem...
I have a 98 Big Bear, and their version of a drum seal is a JOKE!!... it'll stay sealed as long as it stays in the shop.
Right now my Big Bear needs new front wheel bearings and the rear end needs to be rebuilt... both axle seals are leaking, and you can flop the rear axle around like a fish out of water... Good thing I got the Extended warranty..
The Green Plastic is a nice touch though...!!