ATV Florida Forum

  I use to ride sport quads. I liked the speed and agility being a speed rider. I was injured in a car accident pretty bad with back and neck herniations.
   I'm going to buy another quad hopefully soon, but I'm not sure if I'm going to get back on a sport quad because I think I might injure something again.
   I was thinking about getting a utility quad. But I don't know what kind of preventive maintenance they require. Is it more than a sport quad, especially if it's 4X4? And does it cost more?

I have had them all at one time: sport/4wd ute/2wd ute/Yamaha/Kaw/Honda/Suk/Polaris.
The utes, semi-auto, air cooled, just need basic services. I'm not a mud puppy so my use is mostly trails and yard work.
My Warrior/Z400 needs/needed a little more TLC they bounce through the woods a lot faster than my utes.
I have seen utes beat to death in a short time. The more tech (auto/elec shift/water cooled etc) the more maint.
As with anything mechanical they operator make a huge differance.
I work on a lot of bikes for friends and family. With out question Polaris brand ATVs see my garage more than others. They're like my last HD product: never a major problem, but nickle and dime you to death.

I used to only buy sport bikes, but theres just to much water around here so I went to utes best thing I ever did. I think the only reason a ute may need more maintance because it has a front and rear diff, rather than just a rear, not more maintance time wise just more to do when it's time to do it. I have always done oil changes and air filter cleaning and my bikes have always ran perfect.
You also may want to consider a rhino very comfortable and doesn't beat you up at all, I promise the rhino will be the only thing that won't be rough on your body it's the cadillac of the outdoors 8).
(http://img115.imageshack.us/img115/8281/rhinoandgrizzpics005my8.jpg)
(http://img115.imageshack.us/img115/9107/rhinoandgrizzpics006lo6.jpg)

Ute: Front and read differentials, engine oil, coolant (where needed), air filter, washing, occasionally cv joints and all that, and like already mentioned, the more the fancy crap, the more that goes wrong. If i wanted a low maintenance bike, Id get a Rancher S 4X4. Its the foot shift with no electrical crap except a starter and lights. No GPS, dash and all that crap. No electric shift. Bulletproof. Air cooled too.

With the sport quad, well, you know the maintenance for them. I hope  :o LOL.

I like to go fast but I have almost as much fun goin through some deep mud and muck. If had the choice between a sport quad and a 4X4, Id get the 4X4. I ride dirt bikes to go fast.  8)

I think youll like the utes.

  I think I might go with the utility quads. I don't know which one, maybe a Bruteforce. I would love a Rhino, but where do you ride them, and how big of a trailer and truck do you need to haul that thing?
   My Z400 needed very little maintenance. I rode it hard two years after my buddy raced it for a year and a half. The overhaul only cost me like $800. with port and polished heads.
  I would love another Z400, but something is telling me I need to slow down. I'm not 23 anymore!!

ive seen rhinos in full size pickups. i actually saw one in the back of a crew cab F150 with the short bed. and it fit fine. with the gate down of course. we just got a foreman rubicon 4X4 and we love it. it has a real tranny too. not them crappy belts like most. so no slipping when in water. its huge, fun to ride, goes through anything, and fairly low maintenance. the only difference from it and your z400 is instead of chain lube, you have to do differential fluids. it takes me 15 mins tops to do front and rear though. easy to do once you do it once or twice. you cant beat a honda either. id look into them. we got the fully loaded one with gps too. not necessary though. it has a warn 424 selector so you can take it out of 4X4 and its easier to ride and do donuts on like that. there was a foreman s on here recently that was sick. id look into it.

I would have to completely disagree with you on the  honda tranny I have been woods riding 13 years now and have seen more honda's with busted trannies than I ever have in past few years, seems like there not as tuff as they used to be, dont get me wrong I have pulled plenty of polaris back to the truck to but my grizzly snorkles are as high as they can be without being aftermarket( iam also not saying yamaha is the absolute best either), and you can only go as deep as the air intake will let you on the hondas sealed tranny or not. What would you rather replace anyway a belt or a whole tranny? My bike is like a submarine it loves the water ;D In the last month 2 guys lost there transmission out at williams right infront of me not at the same time though, a 2007 with 110 miles on it fully snorkled with 27" tires stock wheels I actually have a video of that one on my phone just not sure how to get from my phone to the net?and the other totally stock an 06 with 650 miles on it, he was in about 3 inches of mud doing donuts pulled him all the way back to the truck. Plus hondas don't have a front locker, just three wheel peel.Check out rincon riders .com  i think thats the site? there is about 23 pages of bad tranny problems.

I have a Grizzly and a Foreman and the Foreman is by and far tougher and more reliabile.  I have the no frills version too though so no radiator and no electronic shifting.....just a lot less there to go wrong.  I mean obviously it doesn't have the speed of the Grizzly but the way I ride in the mud and especially water.....I'm not worried about how fast I'm going....I'm just worried about getting through it period.  Don't get me wrong....I love my Grizzly and that thing is a beast in the mud but it can't swim like my Foreman.

believe me the new grizzly's are a completely different animal than the old.

Based upon my experience, I would have to say the sport quads are more maintenance.  I had at least an hour maintenance on my Raptor for every two hours of riding; lube chain, clean and oil air filter, wash, grease suspension.  Then, because of the fact the bike was ridden hard, oil changes every five to ten hours.  My utes take more time to wash but the drive trains are sealed, the air intake is mounted up high and the filter is larger (doesn't have to be serviced as often), oil changes every 250 - 300 miles, nothing to grease on the chassis (again, everything is sealed), change coolant every two years.  Yeah, you have CV joints but if you make sure the covers are in place and you keep that area clean, you don't have to worry about them.  I've got several thousand miles on my Prairie and haven't changed a CV yet.  I ride Holey Lands and SE and I've never had any serious problems with any of my quads.

The new Grizzlies have EFI......some more power......you act like they are a whole new machine.  Not so much.  What has been improved in the 08 Grizzlies that make them better suited for water ??  It is not the dramatic change like they did in 2001 (or 2002...I forget). 

It's an entire new machine
Power Steering!!!more cc's, gulwing a-arms the the snorkels have been dramitically improved much higher and re-routed, can go into the water just under the handle bars now safely but probably higher if your a risk taker :D. air box were the gas tank used to be, all electrical in one place under the front compartment no more under seat ,much higher. Straight axles coming from the diffs, no more universals, differential hoses re-routed, air bladder in the seat, 4 wheels disc brakes, different gear shifter/placement, plus new gear ratio's (lower). Thats off the top of head besides the air bladder in the seat you let me know which one of those won't help in mud or water?? My buddy and I just redid his entire 2004 660 grizz down to the frame, from what I learned from stripping it down, HUGE improvements! Oh yeah and I don't need a lift to fit 28's :P

  What about the Bruteforce? My friend bought one and he says it's indestructable.

Rhino by far.
Change the oil,filter and clean the airfilter and oil it religiously.
Just ask around, I've had my Rhino for exactly 2 years now. 1 broken axle (self induced) and it don't get no slack at all. Your back will not hurt you either after a 60 mile ride in a hard morning or afternoon. I will never buy another utility or sport for myself, side by side for me only. Also took it to Hatfield McCoy Nov 06 and had no problems, even on the black trails I went on.

You old fart ;D

HaHa!
but I do have to agree, and I just turned 27, the rhino is great for a nice comfortable ride.

You owned one before me  ;D

i guess the brute forces are goog but ive never had one. backwoods boy has a pretty sweet bf650. i think it will wheelie if it could get traction. if you hammer the throttle, it just spins. it has a belt though. ive never heard of a honda tranny problem other than unmaintained ones. if you dont put oil in it it might go bad. but from personal experience, the hondas are the best bikes. weve never had a problem with a honda. we have had a problem with yamis, kawasakis, and suzukis. never had and never will have a polaris.  ::)

you cant go wrong with any of them though if you maintain them properly. find one youre comfortable on and can get a good deal on and go for it.

I owned one before they were "in style". I still have it and have not had one problem with it. It is fun and will go anywhere but it doesnt get my adrenaline pumping like racing through the woods or hill shooting on my 450. 

I buy ArmorAll for my  4 Wheelers....I had no idea they had Oil too!

Depending on what you start to do. Trail ride yes...water and mud ride....LOL...There is something with the kawi V twin engines that doesn't like water(can't remember) but most of the time 1 sink on one and its time for a rebuild(I thought I wouldn't do the water and mud thing when I first go it but...thats all I do now). When you go with some bigger tires on them you have to keep the belt almost in perfect spec to not smoke the belt. I got tired of keeping my AC 650 V2(kawi V twin engine) belt nice and tight so I sold it to my dad and bought a AC 650 H1(no belt probs with any size tire). The AC H1(along with the new 700 efi H1) and the grizzlies have the best belt system out there.   

If you are wanting an inbetween bike I would get a Can-am Renegade, comes in 500 or 800cc.

As far as maintence goes its the normal air filter, oil filter and oil changes. and every 500 miles diff oil changes.  Sometimes torn boots and sometimes a differential seal.

All I do is Oil changes and clean the filters on my Cats and never one problem out of them. Here is a pic of what I ride like everytime it goes out.


if I remember right the 02s where the first of the 660s and had the MOST problems. Heard so many stories of the 02s and how much better the 03+s where

  I'm with Matt on the adrenaline. I remember that ride at Delancey...man were we haulin azz. That's when I crashed on some whoops keeping up with you and couldn't see. You dusted me out!!
   Riding a side by side makes me feel like I'm driving a car. I kinda like the sound of the Can Am. Maybe I will need a in between.I hope I don't buy something and then wish I stuck with a sport quad.
   I've heard some good and bad about belts. I prefer chains myself. This is going to take some real thinking.
   
   

Don't let belts scare you away. The only way they really fail is if they get wet or its a kawi ;D

I would agree with kawa3 don't let a belt scare you, I felt the same as you did about the belt system before I switched to them and have yet to ever change a belt on any of my bikes at all, I also agree with kawa3 about yamaha having one of the best belt drive systems out there, not sure about actic cat because I have never personally had one but I do hear good things about them as well.
and if you are still looking for an adreniline rush don't buy a rhino, they are awesome machines but certainly not the fastest thing out there. I am sure polaris RZR would do it for you but I wouldn't buy one if my life depended on it. talk about a bad belt drive system.

If you are wanting a used 4wd then step-up to the plate.You have three choices.None are cheap as compared to sports.

1.Can-Am Outlander 800.Pricey even used.Visco-lock diff sux for light throttle use in technical terrain.crappy frame.Awesome motor being a twin and good belt/tranny.Moderate aftermarket.Can-Ams do have their share of issues.Good Looking bike.

2.Grizzly 700.Great bike and priced right.Little lacking on power with bigger tires.Still a single cylinder.Small aftermarket.Good Looking bike

3.Brute Force 650i or 750i.NO SRA 650's.Top Hp motor along with Can-Am getting the nod.True diff-lock but a stupid lever design that needs to be held to engage.$30 Pendlock fix for it.05's had issues as it was the 1st year.Undoubtably the most attractive of the Ute's.Superior low-end bar none.Takes and turns easily 30" meats stock.Aftermarket is as vast as you imagine.If you have a question about a Brute there is an answer easily found.You hear horror stories about Brutes because there are soo many of them and they get all the attention.They have no more issues than the other two listed up top.Snorkel it Dynatek it and put some bigger meats on it.You don't need to do more.The bike is a giant.The belt issues are the owners problem with understanding it like every other belt design.They are all nearly the same.

I won't do a single cylinder for a big tire Ute for obvious reasons.The Outty 800 is just too much money even used and the visco design sealed the deal for me.

The Grizzly 700 is a fantastic bike with pro's and con's compared to the Brute.The single cylinder sealed its fate with me.

Arctic cat makes some good ground clearance 4wds but they are dog ugly IMO.Some people like them.Not me.

Polaris 800...good motor awful sound and hold heavy.770lbs!!!!Nearly 200lbs heavier than the others.

I was in the same boat as you and just bought a Z400 and a Rappy700..rode the Rappy700 once at the Pumpkin run and never rode it again.It was 4wd time and I couldn't be happier about it.I bought an Silver 06 Brute Force 750 for less than $5k.It came with 27"/SS112's on it with 1.5" spacers.It's massive.I put a Penland slip-on and a Dynatek CDi along with a 2" SSATV lift.Snorkeled it and got the carbs dialed in.

 So your happy with the Brute? My buddy has one and he says it goes through anything. It's a pretty mean looking quad too.

I weigh all the options and then go with the winner.Nothing wrong with the Outty 800 and the Grizzly700.Add all the pros and cons and the Brute is the winner pretty easily.The Renny800 is in the same boat as the Outty with terrible mud/water protection.

The Outty is just too much money and you'll never overcome the fact the Grizz is a single.It is not about highest HP in the UTE world it is about torque.The Grizzly700 and the Brute are only about 7 or HP away from each other but the low-end is not the same.I don't touch 4Lo.We all mod them to a degree.The Grizzly just falls behind faster and the Outty is pricey to mod.

I've had issues with the Brute from day one but they are all simple to fix and have NOT been hard or expensive.Three things you have to do to it.
1..The most important..Snorkel it.It cost me $50 in parts and couple hours.Easier than you think.Website to walk you through it.
2..Dynatek CDi,$100 for a used one and you get rid of the low-end timing retard and the belt trip limp-mode.The Rev. rev limiter is gone and the top-end limiter is increased.Stronger running all around.
3..Bigger tires.27" minimum.The Brute will easily power brake 30" tires on pavement.

I would say shorgasm has a pretty fair review I actually could not decide for a while between the 08 grizz and the brute 750. I did alot of research and just decided I liked the new snorkel system they put on the grizz just a little bit more, i do lots of water riding and of course I love the look, but that brute is a monster and I cant say that I wouldn't love to have both! You could always wait for that new teryx the new kawasaki sidexside if it's as comfortable as the rhino but has the power of the brute that is gonna be the sidexside to have, hell it's looks almost identical to the rhino, it's looking sweet! I like it, not a bad price either, well it's right on with the others maybe a little lower.
(http://img406.imageshack.us/img406/5893/teryxes0.jpg)