Want feedback on a couple of yamaha's competitors?
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probably not the best place to ask for input on those bikes, most will drag them to the lowest....
personally , i do feel yamaha is a superior machine to either of these .
they will have more power, but most that have rode them will say the yamaha is much smoother and more comfortable seating position.
both are very well built and reliable. I would take either one before a Can Am, and even a bmx bicycle before a polaris quad (they know sxs and snowmobiles lol)
A friend has ran quite a few Kawasaki's and had no major problems with them. He is now running Arctic Cats and loves them. His father in law is a Suzuki man and likewise no problems that I have heard of.
I personally think that as long as you take care of them and do the maintence along with fixing what you break out on the trail that most of them are good machines or they wouldn't still be selling them.
I myself like Yamaha better than the other. However Arctic Cat has a few things that I like such as a switch on the console for had warmers and hand warmers from the factory. Along with some of their storage compartments such as one on the rear of the machine.
I personally think that as long as you take care of them and do the maintence along with fixing what you break out on the trail that most of them are good machines or they wouldn't still be selling them.
I myself like Yamaha better than the other. However Arctic Cat has a few things that I like such as a switch on the console for had warmers and hand warmers from the factory. Along with some of their storage compartments such as one on the rear of the machine.
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Yeah, next time I get a chance to attend a club meeting, I will pick some brains. Can am isn't even in the thought process. I wouldn't buy one on principle. As a Canadian, I wouldn't piss on Bombardier! Polaris is also one I am not interested in. I rode a 2016 Honda rubicon SE recently. Hated it.
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What's the deal with Can Am, Bombardier, and Canada? I thought Bombardier made Can Am's.
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I'm with you my Canadian brother. I hate government bailouts as much as the next guy, and I can see where they should be sourcing local workers if they want them to support the company.
a guy in my local ATV club has a suzuki king quad with 5,000 miles on it and no issues other than basic maintenace..another member has a polaris and says they're a nightmare.. i think of it as the old school brands (suzuki, yamaha, honda) have been doin this forever so they have something right--i wouldnt trust a CFmoto for example...I personally might try a can am outlander 570 next
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Have friends and coworker with Suzukis and Brute Force quads all with 7000+ miles and all seem to be solid and reliable machines as my own Grizzly has been.
One of the members named Reogem over on the grizzly forum has a 2013 Grizzly 700 with 22 000 miles! He switched over to a 2016 Kodiak 700 in 2017 and has been racking up MEGA mileage on it without issues as well.
One of the members named Reogem over on the grizzly forum has a 2013 Grizzly 700 with 22 000 miles! He switched over to a 2016 Kodiak 700 in 2017 and has been racking up MEGA mileage on it without issues as well.
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nothing wrong with cfmoto, they have been in the small engine game for a long time. not to mention they use some quality parts in their machines, just one example, who else comes with elka shocks stock?
I would take a cfmoto over a polaris anyday
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why would you rule out Yamaha? bad experience? If so, hit up every single forum for every moterized vehicle. there will be a carbon copy of your experience , guaranteed. It happens with every brand. But if you look at the numbers, it happens far less with yamaha and honda.
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Why Yamaha? Because my machine has been using oil since it was under warranty and the dealer just kept blowing me off. They did a leak down and compression test when Yamaha finally started coming clean about the issues with the 16's. Apparently, mine passed and they said it has no issues. I asked,then why was it using oil? I was told I wasn't driving it hard enough or running it for long enough intervals. Total bs as far as I'm concerned. So here I am, likely faced with footing the bill to have the top end done on a bike that was defective when I bought it. Now granted, it isn't using a lot but,that's because I don't drive it much anymore mainly due to the fact that I don't trust it. I plowed my driveway 4 or 5 times this winter and other than that, it hasn't moved. It still used almost 5 ounces of oil and I don't have what you'd call a huge driveway. I contacted Yamaha long ago and the never even dignified me with a response. Since it's first service, I've had to add oil 4 times and it's still almost 1000 km from it's 2500km service interval.
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115 Posts
Hi Nomad,
We bought a 2015 Brute Force 300 for my wife and have been very happy with it. It is only 2WD but has gone up some surprisingly steep hills and over some pretty seriously technical trails! It has also been VERY reliable. We were NOT nice to this machine! She has been flipped 3 times (once by me doing donuts) and suffered a few scratches and broken speedo pod. I smoked the belt on the first ride on a gnarly tank trap and she has squeaked upon takeoff since, but still drives well. The only issues we have had is the choke cable broke in the first year and has not been fixed so she can be tricky to start in the cold and riders keep forgetting to take the parking brake off (myself included). She IS due for a tuneup and fixing of broken parts, but has been well worth the purchase and has given the whole family a LOT of fun!
The lil Brute force is like a sports car compared to the Cadillac ride of the Kodiak 700.
I really like my new Kodiak, but can see why people get frustrated with them. The first thing I did was have the airbox fixed so dust would not bypass the filter. My next modification will probably be a fuel optimizer so it doesn't run so hot. I sure hope this Kodiak is as reliable and tough as the little Kawasaki Brute Force 300 has been.
Happy Trails!
: )B
We bought a 2015 Brute Force 300 for my wife and have been very happy with it. It is only 2WD but has gone up some surprisingly steep hills and over some pretty seriously technical trails! It has also been VERY reliable. We were NOT nice to this machine! She has been flipped 3 times (once by me doing donuts) and suffered a few scratches and broken speedo pod. I smoked the belt on the first ride on a gnarly tank trap and she has squeaked upon takeoff since, but still drives well. The only issues we have had is the choke cable broke in the first year and has not been fixed so she can be tricky to start in the cold and riders keep forgetting to take the parking brake off (myself included). She IS due for a tuneup and fixing of broken parts, but has been well worth the purchase and has given the whole family a LOT of fun!
The lil Brute force is like a sports car compared to the Cadillac ride of the Kodiak 700.
I really like my new Kodiak, but can see why people get frustrated with them. The first thing I did was have the airbox fixed so dust would not bypass the filter. My next modification will probably be a fuel optimizer so it doesn't run so hot. I sure hope this Kodiak is as reliable and tough as the little Kawasaki Brute Force 300 has been.
Happy Trails!
: )B
One problem with visiting forums and reading post is that most of the people on them have had a problem and are looking for solutions to that problem.
It doesn't matter if it is a ATV, truck, car, dirt bike, boat, or whatever type of forum that is what they are here for.
Very few show up just to learn about the machines or to post their good luck with them.
I came here looking for a solution to my brake light switch but ended up finding the problem myself and stuck around to see if I could help others.
Now I am going out to check the oil in my Kodiak...................
It doesn't matter if it is a ATV, truck, car, dirt bike, boat, or whatever type of forum that is what they are here for.
Very few show up just to learn about the machines or to post their good luck with them.
I came here looking for a solution to my brake light switch but ended up finding the problem myself and stuck around to see if I could help others.
Now I am going out to check the oil in my Kodiak...................
I had a 16 Kodiak, and had many issues with it, sold it to a guy who fixed it and is happy with it. I asked this forum what I should buy now and they said an 18 Kodiak, so now 3 months into it, I like it and have no issues other than it had very poor set up by the dealer.
Having said that I still have a 91 honda 4trax that I bought new and never have had it worked on and if I went out at this moment, it would start and run well, it is a bit small for what I need now days, but I will never sell it.
Having said that I still have a 91 honda 4trax that I bought new and never have had it worked on and if I went out at this moment, it would start and run well, it is a bit small for what I need now days, but I will never sell it.
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82 Posts
Around here I don't see a lot of Kawasakis or Suzukis . . . but they tend to have a decent reputation overall.
I see a lot of Polaris ATVs . . . but based on Club members' experiences and my own test ride I was not interested in the least with this brand.
I like Hondas for reliability . . . but they seem to lag behind a lot of their competitors with features and you pay for that reliability with a steep price tag.
CanAms are not as common, but once again they seem to command a higher price tag.
For me personally the Yamaha Kodiak was a clear winner as I was looking for reliability, some extra features over Hondas and I wanted a machine that would be just as good plowing, hauling firewood, etc. as it would be on the trail.
I see a lot of Polaris ATVs . . . but based on Club members' experiences and my own test ride I was not interested in the least with this brand.
I like Hondas for reliability . . . but they seem to lag behind a lot of their competitors with features and you pay for that reliability with a steep price tag.
CanAms are not as common, but once again they seem to command a higher price tag.
For me personally the Yamaha Kodiak was a clear winner as I was looking for reliability, some extra features over Hondas and I wanted a machine that would be just as good plowing, hauling firewood, etc. as it would be on the trail.
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The weight of the oil you run in these machines really effects how much it smokes. I tried running 10w30 in mine once because I was operating it in such cold temperatures that it had a hard time starting and it burned oil so bad that I thought I hurt the engine. I drained that oil out and replaced it with 10w40 and it completely quit. If your machine really smokes that bad then I would consider trying a 50 weight oil in it.
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Was the oil from Yamaha?
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