Well, I guess I could field something on this one based on the type of hard riding we do which consists mostly of mud bogging, but we do push the machines to their limits.
Kawasaki 750 Brute Force:
First off, weak tie rods
very weak. If you do a lot of rough riding you will more than likely bend them pretty easily. I have talked to tons of people that have bent them doing almost nothing. Good thing about this is that tie rods are cheap to replace. What I did on my Grizzly is take the tie rod off and make a sleeve to go over it and then put it back on. This will reinforce it to assure you are not left on the trail somewhere.
The engine on the BF is pretty much the same tried and true Kawasaki design they have been using the last few years with a catch. The bore is so big on this engine that a lot of people have experienced some pretty severe overheating issues. I have even talked to a guy that rode one at the dealer and overheated on a test drive.
Air intake is another problem if you like riding in deep water or just splashing around in shallow water going fast. The air box is where the gas tank normally is on most other quads and has insufficient water protection pretty much letting in splashing water. This is another major complaint I have heard and seen first hand. About the only way to deal with this is with snorkels. The big bored engine is very thirsty and will suck in every little bit of water you throw its way.
Ground clearance is another issue being that the BF only has about a little over 10. This might matter to some, but for anyone that is looking to traverse rocky terrain or ride in mud its a major problem. The back end has fair ground clearance although the front is quite a bit lower. I have a buddy that just put 28 tires on his BF and is only sitting at 13 of GC in the front. Like I said though if you are not worried about banging around on rocks and getting stuck this really isnt an issue.
The power the Kawasaki engine puts out really is awesome; although there is a catch. A lot of Kawasakis I have seen in the past have been fast as heck on the trail although lacking something in the really deep mud pits. The BF is no different because we saw several in action recently and the Kawasaki version of the CVT leaves something to be desired for mud bogging.
Honda Rincon 650:
This is one great looking bike in my opinion!
The lack of low range is definitely and issue Honda should resolve. I know I have rode with many of them and for a 650 its extremely weak. I recently pulled against one and it couldnt even turn the tires over as I drug him.
The ground clearance leaves something to be desired on this bike as well being that it only has about 10 stock which is pretty low for an IRS bike.
One reason I stepped away from Honda is because of the lack of options like IRS on more models, other brands have more power, no disc brakes, no locking diff., etc
The Rincon also had some pretty serious issues with their CDIs and water pumps going out. This is not the old reliable Honda.
Yamaha Grizzly 660:
In my opinion this is a great all around bike although it does have its issues as well.
Stock axles are pretty much junk if you are going to lift and put bigger tires on it. I have blown a couple axles and all I have to say is that if you are going to jack this bike up with bigger tires
Gorilla!!
There were some overheating issues on the earlier models although the new ones have had changes to correct these problems. They still do overheat but not as bad as other models on the market. About the only time mine will overheat is after a long day of staying in the mud pits.
Vapor lock has to be the most complained about problem on this bike. If you go in water up to the engine the steam is trapped inside the engine compartment because the engine is completely covered. Basically what happens is the only way the steam has to go is up, and the air intake is up. When the air intake sucks in the steam the bike begins to sputter and will probably die on you. The modified side panels on the 04+ models do help this problem some although it still does it to a certain extent. My solution
snorkel it!!
Just like the BF the belt exhaust hose is under the back rack and as any serious rider will tell you when you barrel off into some deep water or mud the back sits the lowest. Pretty much what happens in deep water is that you dunk the belt exhaust under the water and it fills the transmission with mud and water. When this happens you arent going far. This is fixed by snorkeling the hose or re-routing it, which is very easy to do.
This is just a basic review from my experience on these bikes
I only did the BF, Rincon, and Grizzly because that is all I remember seeing anyone mention. Once again most people wont be half as hard on these machines as we are
if there is something weak on it, or something that is not up to par we will find it.
