AC vs YAM 700

[Ryan_V]

Any advice on which way to go between the Arctic Cat 700 efi (limited edition) or the Yamaha griz 700???? I'm leaning twards the cat because of a deal I found and reports I've heard, but currently have a Yamaha and have had zero problems, and am somewhat loyal to yam

[CaptainMusky]

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Any advice on which way to go between the Arctic Cat 700 efi (limited edition) or the Yamaha griz 700???? I'm leaning twards the cat because of a deal I found and reports I've heard, but currently have a Yamaha and have had zero problems, and am somewhat loyal to yam

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It really boils down to how you are going to use it. I am assuming you are talking both brand new. If so, the Yamaha is going to have power steering where the AC does not. For some that is an important thing, for others not so much. I have spent some time on a Grizz with power steering and it was nice, but it was unnerving at higher speeds. It seemed to overcompensate and that is scary.

The AC's are great units, built really tough. They are far and away the heaviest ATV's out there, so that sacrifices some acceleration and top speed. They will go through more stuff than pretty much any other machine made.

They have the most suspension travel and ground clearance out there as well.

If you do more work with your ATV I would say the AC would be the better choice, if it is more "racing" around on trails the Grizz my be a slightly better choice. IMO you really can't go wrong with either as they are both dependable units and require little maintenance. For my I would get a 650 H1 AC. It isn't Efi, but you can get great deals on these and they have more than enough power plus all the nice standard features that AC is noted for like speedrack, the 2 inch receiver, etc.

[Blaze]

Ryan - I have not seen many reports on the AC700 EFI, but I see mixed reports about the rest of the AC models. Of course, you'll find some bad reports about Yams too, but overall, my gut feeling is that a Yam will provide better reliability long term, and since you're already a happy Yam owner, why change?

My $.02

[CaptainMusky]

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Ryan - I have not seen many reports on the AC700 EFI, but I see mixed reports about the rest of the AC models. Of course, you'll find some bad reports about Yams too, but overall,

my gut feeling

is that a Yam will provide better reliability long term, and since you're already a happy Yam owner, why change?

My $.02

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Good point Blaze about not switching if you have had good luck, but one thing I was wondering was what "reports" are you referring to? If you are referring to magazine reports, I would throw those out the window as they are complete biased. If you are referring to owners, that is a different story.

Ryan, I would suggest that you visit some "owner" forums to get some additional information. You can go to ArcticChat (Contact Us Please) com, Highlifter, or other sites and pose any variety of questions to get good responses.

[jtm]

Buddy of mine has an 06 ac 700 and has had nothing but problems. oil leaks and tranny probs. I know I've towed him out of the woods 2x this year with my yam, and he has only gone 3x this year....stick with what has worked for you

[Bjjams]

The AC is a pretty decent machine as far as power and abilities. With that said one of my riding buddies bought one 2 weeks ago and already has it back in the shop for differential seals. It is significantly lighter than most other big bore cats. I think it's listed just under 650 lbs. I'd go grizz.

[CaptainMusky]

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The AC is a pretty decent machine as far as power and abilities. With that said one of my riding buddies bought one 2 weeks ago and already has it back in the shop for differential seals. It is significantly lighter than most other big bore cats. I think it's listed just under 650 lbs. I'd go grizz.

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That's amazing the problems you guys are talking with the diff seals. My dad has 9000 miles (yes, nine thousand)on his 2007 AC TRV H1 and hasn't had any trouble with diff seals. He bought it last November, been an excellent machine for him. He gets over 22mpg as well. This is NOT the 700 efi engine, though, it is the 650 H1, but diff seals and drivetrain should be the same. Strange.

[Blaze]

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Ryan - I have not seen many reports on the AC700 EFI, but I see mixed reports about the rest of the AC models. Of course, you'll find some bad reports about Yams too, but overall,

my gut feeling

is that a Yam will provide better reliability long term, and since you're already a happy Yam owner, why change?

My $.02

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Good point Blaze about not switching if you have had good luck, but one thing I was wondering was what "reports" are you referring to? If you are referring to magazine reports, I would throw those out the window as they are complete biased. If you are referring to owners, that is a different story.

Ryan, I would suggest that you visit some "owner" forums to get some additional information. You can go to ArcticChat (Contact Us Please) com, Highlifter, or other sites and pose any variety of questions to get good responses.

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Capt - if you go to ArcticChat, you can expect pro-AC responses - they're AC guys, and that's why they sign up there. Believe me, I wish I could recommend AC and PoPo over Yams and other imports without hesitation since they're MN companies, but I'm not sure I can.

The reports I'm referring to are from personal experience, talking to guys on the trail, out on the ice while ice fishing, at the gas station filling up - my own fieldwork. I frequently ask guys at the gas station how they like their ATV, trucks, sleds - you get some pretty candid responses.

When I read the magazine reviews, I usually check what they liked and didn't like about the machine. If I see consistent themes from multiple mags, I can make a pretty safe assumption it's for real. I never take one guy's opinion (or magazine, etc) as the truth.

Of course, driving each ATV would allow me to be the subject matter expert...

[Roofer]

Between them two, I would choose the Grizzly unless you are going to use it strictly for work. The 700 suzuki motor is kinda under-powered for that heavy of a mahine like the AC. They aren't the heaviest (Polaris is), but they are close.

The comment about sticking with one company is not a good idea unless you know the competition. It's always best to try out others or you won't know what your missing and maybe end up with a Honda! LOL Only joking guys.

The best thing to do is find out what you want to do with it. As far as price I think the Griz is pretty high compared to others besides the all mighty Canned Ham.

Griz= trail-rider

AC= mud and work

Both fuel injected, but the 700 raptor motor in the Griz is just a tad more powerful, and in a lighter machine.

JMO, for me, I would choose neither............

[CaptainMusky]

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Capt - if you go to ArcticChat, you can expect pro-AC responses - they're AC guys, and that's why they sign up there.

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I disagree about the ArcticChat thing. Yes, they are AC owners by majority, but they are VERY candid and voice their concerns/issues with their rides. My point of going to a site like that is you will see what types of issues people are having. Don't post a question out there like should I get an AC or a Yam, but search for the model you are looking at and look for issues.

I spent time on a Grizz 700 and it was very nice. I really couldn't say anything bad about it, other than the power steering being overcompensating.

Like has been said, it really boils down to what it will be used for. They are all decent machines, but some excel in certain conditions that others do not.

[jltimm]

My vote is for Yamaha.Although the Arctic Cat 700 has a Suzuki engine, it's the rest of the machine I wouldn't trust.

[PERCHJR]

Ryan, I agree with all the other guys on the working to racing comparison it really boils down to what you will be using it mostly for, I own a 07 700efi and love it to death. With the speedrack system, the ground clearance and also the 2" receiver hitch there really isn't any comparison. I also had the diff problems with the seals, get them fixed under warranty and you have a perfect machine. It has plenty of power for the size and also gets between 25 and 30 mpg, again this is my opinion, again ride them all and make your mind up yourself, as everyone will push for there brand!!!

Perchjr

[knoppers]

nice ride PERCHJR.

I have a 02 grizz, and have 2700 miles with no problems. I like the light weight and the great ride. I am also loyal to artic cat, since I have owned many sleds, and my 04 F6 has had no problems also.

tough choice, I know if I get a new wheeler, it would be cat or yammi. leaning towards the grizz.

[Scott K]

I have a 04 grizz, 1400 miles, no problems. Friend bought the 07 it smokes my 04. The ride is alot better, the power steering is awsome. The only negative thing I have to say about it is its a littly thirsty, it goes through gas a little more then my 660. But I would trade him any day. I vote the Yamaha, I havent drove the FI artic cats, but have drove the 650 twin , an 05, my grizz is a much better ride then that is, with more power.

[LMITOUT]

I wouldn't completely agree with the racing vs. work comparisons of the Yamaha. Here's a few pictures of my Grizz (one month old at the time ) helping a buddy out who got into some trouble with his snowmobile.

Grizz getting a little work-out

I currently have an auger mount on the front rack and an Otter box on the rear for ice fishing. It pulls my 3000lb fish house across the lake with ease and is never short of power. Lots of low-end grunt for working. I think I may purchase an aftermarket receiver hitch to make hitching up the ice house easier this fall, but not having one at the time of purchase wasn't that big of deal in the grand scheme of things. Engine reputation and reliability were the two biggest factor when I made my purchase.

It's hard to discount the number of years that Yamaha has been making the Grizz and how little they've changed up until this past year when they went to EFI and made some frame changes along with the new power steering. Not making a lot of changes year after year has to say something about how it's designed. There, that's my sales pitch.

Go out and ride a couple is the only thing you can do. There has been a lot said about each brand here already so that should give you a little more confidence one way or another that these are both decent machines. Each has it's positives and negatives and it's up to the buyer to decide which ones are more important to them.

Good Luck!

[CaptainMusky]

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I wouldn't completely agree with the racing vs. work comparisons of the Yamaha. Here's a few pictures of my Grizz (one month old at the time

) helping a buddy out who got into some trouble with his snowmobile.

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Nice pics! The difference between what you did and what an AC would have done is the AC would have driven up alongside the snowmobile, attached the rope and driven out. LOL

Just kidding.

[Down2Earth]

Those are some cool pics. AS far as the guy with the Skidoo- My mama always said, "Stupid is as Stupid does"

[Roofer]

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I wouldn't completely agree with the racing vs. work comparisons of the Yamaha. Here's a few pictures of my Grizz (one month old at the time

) helping a buddy out who got into some trouble with his snowmobile.

Grizz getting a little work-out

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I don't see anything on the other end of that rope, or even the final pic of getting it out. Nice pictures, but for all I know, there is a Duramax on the other end of that rope.

[LMITOUT]

Nope, sorry. The Duramax was parked down the road with an empty ATV trailer behind it. The Yamaha did all the work!

Put'r in 4-LO and locked the front diff and started pulling. I actually had some decent speed moving it which surprised me considering I have the stock tires plus that snow. I really thought there was no chance pulling that sled out, up a slight incline no less as you can see in the pictures. The slush/ice started to pile up on the hood of the sled but the Grizz kept going. I then had to pull it up a nice ditch to get it on the shoulder of the highway and then down a ways to a snowmobile trailer which was parked on a side road.

I was pretty proud of my new toy after that and reaffirmed why I bought the Yamaha!

[Ryan_V]

what does a guy look for in the seals??? I pulled the trigger on an 07 700EFI limited edition. after much thought, talking to many people and looking for a while, the cat seemed to be the best fit for me in more ways than one including budget. I want to watch those seals and keep my eye onthem during warranty, where do i look and what do I look for??

thanks, Ryan

[PERCHJR]

Ryan, as I said before I had trouble with my seals, the left rear and the front right side leaked. They were obvious when they leaked, they dripped. Your's mite not have the same trouble as mine. a buddy also bought a new Cat, the 07 650 but the same chassis and his were all fine, just keep an eye out for any drips!!!

Perchjr

[96trigger]

Most people are very candid about what they have bought. I have an Arctic Cat 650V2, it was the 2004 ATV of the year, but I probably wouldn't buy another Cat unless the it was a real sweet deal. Dont get me wrong, I do like my Cat, but I don't love it. I've seen some Yamahas take a lot more abuse and have a lot less problems.

Just some things to think about:

We are in Minnesota, EFI is great in the winter.

They should change the name from Arctic Cat to "Fairly Warm Cat". They are the most cold blooded, god aweful machines to start in the winter, if you don't get them started right away, you might as well go back inside the house. (Common problem, read Arctic Chat).

There are also a few minor electric problems in my 04 that I believe they have worked out.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not unhappy with my Cat, I just think the Yamaha would have been a little more user friendly.

[Roofer]

The AC 650 v2 is a Kawi motor. Yes they seem cold blooded. You just have to learn how to use them. Maybe one of the best AC's made until recent.

[cold one sd]

I have an Arctic Cat 400 and have never had a problem starting it. Maybe a 650V2 is harder to start, or it is just this South Dakota air. Does your 650 have a primer an the carb???

[jltimm]

The 650 V-2 is a Kawi motor as pointed out earlier.It is a twin cylinder, and has twin carbs.I think the cold starting issue has to do with the twin carbs.