Updated 2025 Yamaha Grizzly 700 Test Review
2025 Yamaha Grizzly 700 EPS Ratings
Summary: 2025’s power steering upgrades have made one of our favorite machines even better. The Grizzly remains a machine we wouldn’t hesitate to recommend to many riders. 2025’s $1,000 price reduction means it’s the best time to pick one up in a few years. If you’re considering the Grizzly 700, we don’t think you’ll be disappointed. If you’re not considering one, you might be missing out. We love the Yamaha Grizzly.
4.5
3 Month Test
Yamaha’s outstanding Grizzly 700 is the 4×4 ATV we’ve recommended to more friends and viewers than any other due to its build quality, fun factor, and incredibly well rounded performance for both work and play. It was the first ATV on the market featuring power steering when it was released in 2007. Combined with its compact chassis, extensive mass centralization, and relatively light weight, it remained one of the lightest feeling, most agile handling, full-size 4×4 ATVs on the market.
While never fully redesigned from the ground up, Yamaha has done a remarkable job keeping the Grizzly modern and relevant. They widened its track width 2” in 2014 accompanied by updated suspension and power steering. The result was more precise and stable handling. Engine updates added more bottom end power.
In 2016, the machine was restyled into the look we see for 2025 along with a ton of other changes. Tire size increased from 25” to 26”. The shocks were again updated improving stability and enhancing ride quality. Steering and EPS were also updated along with a number of other changes to improve ergonomics, durability, storage, and work capabilities. There was a new 708cc engine for 2016 that only hung around for two years. It performed well, but Yamaha felt it wasn’t quite up to their stringent standards.
2019 brought with it a return to the proven 686cc engine with a 6% reduction in gearing for improved acceleration. For 2025, Yamaha has revised the power steering with increased electrical power and assistance along with accompanying chassis changes to deal with the added torque.
As a long-time favorite that we haven’t had the chance to review since 2016, we felt a fresh test of the Grizzly 700 was long overdue. So, with that, we’re excited to bring you our test of Yamaha’s updated 2025 Grizzly 700.
2025 Yamaha Grizzly Trim Packages and Pricing
Perhaps the biggest update across the Grizzly line for 2025 was a $1,000 price reduction.
Models begin with the Grizzly EPS, featuring the same engine, chassis, and suspension as the other trim packages. It’s the sportiest machine in the Grizzly lineup for general trail riding due to its lighter wheel and tire package, Yamaha spec, 26” Maxxis tires mounted on cast aluminum rims. Its faster accelerating and lighter handling manners were our reasons for choosing the base models Grizzly EPS as our test unit. It’s also the most affordable in the lineup at $10,399.
The Grizzly EPS LTD adds painted plastic in a unique color scheme. More mud focused 27×10” Maxxis, Zilla tires are mounted on 14” cast aluminum wheels at all four corners. At $10,999 the perks are a good value if you are in the market for an ATV with a more mud focused wheel and tire package.
The XT-R Edition also comes standard with a square, 27” Maxxis Zilla tire setup mounted on XT-R specific cast aluminum rims, matched to its Special Edition color. A Warn VRX 25 winch enhances work and recoverability with the XT-R listing for $11,399.
For hunters, the Grizzly EPS Camo comes with all of the features of the XT-R, plus camo covered bodywork and blacked out cast aluminum wheels for $11,499.
Engine Performance
The Grizzly is powered by a 686cc, liquid cooled, fuel injected, four-stroke, single-cylinder engine. With a 10:1 compression ratio, it features a four-valve, SOHC head design. Air is drawn for the engine from high in front of the rider. The airbox, located under the seat, provides tool-less access to the air-filter. A 44mm throttle body delivers the fuel drawn from a 4.8 GAL fuel tank. Burnt fuel is passed through a corrosion resistant, stainless steel exhaust with the engine said to produce 48.28 HP. With a light curb weight of 701 LB, its power to weight ratio is good for the big-bore, single segment.
The top end is mated to a Yamaha, Ultramatic, CVT. Featuring a centrifugal clutch to handle engagement and disengagement. This allows the drive belt to remain under constant tension, eliminating slippage, greatly reducing wear, enabling Yamaha to cover the belt with a 10 year warranty. Air to keep the transmission running cool is drawn from high on the machine for maximum cooling and minimum water and debris intrusion. A gated shifter lets you select between high and low forward ranges, plus neutral, reverse, and park. A sprag clutch delivers engine braking to all four wheels in 4WD.
Drivetrain modes deliver what most riders prefer. It offers 2WD and 4WD with a limited-slip front differential that can be locked. Drive modes are selected on the throttle with slick, intuitive operation.
On our 30° test day, the Grizzly started and warmed up quickly without hesitation. Roll on the gas from a dead stop and the Grizzly gets rolling smoothly, without a hint of a grabby clutch or belt lash due to its primary centrifugal clutch.
There’s plenty of power on tap for working or spirited trail riding. Power is easy to modulate without the need for selectable throttle modes that add cost. Low-end power is strong and smooth allowing the Grizzly to torque along for casual rides or low speed work duties. Power transitions smoothly into a strong midrange with good peak power. A decent revver, it accelerates out of corners with some authority. Power slides aren’t a problem in two-wheel drive in snowy, wet, or dry conditions. It easily powered up the steepest hills we pointed it up with plenty of speed to launch it off a jump atop one of the hills we repeatedly raced up.
Test rider, Aaron Meyer, rode in our 2020 1000cc 4×4 shootout as well as our recent Ultimate Sport ATV Shootout, containing two one-liter twin cylinder machines. He felt the 686cc-single delivered a pleasing amount of performance, especially coupled with the Grizzly lightweight and compact wheelbase.
The transition from gas to the engine braking kicking in feels very similar to a gearbox transmission. It doesn’t seem to store energy in the driveline like some other CVT equipped ATVs, which feel like they push you forward for an instant after letting off the throttle. This adds to the engine’s feeling of predictability. Driveline chatter is almost completely undetectable transitioning from the gas to the brakes, especially compared to the clunking sounds we’ve heard from other brands
Aaron swapped between two and limited-slip 4WD throughout the day depending on whether he wanted to drift the rear end or corner hooked up. Engaging the front differential lock was never necessary, but having it in reserve is a great feature. It takes a couple seconds and a little rolling to fully engage and disengage, and won’t let you apply full power until it’s fully locked or unlocked to prevent damage.
Fun, durable, and capable are the adjectives that best sum up the power and drivetrain on the Yamaha Grizzly.
Chassis and Suspension
The Grizzly’s steel frame is very similar to the 2007 model, reinforced through the years for its increase in width and power steering updates. For 2025, the EPS is said to be all-new, featuring increased power for enhanced speed sensitive steering assist in a range of conditions Dual A-Arm suspension is found at both ends, mated to five-way preload adjustable gas charged shocks. They control 7.6” of wheel travel front and 9.1” rear; not the longest travel in the class, but more than many. Lower shock mounts are found on the lower A-Arms at both ends improving handling and suspension character. A sway bar is found out back adding stability. The frame and A-Arms are protected by plastic skid plates. Like most, the frame skid could be a bit thicker.
The Grizzly rolls on 26×8-12 front and 16×10-12 rear Yamaha spec Maxxis tires. They’re on the lighter side to keep weight down and fun-factor up. The tires are mounted on attractive, 12” cast-aluminum wheels.
The Grizzly EPS is pretty wide for its class at 48.4”. Seat height is pretty typical at 36.1”. Its wheelbase is one of the shortest at 49.2”, which makes its generous 11.3” of ground clearance even more effective. As mentioned before, its wet weight of 701 LBS is one of the lightest.
On a machine full of strong points, the Grizzly’s handling and suspension are what really stand out. Grizzly proves that you don’t need the fanciest shocks to have very good suspension. Overall suspension action is pretty sporty, never wallowing or leaving you feeling disconnected from the trail. It’s a pleasant ride for casual cruising while encouraging to push the sporty limits of the machine.
The shocks and compliant 26” tires do well at absorbing and rolling over small bumps. Medium-sized hits are well dampened. Landing repeatedly from a couple feet of air, Aaron never bottomed either end, although he felt he could if he jumped high enough or hit an abrupt g-out hard enough.
The rear end will squat under hard acceleration aiding handling in corners. The front end will squat a bit under hard braking helping set up for turns. However, the Grizzly doesn’t have the titter totter, front to rear, boaty sensation that’s synonymous with Polaris ATVs. We found consumer complaints regarding front-end dive somewhat exaggerated. Aaron leaned into off-camber downhill turns and stayed smooth on the front brakes without issue. Adding more preload to the front shocks would further reduce front-end dive, but without grabbing a handful of front end brakes on off cambers, it didn’t seem a necessity.
Steering is precise. The front-end tracks predictably in corners, or you can steer with the back end in 2WD. Unlike most full-size 4×4 ATVs, the Grizzly’s shorter wheelbase makes handling feel very light and agile on tight trails. It also makes the Grizzly easy to wheelie, especially at low speeds. It’s helpful for getting the front end over logs or times you need to wheelie off a ledge. Even at intermediate speeds, a small bump or raise in the trail can be turned into a wheelie by simply leaning back and applying more throttle.
On steep climbs, the shorter wheelbase lets you raise the front-end mid climb to get the front-end over obstacles. The shorter wheelbase could make the steepest, punchiest, low-speed climbs and descents a little tricky, which is about the only place it works against you.
The new power steering setting turned out better than we thought. Locking the front differential used to make the steering stiffen up; now, it’s virtually undetectable regardless of speed or how far you turn the bars. Sitting still or crawling along, the Grizzly’s power steering now feels nearly as light as Polaris’, which makes work or low-speed maneuvers easier. We were initially worried this would make steering twitchy at higher speeds, but the EPS assistance tapered off enough that steering remained predictable feeling at the plus 50 MPH speeds we reached during testing. Bump feedback filtered through the power steering was as good as or better than we remember from years past. Yamaha could add cost by adding a map switch for the power steering, but it doesn’t need it.
Light weight that’s enhanced with incredible mass centralization, excellent power steering, very capable suspension, and a compact wheelbase make the Grizzly 700 one of the best handling full size 4×4 ATVs on the market, both on the ground and in the air. It’s the main reason we feel the Grizzly is one of the sportiest, sport 4x4s on the market.
Brakes
The Grizzly is slowed by four-wheel hydraulic disc brakes. Unlike most machines in the class, the front and rear brakes are operated independently. The right side handlebar mounted lever controls the front and the left side mounted lever controls the rear along with the right floorboard mounted foot lever.
Braking power, feel, and control are seemingly unrivaled and on par with what we’d expect on a pure sport machine. With a little skill, you can perfectly modulate braking force front to rear. It’s great on descents and climbs if you get stuck. They allow you to scrub off speed in a hurry and pull off sport quad maneuvers like braking the back end loose to set up for turns. Braking is super important when you need it and you can’t ask for much better brakes than the Grizzly delivers.
Ergonomics and Styling
The Grizzly 700 shares its shape with the 2016 model we last tested. It’s still pretty modern, and muscular looking in our opinion. Dual LED lead lights with high and low beans are found up front along with a handlebar mounted light pod containing a halogen light to illuminate where you’re going. It’s bright enough, but we’d prefer the same color temperature on all the headlights. Lighting is plenty bright for night rides. An LED tail and brake light is found out back.
The light pod also contains the LCD instrument display, which is very easy to read. We like the overall function of the light pod and display, but it makes swapping out to a more sport focused handlebar a pain and it’s going to make a minor tip-over more expensive.
The Grizzly’s ergonomics enhance its sporty performance. Stepping aboard, the Grizzly feels more compact than it looks. Its midsection is acceptably narrow. There’s plenty of room between the front and rear fenders, and the seat height is unintrusive making the Grizzly easy to move around on. Although, some taller riders have noted hitting their rear end on the rear rack during aggressive riding.
The seat strikes a great balance between comfort and ease of rider movement. Unfortunately, rubber grommets aren’t enough to secure it to the machine during aggressive riding. Yamaha needs to upgrade this. The steel pegs are a step above most plastic pegs. Unlike some others, the rear brake pedal is low enough to use without lifting your foot off the peg. However, the clutch cover gets in the way a bit. Operation and feel of the hand controls, levers, and switches are top notch. While some might complain about the tall looking bars, Aaron felt their position offered good control everywhere. With a more secure seat attachment, the cockpit would be nearly perfect.
Work Capability
Grizzly EPS offers the convenience and strength of a 2” hitch receiver. It’s rated to tow 1,300 pounds, which is pretty competitive. Steel racks have typically been our favorite, but the competition’s latest composite racks are growing on us with their appearance of an under rack storage. Steel racks are still fine for getting work done and they are the easiest to find tie-down points on. The Grizzly’s racks are rated to haul up to 110 LBS front and 198 LBS rear, featuring a tough, wrinkle black painted finish.
There’s a nice size storage box between the rider’s knees and another at the back of the machine. They’re not weather sealed, but the rear box closes more securely than similar designs we’ve seen on other machines in the past. There’s also a weather sealed box under the round lid on the back of the right front fender.
Conclusion
Many sport/utility 4×4 enthusiasts seem obsessed with overpowered, overweight, extremely expensive 1000cc machines because they’re faster in a drag race. However, these riders are missing out on so many other important attributes that make an ATV sporty, like lightweight, agile handling and a higher level of control from the rider’s body inputs. The Grizzly delivers all of these at a higher level than most any full-size 4×4 ATV on the market while still offering plenty of power for work or play.
Japanese engineering and American build quality continue to deliver a machine with fit and finish that is noticeably better than its non-Japanese counterparts. The chassis and drivetrain emit less squeaks and knocks than those other machines. Body lines are even and symmetrical and the Grizzly’s hardware is a cut above self-tapping screws and other lackluster hardware used by some manufacturers.
2025’s power steering upgrades have made one of our favorite machines even better. The Grizzly remains a machine we wouldn’t hesitate to recommend to many riders. 2025’s $1,000 price reduction means it’s the best time to pick one up in a few years. If you’re considering the Grizzly 700, we don’t think you’ll be disappointed. If you’re not considering one, you might be missing out. We love the Yamaha Grizzly.
