2018 Yamaha YFZ50 vs. 2018 Polaris Outlaw 50: By the Numbers

If you are looking for a new ATV for your youngster, you’d be smart to consider  both the 2018 Yamaha YFZ50 and Polaris Outlaw 50.

I go to my local dealership quite a bit and often take the kids with me. For them, it’s better than going to the toy store. There’s cool riding gear, and rows of amazing machines. I get the excitement. I mean, I still get excited when I walk in and I’ve been doing this for decades. Imagine the look on your kid’s face come Christmas morning when they find a sweet new ATV under the tree with the big, red bow? For the littlest riders out there aged six years and up, there are a few really cool machines. Let’s take a look at a couple of the newest, the 2018 Yamaha YFZ 50 and the 2018 Polaris Outlaw 50 – by the numbers.

49cc of Raw Power!

There are a lot of similarities between these two machines, the biggest being the engines. Both run on a 49cc, air-cooled, single cylinder, four-stroke motor. Both machines are fed fuel through a 12mm carburetor and have a CVT automatic transmission with forward only. To keep your little speed demon in check, both machines have a tethered kill switch and a speed limiter that you can control.

Final drive for both units comes from a chain-drive system. Both units have electric start, and the Yamaha has a kick-start for back up in case your miniature off-roader somehow drains the battery.

Comforts and Clearances

The 2018 Yamaha YFZ50 has appearances mirroring the bigger YFZ450R. It has inspired suspension with 2.4 inches of travel in the front riding on a single A-arm, and 2.0 inches of travel out back riding on a swingarm, much like the sporty big brother. It has 3.5 inches of ground clearance for riding down trails and across the yard.

The Outlaw is very similar with 3.0 inches of travel front and rear. The front also rides on single A-arms and the rear is also on a swingarm setup. The Outlaw, named after the sport ATV Polaris used to produce, has 4.0 inches of ground clearance. They both run on 16-inch Duro tires and steel rims.

Weight for the Yamaha is listed at 220 pounds wet, and 215 for the Outlaw dry, so they’re pretty even. The Outlaw carries 1.2 gallons of fuel versus the 1.5 gallons the Yamaha carries, giving it some extended range.

The 2018 Yamaha YFZ50 comes in Yamaha white and blue and retails for $2,099. Find out more at https://www.yamahamotorsports.com/sport-atv/models/yfz50 or your local Yamaha dealer.

The 2018 Polaris Outlaw 50 comes in Avalanche Gray and either Pink Power, or Lime Squeeze. It also comes with a whip flag and a matching youth-sized helmet. They retail for $2,099, too. Learn more at https://atv.polaris.com/en-us/outlaw-50/ or at your local Polaris dealer.

Better hurry, though. Youth models never sit on the dealer showroom floors for long and with the holidays approaching, they’ll be gone before you know it.