Questions for new owner of 2005 TRX400 EX

[waxer]

This is my first quad. I'm 5' - 9" and weigh in about 205lbs. I noticed some pretty hard landings on my stock 400EX when I'd land some 6' jumps. The shocks are set at the standard setting and I'm wondering if I bump them up a notch, will it help out with those small jumps.

Also, is there anything I can do to give the bike some better throttle response? My buddies 660raptor and Polaris 500 both have much better off the line power. My 400EX doesn't have enough to lift the tires unless I rev it up a bit and pop the clutch. Any tips?

Thanks for the info.

[cals400ex]

you can stiffen up the shocks if you want, it will ride a bit harsher too though.

adjust the throttle cable. feel the throttle lever and see how much slack is in the lever. if you have more than 1/4 inch, your carb isn't opening up all the way. you adjust it right where the cable goes into the housing on the handlebars. make sure you have at least 1/8 inch of slack so your throttle closes all the way.

hrmm.. somthing is DEFINATLY wrong with that bike if you have to rev it up and pop the clutch to get the front wheels up.. im 6' 275 lbs, and mine will come off the ground with EASE.. with no issues at all..

i think you have more of a issue than you realize

Jesse

[yamablaster24]

of course the 500 and 660 will have more power they are a lot stronger motors. You will need some good motor work to stay ahead in a drag but your bike is way better then 660 on track. predator is still faster everywhere else tho

[FF1O5]

You should be able to ride wheelies all day long,is this your first quad?

[yamablaster24]

As for the stock shocks....i weigh 130 pounds and i had the preload bumped al the way up in front and i still botttomed them out doing 40 foot double, 55 foot tables on the track, After switching to TCS shocks all around i cant bottom them out at all......and i cased a 30 foot double thay launches you 20+ feet into the air.basically the stock front shocks should be reaplced with stock 450r front shocks or aftermarket shocks. Unless you dont have the money or arnt worried about jumping.

[400exc]

u can turn the idle up on ur 400, it makes it go a little faster, but not much, it makes u speed up a little faster, it is on the left side of the 400 when ur sittin on it, down by the choke, there is a little knob u can turn wit a screwd river, while then engine is on, turn it, u can turn it up or down, but dont turn it up all the way tho, it aint good on it if it is all the way up

[waxer]

Originally posted by Dirt Merchant
hrmm.. somthing is DEFINATLY wrong with that bike if you have to rev it up and pop the clutch to get the front wheels up.. im 6' 275 lbs, and mine will come off the ground with EASE.. with no issues at all..

i think you have more of a issue than you realize

Jesse

The only issue that I'm aware of is I'm in California and its a California emission controlled vehicle. There has to be some funky emission control device on it somewhere that limits me where it doesn't affect you in your state.

[waxer]

Originally posted by FF1O5
You should be able to ride wheelies all day long,is this your first quad?

Yes, this is my first quad :)

Perhaps I'm just doing something wrong...

All I know is I can hit the throttle on my buddies Raptor and Predator and they both will throw me off backwards if I'm not careful. Not an issue like that on my 400.

Obviously not the same size engines, but I wanted to see if this was expected with the 400ex, or if there is something I can do about it.

[400exredrider]

400ex use to be the wheelie king man,,,:confused:

[coryatver]

I believe that all 400ex's meet california standards. Yes 400ex's are known to be the best wheelie machine there is.

[400exredrider]

if i remember right, honda was the first to make any production quad meet cali regulations,, they did it with the 400ex if my memory is straight

[waxer]

Ok, let me describe what happens and when.

If I let out the clutch and just coast at maybe 5mph, I'll hit the throttle and it'll just take off, but not enough to lift up the front tires.

Could there be some misadjustment with the throttle that the dealer didn't check on their inspection? What things should I look for?



Now when I'm going maybe 30 or so on the whoops, it'll lift the front easily to keep me going over the whoops. It's just from an almost idle situation where it won't do it easily.

[sean94z]

Hey I got an 05 400 and Im in Cali also. Mine bogs off the line also. I think they dont jet these things correctly from the factory or something. Also mine doesnt like to start, it runs real crappy and dies all the time, I have to start it like 10 times or rev the piss out of it to keep it running while it spits and sputters. The thing is brand new!

As for wheelies, I can wheelie mine, but I have to really yank on the bars and throw my wieght back (all 160 pounds), it wont just pop up with its own power. I am a wheelie maniac, I ride wheelies for miles on all my other bikes and I got this quad because I thought it was supposed to be the best for wheelies, but Im havin my doubts now. I am gonna try and get mine tuned, I dunno anyone whos good with carb tuning though...anyone near magic mountain good with carb tuning wanna come help me out?

[400exredrider]

put a pipe on a re jet,,, shell wheelie then

[waxer]

Originally posted by sean94z
Hey I got an 05 400 and Im in Cali also. Mine bogs off the line also. I think they dont jet these things correctly from the factory or something. Also mine doesnt like to start, it runs real crappy and dies all the time, I have to start it like 10 times or rev the piss out of it to keep it running while it spits and sputters. The thing is brand new!

As for wheelies, I can wheelie mine, but I have to really yank on the bars and throw my wieght back (all 160 pounds), it wont just pop up with its own power. I am a wheelie maniac, I ride wheelies for miles on all my other bikes and I got this quad because I thought it was supposed to be the best for wheelies, but Im havin my doubts now. I am gonna try and get mine tuned, I dunno anyone whos good with carb tuning though...anyone near magic mountain good with carb tuning wanna come help me out?

Mine starts fine when I use the choke. Once warmed up I open the choke up and she's fine after that.

Let me know how yours turns out after you get it tuned. I'm thinking that the dealers didn't bother to check any of the factory tuning at all.

Mine acts just like yours with wheelies. I have to yank hard and it'll start to lift up a bit.

Other than that tho, this quad is awesome. Much more stable than my buddies 660 Raptor. I can take turns twice as fast as he can and be stable as all hell, while he's leaning into the turn like his life depends on it :)

course, he gets me on the straight aways. :)

[2002400ex]

What is your gearing? Thats probably why you are slow off the line.

[journeyman]

i dont know what to tell ya about not pulling whellies in 1st off the line...my 05 400 will raise the front end if I throw it in her off the line....if I cost easy in 1st then slam it she will raise up all the way thru 2nd and 3rd until i let off

[lol]

hmm i dont even no wuts wrong there, take it back to the dealer if its brand new, my 400 likes to throw all 120 pounds of me off the back when i hit the gas, even if i'm not leaning back:confused:

[charles]

hey i have a 05 400ex.no problems with pulling front off the ground.im 5'9 240.can do it in second gear sometimes.

Make sure you have freeplay in your clutch cable common mistake with new quads. You have to adjust the clutch cable about three times whenever you have a new clutch. If there is no freeplay in the cable the clutch is not disengaging properly which will cause it to be difficult to get the front end up.

[waxer]

Originally posted by gotcam?
Make sure you have freeplay in your clutch cable common mistake with new quads. You have to adjust the clutch cable about three times whenever you have a new clutch. If there is no freeplay in the cable the clutch is not disengaging properly which will cause it to be difficult to get the front end up.

I'm going to go check on that right now. I know that my throttle wasn't adjusted properly. The Service Manual says its supposed to have from 1/4" to 5/16" of play and mine had atleast 1/2" of play.

Thanks for the tips guys....

Let me know what happens? You might have to adjust the bottom next to the case if you can't get enough freeplay up top. It funny you had that question because about a month ago me and my friend went to Glamis and I was riding bring the front end up on my bike all weekend and my friend who has a 05 400EX could not get the front end up. So after about 6 hrs of riding I jumped on his bike and the front end would not come up. So I pulled back the rubber guard and gave a pull on the bottom cable and noticed there was no free play. We then adjusted it and jumped back on it and the front end came up no problem.

[waxer]

Thanks for the tips guys....

I adjusted the clutch today and now the front end comes up with no problem at all. It acts like a totally different bike now :)

[ZQ8Dude]

Originally posted by yamablaster24
of course the 500 and 660 will have more power they are a lot stronger motors. You will need some good motor work to stay ahead in a drag but your bike is way better then 660 on track. predator is still faster everywhere else tho

predator thing is very debatable. my friend has a predator thats piped, and im stock. we're dead even on the tracks. i just cant keep up in a straight line

"if i remember right, honda was the first to make any production quad meet cali regulations,, they did it with the 400ex if my memory is straight"

so how do i make it NOT meet Ca regulations?

:devil:

I glad to hear that the bike is running like it should now! Just remeber to keep your eye on the clutch free play because chances are it might happen again because the clutch is still wearing in. You should take your bike out to Glamis and ride some dunes. I'm heading out there tomorrow and coming home on Sunday. Good times.