bunch of bull

[stupid driver]

what do u all think of that crap dirtwheels writes. I was readin the july issue and i just couldnt believe the stuff they were sayin about the 400ex. yes the z400 is goin to be a bad *** quad, but i dont think that it is right for dirt wheels to bash the ex just because the z is new and suzuki paid dirt wheels. I remember when the 400ex was considered an "awesome" quad by dirt wheels. you can count on me to never buy another issue of that p.o.s magizine

[redrider808]

thats sad dude
i have been on a Z it's better than the EX in stock trim
and yes i do own a 400ex i love it would not trade it if my life depended on it . but i think this is the best thing to happin for us.
this should light a fire under honda's butt.

and we should get a new quad from them soon there not gona let the Z beat them just look back at the 80s and the quads we could have !

and if you remember how every one raved about the raptor
when it came out
every thing we own is better cuz there is something better that comes out .
all be it cars trucks computers heck even pop .

i think its cool thet we have so many choices now .
and yes CUT ME AND I BLEED HONDA RED

[4HUN]

I love my Honda, however DirtWheels is only doing their job. Obviouisly a 2003 is going to be somewhat better than our Honda's that were practicaly made in 86. Of course ours' are probaly going to be much more reliable but, does that matter to Dirtwheels? They are just trying to test to see what is best now. Not in ten years. I am pretty darn confident mine will still be running strong in ten years but who knows with the new Z. And again, everyone, including DirtWheels, is bias to their own opinions. That, again, is why you buy the magazine and why you subscribe to this forum. I can still go out on an old 3wheeler and have a blast. I think the fun aspect is a major contribution to the sport and the market. Think how many people buy quads for fun and not for racing. O, well, just some of my opinions.

[airheadedduner]

The 400EX is a great machine but it is outdated comparedd to the other machines in the class. I won't own nothin but a Honda but thats gonna change unless they can come out with somethin that will compete with an R. IT is rumered that Yamaha has a YZ426 quad in the works. I would kill for that bike.

[PismoGuy400]

guys...have you gotten the august issue...its the stupidest issue they've ever printed...theres a shootout beteen the z400, the 400ex and the cannondale cannibal

guess who wins...

z400 :confused:

yeah right!!!......theres no way in **** the zuki would beat the cannondale in any kind of comparison, other than price.

i think its coming down to whoever pays them the msot money...(like stupid driver said)

, and stupid driver, the reason you can remember that far back is because it was only about ....2 issues ago...:D

Magazines have almost always been biased towards the latest and greatest stuff. I like my '01 400ex over the others like the Z400, Banshee and the Raptor. mainly because I have always been a Honda fan having owned a 250x, 350x and now a 400ex but also because of the simpleness of the 400ex. Things the the others have like watercooled engines, twin cyl, reverse, 2 carbs and such make me think its just more stuff to break, Like 4HUN said about being reliable. Twice as much stuff means the better chance of failure. Then there are bugs to be worked out like the Raptor had, carbs blowin out of the boots, wierd gear ratios in the tranny, aluminum a-arms, I think the problems were fixed for 2002 but I mean come on, 2 carbs????? My friends Banshee runs MUCH better with a Trinity one carb conversion kit, bet the Raptor would too. sure the other brands are faster but are they THAT much faster to warrant the extra cash? My cousin paid like $1500 (I think) more than me to get a '01 Raptor when I bought my '01 EX. It's reverse and more top end isnt worth it to me and I suspect the Z400 is the same way. I do wish Honda would come out with a new model htough, something as simple as a CRF450F motor in a 400ex chassis would sell tons better. they have both already so why not combine them? till they come out with something else Ill stay on my EX! but then again remembering how long the 250x has stayed around with only a minor update, electric start(with no backup kick?) and a whopping 33cc(I think) bump in displacement to call it a 300ex(really like rounding up dont they?) makes me wonder if my 400ex may be around for quite some time.

[Pappy]

just about all the magazine's have turned into monthly sales flyers. i used to rush out to get the latest issue but not no more. i realize they need to get paid but the is rediculous.

[250rmike]

hey my bike was made in 86. it would be great for yamaha to come out with a 426 quad and if honda came out with a 440 based on the 450f motor my r would be on this board the next day. hopefully i dont have too much money in my r by then

[One_Bad_400]

Originally posted by PismoGuy400
guys...have you gotten the august issue...its the stupidest issue they've ever printed...theres a shootout beteen the z400, the 400ex and the cannondale cannibal

guess who wins...

z400 :confused:

yeah right!!!......theres no way in **** the zuki would beat the cannondale in any kind of comparison, other than price.

i think its coming down to whoever pays them the msot money...(like stupid driver said)

, and stupid driver, the reason you can remember that far back is because it was only about ....2 issues ago...:D

the Z did beat the cannon in overall, but the cannondale killed the Z and the EX in drag and power. i love honda and have decided to keep my 400, but in reality the Z probly is a better bike since it is so much newer technology, but then if honda rethought the 400, then it would definitely kill the Z

[lil400exman]

i think honda has sumthin up there sleeve we may have to wait a few months:rolleyes: ok years but i know i will not be scared to buy it cause i know there will be no reacalls

[tayz34]

All i now is my 400ex kicks *** and i love it. the raptor is really powerful with pipes and stuff and the z 400 is a powerfull quad but is all fun. me and my friends always argue that this quad is better then this other quad and get pissed and stuff but it really doesent matter because we are just goin out there having a good time. even saying that i still think that my 400ex is a beast when i am flying threw the dune pulling willies of of little hills in 5th not on purpose becasue of the torqe. peace , and ride red

[airheadedduner]

I think the CRF powered quad is a huge possiblility. Because noone knew about the CRF then all the sudden Honda sneak attacked the dirt bike world with it. Same with the EX, I would expect somethin huge from big red in the near future.

[Deathbringer]

If you ever want to know who is going to come out on top in an article.... go through the magazine and look who has the most ad's...then read the article.. they will corelate together...

[Nausty]

I ABSOLUTELY HATE atv action and dirt wheels and one thing... they can't ever make up their fricken mind and they have errors all the time. I don't give a crap about which is better because on mx tracks the step ups I do it take balls and not a awsome quad. I hate them I think the 400ex is a great all around quad and I shopped around a lot before I decided I wanted that because of price and the amount of mods and because I still think its about the best handling mx machine besides the mx440. And is all they have in them magizines is shootout after shootout after shootout and I don't care and I think its dumb to metion one quad as "BEST". I would rather have a 400ex over anything for doing the stuff I do like mx riding, jumping, and freestyle and over all reliability and low cost and I think the 400ex really eccels over other quads in those area's so I think its hard to bash it because of that. Is all atv action and dirt wheels do is post ads and give everyone a line of bull. They never post anything useful just stuff to take up space. I like atv sport because it has more about what I wanna read with little ads and the articles don't seem to be swayed and they don't give out wrong information. Not only that it has some good pictures which the other mags never do, they test ride bikes I really like this issue with the 02cr250 motor in a custom frame and axis shocks and the alba banshee reveiw with nitrous and they have usefull news. I just found out there is a 12 hour endurence race in october near here and a bunch of pros will be there and hopefully me and my friend justin are gonna race it now, we are gonna try to get one more person that will be able to hold their speed as time goes by but me and him are in great shape and ride for hours and hours at the mx tracks when we go. Anywho I never buy atv action or dirt wheels anymore.

[RAPTORAZ]

Originally posted by airheadedduner
I think the CRF powered quad is a huge possiblility. Because noone knew about the CRF then all the sudden Honda sneak attacked the dirt bike world with it. Same with the EX, I would expect somethin huge from big red in the near future.

If it isn't a TRX650EX, Honda isn't getting my money. A CRF powered EX would be just O.K. There's no replacement for displacement. A CRF might take a stock or even piped Raptor but it would take a serious 450 to take a 686 Raptor. We are talking ragged-edge on the 450 compared to the mildly tuned 686.

Also, if you read the article a little closer, you've would have seen that they said the EX did everything as well as the others. It was just way down on power in comparison to the others. I think had that been a cammed 440EX in that battle, the outcome would've been different.

400ex are underpowered simple little sport quads. yes they can be racers if you dump money into them. you can make anything race ready with money! Honda needs to step it up, get off there ***'s and make a new quad. Yes honda has reliablity, handling, and good qualitie but there motors dont have any ballz! come on honda!

[PismoGuy400]

Originally posted by Matrix250R
400ex are underpowered simple little sport quads. yes they can be racers if you dump money into them. you can make anything race ready with money! Honda needs to step it up, get off there ***'s and make a new quad. Yes honda has reliablity, handling, and good qualitie but there motors dont have any ballz! come on honda!

matrix...i agree with everything you said ...except the second sentence....you can make a 400ex race ready by getting some nerfs, mabey some tires, and a sprocket..thats all it takes to get the 400 to do good on a track...heck....you dont even need the nerfs, but its a good idea..

all you need is enough acceleration to get you up to speed when you come out of a corner to clear the next double

ps...im talking about local amature racers, not all out racers like farr and denton

[airheadedduner]

Originally posted by RAPTORAZ


If it isn't a TRX650EX, Honda isn't getting my money. A CRF powered EX would be just O.K. There's no replacement for displacement. A CRF might take a stock or even piped Raptor but it would take a serious 450 to take a 686 Raptor. We are talking ragged-edge on the 450 compared to the mildly tuned 686.

Also, if you read the article a little closer, you've would have seen that they said the EX did everything as well as the others. It was just way down on power in comparison to the others. I think had that been a cammed 440EX in that battle, the outcome would've been different.

Not trying to start any B.S. with you but I think the CRF would kill a raptor. I have seen stock engined YZ quads in the dunes that slay moddded raptors buy the dozens. The CRF is almost as fast as the YZ so I think it would too. A 686 raptor though, it would take a few mods on the CRF. Personally I would rather have the CRF but I wouldn't rule out honda coming out with both bikes.

[beerock]

Originally posted by RAPTORAZ


If it isn't a TRX650EX, Honda isn't getting my money. A CRF powered EX would be just O.K. There's no replacement for displacement. A CRF might take a stock or even piped Raptor but it would take a serious 450 to take a 686 Raptor. We are talking ragged-edge on the 450 compared to the mildly tuned 686.

Also, if you read the article a little closer, you've would have seen that they said the EX did everything as well as the others. It was just way down on power in comparison to the others. I think had that been a cammed 440EX in that battle, the outcome would've been different.

LOL, dude the crf motor is higly advanced.

and the crf is definatley more powerful then the yz 426(aside from ease of starting the crf) compared to a 3 step starting procedure for the yz 426:rolleyes:

you can get 105+ hp out of that crf motor, and thats on a 450 bore.

if you stroke that motor you could definately push the 140 HP mark..

sounds like a PLAN!;)

[airheadedduner]

Yeah will call it.
TEN EASY STEPS TO COMMITING SUICIDE.
You could write a book and make lots of moeney.

[Guy400]

I live in the here and now. That means the only thing worth arguing about is what we've got out right now. Right now I think if most people are honest with themselves they'll admit that the 400EX has been dethroned. Suzuki has made a quad that mimics the Honda frame but coupled it with a higher horsepower powerplant that doesn't weigh all that much more. I can guarantee you guys that if the Z400 was red and said "Honda" on the tank that you wouldn't be crying about the results of the test. 99% of you are upset because Honda isn't on top anymore. Sure they might release a new sport quad, sure they might use the CRF450R motor, sure they might use the XR650, but you know what? $h!t in one hand and wish in the other and see which one you get first.

Until Honda actually releases a new quad it's almost mind-numbing to even argue about what we've got out now against what Honda might make in the future. It's like being in 1980 and arguing that the 1980 Mustang 5.0 would get killed by the 1990 ZR1. Too bad in 1980 the ZR1 wasn't even here yet so the Mustang wins, period.

With that being said, I'm not defending the DW article or their results. I believe that Cannondale got ripped. Like it matters if senior citizens are able to pull faster lap times on board a Z versus the Dale. Oh well, it's always been this way and always will be.

And all this talk about what makes what kind of horsepower... I can make a 4 cyl. Cavalier pump out 600hp if I dumped enough time and money into but how reliable would it be? Can I count on it to always be there? I guess it's just me but arguing about quads that might come out in the future and arguing about what horsepower levels certain engines are capable of is just tiresome. Not one of us has ridden, much less seen, the new Honda sport quad--end of argument. Give me a Ford 351, a Chevy 350 and Chrysler 340 and I can squeeze big horsepower out of all of them given enough money. One doesn't "magically" make more horsepower than the next.

[Nausty]

Originally posted by beerock


LOL, dude the crf motor is higly advanced.

and the crf is definatley more powerful then the yz 426(aside from ease of starting the crf) compared to a 3 step starting procedure for the yz 426:rolleyes:

you can get 105+ hp out of that crf motor, and thats on a 450 bore.

if you stroke that motor you could definately push the 140 HP mark..

sounds like a PLAN!;)

i'm just curious but how can you get another 50hp on the stock bore? I know honda put out a misleading add about the hp of the cr450f though.... I think the 450f motors are the best and would rule over a xr600 motor on a mx track. I don't get how people can say no replacement for displacement when some stock bore 250r's have 3+ times more hp as a blaster and a drz400 bike motor makes about 40hp and the warrior is 18 and thats 350. I think once you get in the 600 cc range of quads you end up sacrificing handling because of chasis changes for the larger motor. And anyways it varies on the track but the tracks I ride have been riding on I still know I don't need the power because I still am not able to rail the berms like I want too because on a mx track if you can carry your speed your better off because they are gonna have a harder time passing you and don't need all the extra power to accelerate when you leave the berm at a much higher speed than the next guy.