start in reverse on 400ex

[05trx400exridr]

this mod is for 400ex's that have reverse. my 400ex has reverse and sometimes it can be a pain when the motor is cold and you need to back up because the motor dies easy when trying to take off in reverse (more so if you dont like to choke it, which also gets annoying). the annoying part is that after the motor dies; you have to shift to first, pull in the clutch, start it and give it gas (so it wont die again) as you turn the reverse nob and downshift to reverse. Then try backing up again lol. this mod will allow you to start the motor just by pulling in the clutch while you are still in reverse. this mod will also eliminate the reverse speed limiter, so you will be able to go much faster backwards (be carefull at first, it can get pretty squirrely in reverse at high speed). with this mod the red reverse light will still turn on when you are in reverse.


first turn on the key, but dont start it. now shift to reverse so the red light is on.

if you look down by the shifter there will be 2 wires going into the transmission, one labled N for neutral and one labeled R for reverse. follow the wires upwards until they are just below the plastic side pannel.

cut off some of the black tape coving all the wires. you should see 2 identical gray wires and a thick cord with black tape around it separate from the gray wires.(ignore the thick cord, it is just the green neutral wire encased in a thick coating of cilicon) if you only see one gray wire, you didnt remove the black tape high enough on the cord. re-tape it and cut the cord higher up.

now for the exciting part lol.... use a pair of scissors or a knife to cut just one gray wire. as you cut the wire watch the red reverse light on the handle bars(remember the key is still on and it is in reverse)

if you cut the wrong gray wire, the reverse light will shut off. reconect the wire and cut the other one.

once you have cut the correct gray wire, cut off about a half an inch piece from the wire. (so the ends of the wire dont rub and make a connection)

now just tape it up really good and your done.

(lol sorry the directions were so long to do something so simple.... if you read it all and still managed to screw this up you should not own an atv...lol)

[bansheexcracer2]

Could be dangerous, sounds cool

[plkmonster2]

You may lose your rev limiter in reverse though right? I've plugged a switch into my yammie's harness that allows it to start in gear with the brake on. It loses the rev limiter when it is held on.

[05trx400exridr]

yea you loose the rev limiter if you cut the wire. the only difference between cutting the wire and un-plugging it by the shifter is that the red reverse light will still work if you cut the wire.

[hornetgod13]

I did the above listed "How to" and my Reverse light didn't work anymore. I really wanted the reverse light to work and liked the idea of being able to restart the engine in reverse. I spliced the wire back together that I had cut from the previous instructions and went another route.
Start with taking the hood off. Locate your CDI box, its a black box with 2 connectors plugged into it. One connector has 4 wires and the other connector has 2 wires. On the 4 wire connector you will have a Grey with Black stripe wire. Peel the tape back if needed and snip the Grey with Black stripe wire. Leave enough wire just in case you want to splice it back together at some point. Tape the ends of the wires so they won't touch each other. Now put the quad in reverse and fire it up. The reverse rev limiter is disabled, your reverse light will still work and, you will be able to RESTART it in reverse. Yes!!! :D

[05trx400exridr]

hmmm.... maybe your wiring was slightly different. glad you got it figured out, way to go. ive had this done to mine for about a week now and i love it, it makes backing up so much simpler

[Mechanixx]

I did the cdi method no need to take lid off just reach up and pulled box down :)Thanks for the info of all the mods to my bike this is my favorite lol.:devil:

[jeremy_283]

my white brothers cdi allows me to start in reverse

[tp300ex]

awsome writte up i did it but i had no need for the light so i just got them both !

[stang9gt]

Def doing this!!!

Hi i have a 05 400ex and am looking for some aftermarket parts. would you be intrested in selling anything? give me a part and price and will contact you back.



05 red 400ex
Pro Taper Handlebars
Pro Armor nerfs
WB CDI rev box

i also have a red 05 400ex. I did this and the top speed of my quad doesn't go as fast. I was clocked 2 days before i did this at 88 mph and the electral system seems to cut out. just bought new battery and is still good.


If I was anybody who wanted to do this don't because it will screw everything up!

[jrafter]

Originally posted by Jake_4
i also have a red 05 400ex. I did this and the top speed of my quad doesn't go as fast. I was clocked 2 days before i did this at 88 mph and the electral system seems to cut out. just bought new battery and is still good.


If I was anybody who wanted to do this don't because it will screw everything up!

88 mphs thats fast......i had a car that wouldnt do that.....LOL

my 400ex wiill not go that fast...and my 450r won't either...must have one of them special 400ex's

[jrafter]

Originally posted by speedyquad
my 400ex wiill not go that fast...and my 450r won't either...must have one of them special 400ex's

i want 1 of them special 1s LOL.........hey i checkout your pics and was wondering why your wifes quad had lots more mud on it than your.

very sweet looking quads.

[hornetgod13]

Originally posted by Jake_4
i also have a red 05 400ex. I did this and the top speed of my quad doesn't go as fast. I was clocked 2 days before i did this at 88 mph and the electral system seems to cut out. just bought new battery and is still good.


If I was anybody who wanted to do this don't because it will screw everything up!

I have had this mod on my quad for 3 months now and it has not effected my top speed at all except for in reverse (faster now). I seriously doubt your quad went 88 mph. I wonder about the accuracy of who "clocked" you.
Out of all the mods and improvements I made on my quad so far, this is my favorite. It so great not to have to take the quad out of reverse to restart it.

[danniheyj82888]

On a 400ex, Im pretty sure he was going 88 KPH and he didnt know.

[Trevor]

Will this mod work on my 300ex it sounds like the same kind of set up. It wound be nice to be able to start in reverse and also loose the limmiter but I would still like to keep the reverse light.

[SG1]

Just did mod and love it. I just cut the Grey wire with black strip under the hood and it works great. Reverse red light comes on when it's suppose to and reverse is much stronger now and can start in reverse. It's just great!

[hornetgod13]

Agreed, it is one of my favorite mods. :macho

Cutting the grey wire with black stripe is the way to go. Following the first post in this thread also disables the reverse light but, cutting the wire under the hood allows everything to work and you can start in reverse with the rev limiter removed.

[atvmaster0927]

Thanks hornetgod13! Your way is so much better. i just finished five minutes ago. thanks man.

[hornetgod13]

Originally posted by atvmaster0927
Thanks hornetgod13! Your way is so much better. i just finished five minutes ago. thanks man.

Glad I could help. That's good to hear :macho

[X400EX]

I was looking for this mod since a long time.

Got it done yesterday and it's great!

Thanks hornetgod13!

[greenblood01]

I did this mod tonight and it worked great. I would get mad everytime I stalled it in reverse and try to start it.. no more worries. Favorite mod yet!!!

[John451]

Haha ya that's fast. But wierd tho. My rm 125 1991 does 65-70 and my 96 300ex does about 60-65 maybe 70. Ima test that against my friends snowmobile cuz it has a speedo. I was going to try the mod on mine but since it has electric cutout I prob. Cuz as fast as I want to go in reverse, I also want to be able to go in drive.

[Honda4life05]

thanks for the help,i just did this to my 300ex an its alot easier to go in reverse when its cold,an easier to get out of mud when i have to use reverse.

[MTDman11]

i just looked on my thee 300 ex on the cdi box ur talking about i think its the aftermarket rev boxes you get right? i foiund a black wire with a white stripe. is that wat u are talking about

[jnapier5]

I have a 2007 TRX400ex. I am looking for the plug on the CDI to find this option and cut that freaking wire. When i look at the CDI under the hood i have 4 different connector with 4 wires in each of them. Sounds like they changed something in 07 since i don't have the 2 and 4 wire plugs on my CDI. Can anyone help? It totally sucks to be on a trail in the desert rocks and have to play the REV. game on this thing.

[dave4881]

Originally posted by Jake_4
i also have a red 05 400ex. I did this and the top speed of my quad doesn't go as fast. I was clocked 2 days before i did this at 88 mph and the electral system seems to cut out. just bought new battery and is still good.


If I was anybody who wanted to do this don't because it will screw everything up!

88 mph !! Did you drive it off a cliff?

[08ex4]

my buddy and i both have 400exs and mine an 08 and his an 05 we both did this mod the same day last week oneday and today we were ridin and his quad stalled and would only start and run with the choke fully on just out of curiosity we hooked the reverse wire back up and it was fine but mine hasnt done any wierd **** like that yet. by the way both quads have stock wiring no rev boxes or anything like that Its definatly a cool mod but its not if its not gonna work i will post up if my 08 does it. Good luck to anyone else that does this mod.

[Ryan'07400ex]

Originally posted by 08ex4
my buddy and i both have 400exs and mine an 08 and his an 05 we both did this mod the same day last week oneday and today we were ridin and his quad stalled and would only start and run with the choke fully on just out of curiosity we hooked the reverse wire back up and it was fine but mine hasnt done any wierd **** like that yet. by the way both quads have stock wiring no rev boxes or anything like that Its definatly a cool mod but its not if its not gonna work i will post up if my 08 does it. Good luck to anyone else that does this mod.

Did it ever mess up, I am still debating on this. I don't use reverse alot but maybe I would if I knew it would work better.

[Trxguy]

Originally posted by hornetgod13
I did the above listed "How to" and my Reverse light didn't work anymore. I really wanted the reverse light to work and liked the idea of being able to restart the engine in reverse. I spliced the wire back together that I had cut from the previous instructions and went another route.
Start with taking the hood off. Locate your CDI box, its a black box with 2 connectors plugged into it. One connector has 4 wires and the other connector has 2 wires. On the 4 wire connector you will have a Grey with Black stripe wire. Peel the tape back if needed and snip the Grey with Black stripe wire. Leave enough wire just in case you want to splice it back together at some point. Tape the ends of the wires so they won't touch each other. Now put the quad in reverse and fire it up. The reverse rev limiter is disabled, your reverse light will still work and, you will be able to RESTART it in reverse. Yes!!! :D

this worked great, thanks

[finsteratv]

does this work with a 300ex?

[cletus-87]

just did the mod to my 06 400ex. cut the wire from the cdi, taped it up and done. works great