whats wrong with the kawi

[wescaster]

i went with a freind today, he was interested in buying a 450. i personally own a kfx and it is also my first and i do get curious as to what others say about it. at the dealer when he asked about it they completely bashed it. its too slow, too heavy and not as good as the yamaha.

is this thing not that good or what? i havnt been on another so i cant tell, im just curious cause ive heard from many ppl that they are a dud. from what i can see it has the best frame and the most horsepower even with the weak cams in it. shouldnt that make it one of the better quads to get?

im just ranting and tired of hearing bad things about my kfx, now im determined to make this quad as good as possible.

[esquared]

I love mine , no lack of power and when i change sprockets and add a pipe and power commander it is going to come to life . Dealer is full of crap .

[coryatver]

was he a yamaha dealer?? that would make the answer obvious. But I haven't heard much good stuff about them either

[wescaster]

i know its a good quad im just tired of defending it to everyone else, it just seems the other new quads dont get as much bashing as this one. i have the full pipe, pc, and im gonna order a 15t sprocket tonight and hopefully the combo will be nice.

does anyone know if the 15t/36t is a better combo than just getting a 34t alone?

[esquared]

People tend to bash that which they know nothing about . People also bash the kfx700 and I grow tired of that as well but they tend to shut up when I hand their *** to them in a race . The only thing that matters is are you happy with the ride and if so the rest can piss off .

The 450R is a great quad and is a big seller . Like all quads it needs some work to bring out the potential hidden inside by Kawasaki who sells them as they are as I really don't think a new rider could handle one with full mods . A new rider with a stock 450 will be fine if they have a brain in their head . Same with the KFX700 , a couple grand and it went from a 60 mph quad to one that is mid 80's and eats stock 450's all day long and hole shots most quads . I had a friend ride my 700 this week and it scared him when the front end came off the ground at full power so I limited the throttle to 3/4 and he was fine .

How much speed is enough ? People get caught up in what they do for a hobby and have to prove they are better than everyone else and it gets tiring after a while . I will add a exhaust , intake , gears and a power commander to this quad as well as some better A arms and a extended swing arm and I am done . If someone can outrun me , big deal I ride to have fun not prove I am better than someone else .


There is a whole side to riding that most people never get , the spiritual side of it . Having a great ride and looking back of the ride and not caring who went faster or got more air but the overall experience . A lot of people are so into impressing others that they miss the fun of the ride and stopping and appreciating the ground they just covered . For a lot of people this sport is nothing more than a toy show and a look at me contest .


Now back to the 450 . The worst thing about this quad and the others I have ridden is that they all need gearing changes . I rode a YFZ 450 today that was stock and it was close to the Kawi . I moved through the gears just as fast as on the Kawi . I also rode a Kawi today that had all the mods I want and the 15 front and 36 rear sprockets . It was an entirely different quad from the one I own . It took quite a bit more to get through all the gears and fifth gear pinned was downright scary but fun at the same time . I have no doubt in my mind that I hit 80 or faster on the modded 450R . It also had longer A arms and a extended axle with a 2" extended swing arm and felt good at high speeds . Mine is a little twitchy at full speed .

There is no quad that is perfect out of the box . I don't care who makes it they all need some work .

[450raider]

nice observations esquared, i think i could follow it up with first i love my kawi every time i ride it i find something new i can do with it, and how would the dealer know how good they are, does he race, im assuming hes a pro racer knowing so much about the 450s? probably not chances are its a yami dealer and this guy probably drops pro racer names like theres no tomorrow, believe it or not theres regular people out there that thinks a quad will perform with them like it does the pros (good or bad), bottom line...some misguided people think the kawi automatically sucks cause it didnt do so good in its first season but im willing to bet next year folks will be jumping on the band wagon when the kawi team wins a few and be all like "iliked it the whole time" but well know better, we know who was here first.

[FUELATV]

One thing is that the bike is so new. So people ride it bone stock then try to compair it to another bike that may have mods done to it. BONE STOCK vs. BONE STOCK the kfx450 is right at the top in the HP department. Then with the right pipe, intake, power commander and a sprocket it flat out hauls the mail. Bottom line people bash what they dont know. The KFX450 is as good or better then the other. I will take the KFX or LTR over the yamaha or honda all day long.

[kfxrules]

i'm with fuel on this one i have hurt alot of feelins with mine and i havent' even been in the engine yet. honda's and yamaha's dominate where i am from i brought mine home stock and ran real close but they would get me on the top end i put an hmf and a power commander with an air box and they are eatin it up now and alot of them have full stage 2 engines some with ported heads and it is killin them.

[bossman525]

all that matters is that YOU are happy with your quad. p iss on whatevery one else thinks. i get it to owning a outlaw. i have ridden all the 450's and i hate them, but honestly, my friend has a kawi 450 and it is rather enjoyable to ride, other than the seat;) if i was to have a 450 it would be the kawi. all the others are not enjoyable to me to ride. and my buddy has had no problems with his kawi

[N300exJ]

theres nothing at all wrong with the kawi 450R. I have a fully modded honda 450R that hardly gets ridden because theres always something wrong with it. the first kfx450 i ever rode had a trinity pipe/filter and a fuel controller and thats it. I felt like i was on a better handling/faster machine then my honda. True it is pretty heavy and the seat is stiff but those are things that can be fixed with a few mods. Im looking at a new 450 for next year. IF i dont like the ktm or can am my third choice is definatly going to be the kawi 450r.

[esquared]

"True it is pretty heavy"

What ? It is in the same range as all the other 450's .

[wescaster]

also i noticed on suzuki.com that the ltr was listed heavier than the kfx, does anyone ever bash it for being too heavy.

[FUELATV]

Yes they do ......... i bought the LTR when it first came out and the HATERS were in full force. Now the LTR450 gets some respect.

[FST715]

My 450r weighted it at 372lbs w/ 1/2 tank. Should weight less now with dasa pipe and fuelatv intake + I removed the headlights.

When I drag race I put on 22" cheng shin tires which help for traction and better gearing, I also have a 15t.

Here's a raced against a 700r.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8MRCGiJTlc

[07250ex]

Originally posted by wescaster
also i noticed on suzuki.com that the ltr was listed heavier than the kfx, does anyone ever bash it for being too heavy.

there the same weight but the zuki is wider and doesnt have an aluminum frame, the kawi has reverse thats where its extra weight is

[TWILES]

As long as you are happy with the bike, who cares what someone else says. I used to make complete morons out of people with my Banshee. I haven't had a bike since I liked as much as my Banshee and none before either including my NICE 250R which actaully made me a lot of friends(must be like owning a Harley,hahahaha!).

[troylee500se]

i have one and the more i ride more i hate it. the vibration in the handle bar is terrible.2hours ride i cant feel my hands, i have to change bike with a frend to finist the traile back, my frend dosent want to take my kfx ever ever ever again:mad: :mad:

[xxsyn1kalxx]

The FASST Co. Anti-Vibration inserts work wonders, I just put them on my KFX and the ride is perfect now. You could try that, and also the steering dampeners help a little as well.

[sweet450ex]

To be honest, the kawi is defenitely better than the yami. The yami just needs flat out updated? Im not a dealer, but i did have a 2006 yfz with over 16,000 in rceipts and I have raced the nationals for two years. The kawi's problem for me is the low gearing. Stock, it feels just like the honda with the stiff seat. They all almost have problems their first years, but I think kawi did a great job. Its a known fact kawasaki and suzuki are the most junk when it comes to reliability. Example, pain in the *** water pump on rmz250f and kx250f 2004 year. Also, look at a pro race, they change out the whole engine in the suzuki pits, john natalie lets his quad sit outside and get washed thats it besides going over it. Im not bashing kawi and suzuki, but honda is by far more quality. But to the point of your quad, its defienetly my second choice right now if i was to build another quad. By the way, with a pipe and commander, youll thank yourself u bough it...Those retards at the dealer arent worth your time, but I can see that some people on here arent either.....lol

[wescaster]

well i took my kfx out today with a few updates and it ran alot better. last week i took it out with the full trinity and power commander, and the results were decent. today i added some sand stars for the dunes, and a 15t front sprocket. there is a small strip we drag on, usually ill be in 4th or 5th gear at the end of the race. with the new sprocket i was in third gear at the end of the race. not sure how much the tires helped with the gearing(the stock ones seemed to spin too much). i beat everyone out today every race. there were yfz's, outlaws, an ltr, and some 400's. the kfx ran alot better, not sure if it was as fast as the yfz but i won the race either way.

[feature05]

Damn, now I'm going to change my sprockets for sure. Nice.

[Yee-Haw_400EX]

Originally posted by wescaster
well i took my kfx out today with a few updates and it ran alot better. last week i took it out with the full trinity and power commander, and the results were decent. today i added some sand stars for the dunes, and a 15t front sprocket. there is a small strip we drag on, usually ill be in 4th or 5th gear at the end of the race. with the new sprocket i was in third gear at the end of the race. not sure how much the tires helped with the gearing(the stock ones seemed to spin too much). i beat everyone out today every race. there were yfz's, outlaws, an ltr, and some 400's. the kfx ran alot better, not sure if it was as fast as the yfz but i won the race either way.
You geared it up for the dunes? Thats kinda bassackwards. If I could find a 13 tooth I'd have one on mine......definitely not a 15!!!

And I have no idea why you guys have vibration problems. Mine doesn't vibrate much at all.

[FST715]

Even for the dunes a 13t is way too low for our bikes. Stock gearing is would be enough for the dunes, I'd stick with the 15t myself.

[FUELATV]

Only mods to my bike are Dasa pipe, FUELATV intake and power commander. The stock gearing is way too low for me. It needs a 15 for sure ......... even for the dunes IMO. I was 5th pinned in the big bowls and looking for 6th most of the time.

[fryntyr]

Originally posted by troylee500se
i have one and the more i ride more i hate it. the vibration in the handle bar is terrible.2hours ride i cant feel my hands, i have to change bike with a frend to finist the traile back, my frend dosent want to take my kfx ever ever ever again:mad: :mad:

Mine vibrated alot when I first got mine and it bothered me because I didn't think it should do that. When I put my full exhaust system on the vibration was almost gone and is very minor now.

No problems with my KFX and it really does haul *****.

Full ESR exhaust, PCIII with Fuel's MAP, FuelATV intake.

[Yee-Haw_400EX]

13 tooth for dunes
14 tooth for trails
15 tooth for wide open riding


There, I broke it down for you.

First gear is WAY too tall for the dunes if you do any drag racing. I tried with a 15 tooth and got my a** handed to me. I switched to the stock 14 and did alot better. I then switched to a 13 and did ALOT better still. Plus, the 13 just seemed better all around.

[DMS]

Originally posted by Yee-Haw_400EX

13 tooth for dunes
14 tooth for trails
15 tooth for wide open riding


There, I broke it down for you.

First gear is WAY too tall for the dunes if you do any drag racing. I tried with a 15 tooth and got my a** handed to me. I switched to the stock 14 and did alot better. I then switched to a 13 and did ALOT better still. Plus, the 13 just seemed better all around. When you ordered your 13 tooth did they ask you if you were kidding? I'll bet you bought the only 13 tooth sprocket from the entire plant.

You have your gearing bass ackwards. Smaller front sprocket = less top speed. The kfx is geared low from the factory so your gonna slow it down more for the dunes so your 5th gear feels like 4th? Are we on candid camera right now? :huh Last time I checked the dunes were wide open riding.

[Yee-Haw_400EX]

Originally posted by DMS
When you ordered your 13 tooth did they ask you if you were kidding? I'll bet you bought the only 13 tooth sprocket from the entire plant.

You have your gearing bass ackwards. Smaller front sprocket = less top speed. The kfx is geared low from the factory so your gonna slow it down more for the dunes so your 5th gear feels like 4th? Are we on candid camera right now? :huh Last time I checked the dunes were wide open riding.

Partner, I don't ride pinned out in 5th gear at the dunes. I like to just ride the trails and spend a good part of my time at the drag strip. The 13 tooth was the best thing I've ever done to it to help it at the drag strip. 15 was a joke.

Now, I agree that this thing is geared LOW in 4th and 5th gear, but 1st gear is easily the tallest out of the 450R, LTR, and YFZ. Having that tall of a first gear sucks when you have grippy paddles and are drag racing. With the 13 tooth it rips out of the whole and at the end of the strip I'm just getting about 3/4 of the way through 5th gear. PERFECT. With the 15 tooth it would just bog in first and I couldn't get a clean start.

Moral of the story -- Don't tell me that I'm bassackwards, nitch.

[esquared]

Originally posted by Yee-Haw_400EX
Partner, I don't ride pinned out in 5th gear at the dunes. I like to just ride the trails and spend a good part of my time at the drag strip. The 13 tooth was the best thing I've ever done to it to help it at the drag strip. 15 was a joke.

Now, I agree that this thing is geared LOW in 4th and 5th gear, but 1st gear is easily the tallest out of the 450R, LTR, and YFZ. Having that tall of a first gear sucks when you have grippy paddles and are drag racing. With the 13 tooth it rips out of the whole and at the end of the strip I'm just getting about 3/4 of the way through 5th gear. PERFECT. With the 15 tooth it would just bog in first and I couldn't get a clean start.

Moral of the story -- Don't tell me that I'm bassackwards, nitch.

I guess you just can't handle the speed so you do what you gotta do partner . For the real sand riders it is a 15 tooth . I can't stand the 450 with the gearing it comes with , it is way too slow for my tastes .

[esquared]

Originally posted by Yee-Haw_400EX

13 tooth for dunes
14 tooth for trails
15 tooth for wide open riding


There, I broke it down for you.

First gear is WAY too tall for the dunes if you do any drag racing. I tried with a 15 tooth and got my a** handed to me. I switched to the stock 14 and did alot better. I then switched to a 13 and did ALOT better still. Plus, the 13 just seemed better all around.

From one of your posts , a few above the one I am quoting from " If I could find a 13 tooth I'd have one on mine " SO do you or do you not have a 13 on your quad , because 2 days ago you couldn't find one and now you are the resident expert on it ?

[Yee-Haw_400EX]

I meant 12, sorry. This discussion is over.