lt-r450 best choice?

[King Kong]

I am looking to buy a new atv. I love riding on a track but i do a lot more mountain terrain riding. I have been looking at a lot of atvs. I want one that i don't have to do a lot of maintenance on and one that will last for quite some time. I came to the conclusion that it will either be the 2008 lt-r 450 or the 2009 yfz 450r, and possibly the z400. Right now i can get the lt-r 450 for about 1300 less than the yfz 450r.The thing i like about the 400 is that it has reverse and now efi. Can the 450's handle the rough terrain? and which bike would you select?

[shane071489]

I had a 2004 ltz 400 with a good bit of mods and it was fun when i had it i had a lot of problems out of mine and just decided to buy a new one ha ended up getting a ltr 450 and it was the best move ive ever made this quad has pushed me a good bit on a track ive just started riding them a lot and ive done a lot of stuff i wouldnt of ever done on the 400 not knocking it though...and its not to bad not having a reverse you just whip it around or ride up a hill and roll back down you get used to it quick and the power the ltr 450 makes is awesome ive never ridden or dont know anything about a yfz 450r but i know my ltr 450 will smoke a 06 yfz 450 mines stock besides for cherrybomb

[GoldenRider450r]

Originally posted by King Kong
I am looking to buy a new atv. I love riding on a track but i do a lot more mountain terrain riding. I have been looking at a lot of atvs. I want one that i don't have to do a lot of maintenance on and one that will last for quite some time. I came to the conclusion that it will either be the 2008 lt-r 450 or the 2009 yfz 450r, and possibly the z400. Right now i can get the lt-r 450 for about 1300 less than the yfz 450r.The thing i like about the 400 is that it has reverse and now efi. Can the 450's handle the rough terrain? and which bike would you select?


My two best friends have ltr 450's and they both installed the cherry bomb and removed baffle. The only difference between my trx and their ltr's is they have slightly more top end then me. Their power delivery is very smooth and they have great acceleration. But they tend to bottom out a lot on the real rutted out trails, especially when those trails go uphill. The yfz450 is one badass quad but it has a stiff throttle, although im not sure about the newer ones (considering the one I rode was a 2004, not sure if the 09's are EFI). I feel like my trx has more bottom end then the ltr's but the same as the yfz (personal opinion) To answer your final questions, the 450s can handle the rough terrain. I would pick up the yfz or trx. I like the ltr's but I am not fond of their lack of ground clearance and 18 inch stock rear tires. Hope this helps

[shane071489]

believe it or not ha im gonna agree on the lack of ground clearance i tend to bottom out a lot especially if i jump a jump and land kinda hard cased it on a rock and messed up one of my frame rails just ordered a tag railer so hopefully that will solve all of the issues and the 18 inch tires i love them and i do a lot of trail riding this thing coming out the hole is amazing with them and they hook up good too

[shane071489]

by the way i ride trails maybe 80 % to 20% track but everyones trails are different i ride railroad tracks where i live then we go to durhamtown and thats where i ride tracks but the trails up there iim fine on

[King Kong]

Thanks for all the great information. Can it do well on something like this:
http://www.offroadreport.com/images/rubicon_trail_1.jpg
Would I be miserable and get fatigue ridiing on something like that? I don't usually ride on that tough of a trail but i was just wondering how it would do there.

[shane071489]

honestly if i had to go up something like that ha id have a 4x4 automatic quad ha i climb a lot of hills but try to stay away from rocks i think all 450s would have groud clearance from that pic just my opinion

[King Kong]

I will stay away from that then. I don't want a 4x4. That was worst case scenario.

[ZBlaster]

I race XC on my LT-R and LOVE it. I've had a YFZ in the past and enjoyed it, but the LT-R feels like a much better machine to me. I've got 21" fronts and 20" rears on mine, and with just the baffle out, lid off, and a cherrybomb it feels great. Makes the gears long enough to really be useful in the woods. On 20's the ground clearance is no worse than any other 450. The only issue you may run into is width, but throw on some 4/1 wheels, or even get a narrower set of A-Arms and that problem is easily solved.

[King Kong]

How is the comfort of the Suzuki compared to your other bikes?Do you feel like you can ride all day on the ltr?

[ZBlaster]

Originally posted by King Kong
How is the comfort of the Suzuki compared to your other bikes?Do you feel like you can ride all day on the ltr?



I've never ridden the 450R enough to say much, it felt pretty comfortable. But as far as the DS450, KFX450 and YFZ450 go the LT-R is 10 times more comfortable in my opinion. The seat on the LT-R is one of the most comfortable I've ever felt, as well as the ergonomics make everything feel well within reach. I've raced several harescrambles on it so far and it feels great to me.

[shane071489]

i have a friend that has a yfz 450 2 of them actually ive rode one before and im not comfortable on them but thats me i think the ltrs seat is real soft and i love how its like a y (wides in the back) best bet is to just go to the dealer and sit on both usually they will let you test drive them if your approved and go from there i have a ltr and never wanted a yamaha cause everyone rode them just wanted to be different

[sparks 450]

I own two quads, one is a z400. IT is in my opinion the best all around quad you can buy for play riding. It does everything well.It doesnt have the top end speed of the 450s but it is really comfortable. you can ride it for hours without getting exhausted. Very plush seat ALSO.

[shane071489]

yeah this is my opinion...i had a ltz 400 and i switched to the 450 love the suspension and the low feel and the power thats just me ive rode my ltr all day before and like today i rode it for like 5 hours and its real comfortable ...the suspension and the wideness is my favorite thats whats gonna appeal to you in my opinion

[King Kong]

How is the ltr 450 when you are revving it at a lower speed? I know im asking a lot of questions, but I just want to be positive im making the right choice. Thank you all.

[sparks 450]

with a cherrybomb installed i think you will like it.

[shane071489]

yeah the cherry bomb makes it into a monster ha best 30 bucks ive spent

[itsallbizz]

Get a LTR 450, best dam quad I have ever owned. I ride for long durations in the woods, on the trails. you can easily set the stock suspension on your LTR on the softer side,, and it is very comfortable. I also track ride, and it feels like it is on rails. I have owned a 250r, 400ex and other sport models and the LTR is by far the best bang for for your buck. GET A CHERRY BOMB!!!! best dam 40 bucks you'll spend, pull the cork out of the exhaust and pull off the air box lid and let'er rip. if ya got some extra cash, buy some stock rims and tires off of a 450r, or 400ex or 250ex, put them on and your ground clearance issues will be eliminated. I bought some stock rims and tires off of a 250ex I got an extra 4 iches in the front and rear. I got em off of ebay for 80 bucks. for all 4 of them.

[King Kong]

Thanks for all the help. I made my purchase today.... and i went with the LTR 450! I can't wait to see how it performs. Oh and i got the Cherry Bomb as well!

[sparks 450]

congrats, it is a sweet quad.

[shane071489]

you will love it no doubt about it

[mopar04]

I ride Hollister Hills on a pretty much weekly basis which has some very rocky rutted up trails, especially after the rain washboards everything. The stock 18/20 tires do have some clearance issues especially if you hit jump on the trail and land in a rough spot. Like one of the previous posters said, some larger tires put it's ground clearance on par with any other quad. I use 20/22s when I want to hit the trails hard and 18/20s when I know I'll be riding the track for a while. I recently also added Pro-Armor A-arm/Frame/Swingarm skid plates just to be extra sure, and those things are bulletproof on an LTR. Hope this helps.

[King Kong]

You read my mind! I was just going to ask about full body armour. I had pro armour on my mind. Is that one of the best skid plates on the market? What's the most bulletproof between: Pro Armour, Rath, AC, or even others you may know of?

[LTandRaptorider]

I put a PRM rear skid on mine. Yeah, it was expensive, but worth the $$! That thing is bullet-proof!

[shane071489]

I just put a tag railer made by tag metals...its an all polyurethane skidplate they said its indestructable it doesnt bend like aluminuim so far i love it i cased my frame pretty hard actually bent some of it

[itsallbizz]

I gotta tag railer on the frame and a prm on the swingarm, and I would not have it another way. light enought to track ride, but strong enough to trail ride. the only draw back is you gotta take off the railer when you change the oil. ( if ya don't want a mess on your hands). my theory is " take care of the machine, that takes care of you" LTR all the way.

[mopar04]

I use Pro-Armor for my nerfs and all my skids, has been perfect fit and top-notch quality every time. I can't speak for Rath, but I do know that I haven't been too impressed by AC products from what I've seen on my friends' bikes. Also, any brand that says you can change your oil out with the skid plate on is freaking nuts, its probably 10x the work of just taking it off (takes about 5 mins) and has the potential of creating an enormous mess.

[k4f5x0r]

sucks for suzuki. i have a skidplate on my quad and changing the oil with it on is extremely simple. you just take the drain bolt out :p . whatever company it is(armadillo i think) drilled ahole there maybe 2 inches in diameter. just enough for oil to drain out without any getting in the skidplate.

[RATPACK Z400]

just drill your own hole !not that hard to do screw taking skid off!

[itsallbizz]

you might get the oil outta the tank, but what about the motor, The tag railer has the hole for the tank. I have not seen a skid with the holes for the crank case oil. It is a good practice to take the skid of anway to remove any rocks, and any othe stuff that gets trapped in there.

[RATPACK Z400]

taking it off once in a while yeah but every oil change Sucks! just drill hole take hammer knock hole in so theres no edges and skid can slide without catching rim of hole,then you dont half to take off every oil change wish I had pics of mine ,my belly skids made from" men at work" sign ,light weight and can design to fit perfectly, had it on 6yrs now !but thats me I decided to build my own instead of paying $100.00 for one.