I need to replace my yamaha big bear 350 after 18 years of abuse. I use my machine around the farm and also to pull a fish house in the winter. I want an atv that will start good in cold weather, and fit in the back of my 6.5 fooot pickup bed with the tailgate up. I like the idea of a solid rear axle because I carry a lot of hitch weight on my fish house. Will the 400 king quads rear axle handle this? I was also considering the artic cat 500 but this is such a large machine.

 

I recently purchased a '08 KQ400 automatic, and am very happy with it. I'm using it now for snow plow duties, and have not even had to put tire chains on.
In case you didn't know, the 08-09 King Quad 400's are essentially 02-07 Suzuki Eiger 400's. In 2008 Suzuki changed the bodywork on the Eiger to that of the KQ family, and according to the Suzuki brochure the KQ400 fits in a 6.5' bed. The Eiger has a reputation of reliability and toughness.
The KQ400 has a carburaeted, air/oil cooled engine. Mine stars easily with the choke, but takes a few minutes to warm up. If you want instant start/instant driveabilty, a fuel injected engine would be a better choice--but they cost more, so figure that into your budget.

 

i have a 2006 kingquad 400 and a 2007 honda 420 rancher, both have as much power or more as your yahmaha 350 bruin, now as far as being in a cold place where your at, i would consider looking at the 420 rancher because its fuel injected, which will start alot easier in extereme cold, my suzuki kingquad 400 had problems starting in 10 degree weather once, the 420 rancher fired right up.

 

I wouldnt get the rancher 420, the kingquad is priced much more reasonably then the honda. As you can see from my name, i have a kingquad 400 5 speed(ltf400f)
The bike does take about 4 minutes to warm up in the below freezing weather here but once it gets warmed up it runs so smoothly. The gated shift lever is great for doing work like plowing too. Its got amazing power and i would recommend the 5 speed over the automatic. No belt to worry about and the 5 speed is meant for a more agressive rider. It also runs like 200$ cheaper so the money you save on that you can buy hand warmers like we did. Anyways yeah the kingquad 400(eiger with new plastic) is one of the most well known quads in terms of reliability and it has a proven track record. You will be very pleased with it and i can send u pictures if u want

 

i love the eigers(KQ400's) but i would buy the foot shift model over the auto! if you still want suzuki but with alot better cold starting, splurge ang get the KQ450 it has EFI. and yes it dose have IRS, but the studry frame on it means it will be more than capable of toeing your fish house. really for your money your best off getting the rancher 420. strait axel, EFI-for damb easy starting, water cooled, and more power than the KQ400. yess there is a $150 diffirence, but you are getting a much newer(mechanically) mechine for that money

 

When we got our kingquad400 here in canada, we picked it up for 6100 tax included brand new from the dealer as they were putting good deals on to get rid of the 2008's. When we looked at the honda420 with tax it came to almost 3000$ more then the suzuki. You make your pick, but if i was going to put another 3000$ into it we would have been better off to get a kingquad 450 over the honda 420 as it is a far superior machine. Back then when they were doing the clearouts, the kingquad 450 was still cheaper then the honda420. The kingquad 450 has diff lock, efi and irs. Honda doesnt even have a diff lock. Also if your going to be towing heavy loads the kingquaD 400(and all other suzuki kingquad models) have low range and from what i recall the 420's that we looked at didnt have low range so id take that into consideration as well.

 

i was not trying to under cut you kingquad400.... im mearly saying the LIST PRICES for the mechines. i would not pay more than list price for ANY mechine setting on a dealers floor, right now im sure you could shop around and buy one for list or less. but that is the key to buying ANYTHING- shop around. does the eiger manual shifts have a low range???? i dont think so.... y? for the same reason that the honda foot shifts dont have a low range, first gear is so low that an even lower, sub-range, wouldnt be needed. unless you plan on doing serious mud-bogging or scaleing a vertical cliff, the foot shift 1st gear in ether the honda, or SUZUKI will me more than low enough..... the autos, for suzuki, have a low range because they have one single gear and the belt drive regulates power to them. the low range more efficently uses the power the belt gives it at lower speeds. foot shifts have diffirent gears, and use the engine power efficently in all gears.

hondas do have diff locks!!!!!!!!!!!!! do your homework. its a torque-sensative one, not a manual lock that you have to fight all the time. it engadges when the front wheel slips, but when you have enough traction it disengedges for easy steering. more arvanced type than the one used on the KQ400, from the specs im reeding.

i didnt poast on this forum to start a pissing contest about someone elses prefered manufacturer, and i didnt. if you want to do that poast a new thread. sorry you got hosed when you bought your atv, but im trying to give some advice-not start a hissey-fit

 

here if you want some unbiased opnions on models,

http://www.powersportsnetwork...._vehicle.asp?veh=59636 for KQ400 foot shift

http://www.powersportsnetwork...._vehicle.asp?veh=38122 for 07 eiger auto, no review for the 08 KQ400 auto

http://www.powersportsnetwork...._vehicle.asp?veh=54169 for KQ450 auto

http://www.powersportsnetwork...._vehicle.asp?veh=53846 for the 08 honda rancher 420 4x4 foot shift

these are real reviews from real people, grerat source to check out before buying. if people have gripes, they will poast um

 

The Rancher 420 or the King Quad 400 manual is what I would go for. The King Quad has a very powerful low gear in it. I've seen people pull 2,000lb loads with their Eigers in low gear. The Rancher has fuel injection which will make it easier to start in extremely cold weather. Both have "4x4" and are both very reliable. I'd personally go with the King Quad, but that's only me. Be sure to take a close look at both and try to test ride them both. Before purchasing either, check to see how much $$ you have in your wallet, then surprise them buy slappin' down the ol' credit card on the counter!! lol

Which ever you choose, I think you will be pleased.
Happy Choosing!

 

Just for clarification regarding Cherokee99's comment "does the eiger manual shifts have a low range???? i dont think so.... ". The manual shift has a high and low range for all 5gears (making 10 total). Not sure if this affects any decisions (I can't say anything about the Honda's, but I know they are name that it reliable), but I haven't had any trouble out of my 06 Eiger (manual shift). And regarding the cold weather starting, if you do all the mods that are available for the jetting, you won't have any trouble starting her up when you need it.