i have a z400 and i'm getting a second quad. i ride trails out to the sand and gravel pits and when i get their
i climb hills and jump(not mx size jumps) all day, then i ride the trails back home. i'm looking into a raptor 700
or a 450. the thing i don't like about my z is that it doesn't have a strong low end i have to hit the hills i 2nd gear
and keep the rpm's up. i would like a quad that can hit the hill's in 1st and pull itself up the hills. i can't test ride
anything because all my friends have z's. and how do the 450's hold up maint wise. thanks

 

The Z likes to be ridden revved out........and the R even more so! These motors make their horsepower way up in the higher rpm's, long after older design engines have fallen way off the curve. You have to ride these kind of like a 2-stroke, which is what the designers were aiming for. Everybody lamented the end of the 2-stroke era, so they built 4-strokes that were more like 2-strokes.

Sounds like you are looking for an engine with a toruqey bottom end. For me, that's the 400EX. It's a great trail machine, because it can be lugged down and it will still pull. Word is that the Raptor is a torquey too. Ask about it in the Yamaha forum.

Or, you might benefit from a gearing change on your Z, that would keep you in the powerband at trail speeds????

 

kayaker, Either quad will be a great hillclimber. However they have differing philosophies as to how to get to the top. If you want to lug up in 1st watching the scenery, the 700Raptor is probably your best bet. Lots of torque and from what I have heard, the efi aids in keeping the motor running at lower speeds/RPM's if you are lugging along. The 450's have a better power to weight ratio than your Z, and Yamaha designed theirs to keep the front end on the ground and tracking when you give it throttle. I have had more than enough power to tackle any hill I had the cojones for, even stock, with mine. Once I had gotten stuck behind a guy that had thrown his chain on a steep, loose hillclimb. From a dead stop I was able to climb the small embankment that was on either side of the trail(even steeper than the trail) and keep going until I could pull off and go help the guy. While she doesn't like to run real slow, plenty of power to fly up hills.