Well guys, are you all still fiercly loyal to your Raptors? How many of you have ridden the Suzuki Z400 back-to-back with the Raptor? Does the Suzuki truly handle better than the Raptor? (what about any differences AFTER the Raptor has been widened a bit?) How does the power compare...really?? With all this pro-Z400 hype going on right now, I'd like to cut through the crap and know exactly how these two machines stack up, head to head. I wonder if our beloved Dirt Wheels and ATV Action will take the "best sport/hi-performance ATV" crown away from the Raptor and give it to Suzuki? Not that they are the last word, but I guess we'll find out soon. I want to know what YOU GUYS think on the subject. Which quad would you buy right now, if you had it to do all over again?

 

You asked for an unbiased opinion HERE??? lol

 

My opinion:

I haven't ridden a Z, but am really not that interested in the same respect. So your not gonna get the answer your looking for from me.

Would I buy a Raptor again, YES, BUT, I wouldn't have bought an 01 if I knew then what I know now. As for the Raptor in general, I don't think you can buy another "Open class" machine that compares to the Rap. What about the DS you say? Well if your looking to go into the motor, which I was wanting to do just months after buying the Rap, you can get twice if not three times the "motor" mods for the Rap compared to the DS.

The Rap fits my kind of riding, dunes, trails, drag racing, messing around on the mx track and getting ready to do a little flat tracking with it too. It does it all descently. Not the best in any one area, but descent in all. A very versatile machine!

Now, if I were a die hard XC or MX or dune guy, there are better machines that fit that one type of particular riding. Therefore, if "I" were going to buy another machine today, it would be...........silence.............
Cannondale. Yes "crackinfale" (just kidding c-dale riders)(I own a "Craptor".

I like the c-dale alot, and I like the way c-dale takes care of it's customers. At some point and time, I will either buy a c-dale or I will build a quad from scratch, using an aftermarket frame and a dirt bike motor, while being able to choose all the componentry that fit's my needs best.


So, there are "MY" thoughts.

Swy

 

ive ridden a stock z and a one with a yosi slp on and air box modds.both z's handled better than my raptor with plus 4 axel and holeshots,the z is the best handeling stock quad ive ridden.i didnt like the handelbars-to narrow or something,but im used to banshee bend.the suspention was nice,went through woops way betterthan a raptor.power on the stock z was ok,the bottem end felt weak,and it seemed noticably slower than a raptor.the piped z seemed to have alot better bottem end the power seemed decent but still didnt have the big bore feel,ijust didnt pull as hard.if i wanted handeling id pick the z,if i want power=raptor.

 

I'll give you my point of view since i find myself riding our demos more than the customers day in and day out.

Between me and the other guys at the shop....we probally have the most "broke-in" demo quads that you will find anywhere..LOL

Everyone has their own riding enviroment and riding style, so I doubt you find two replies that are the same...but here's mine.

[1]The Suzuki handles much better than the Raptor and also has the smoothest ride at slow speeds of ANY sportquad that I have ever ridden.

[2]If you keep the revs up on the Z400, it feels SOMEWHAT like a Raptor in acceleration......but only until you reach 4th gear. Then the Z falls flat until it picks back up the pace, but by that time it gets there, it's time to shift into 5th where the same thing happens.

[3]I would take the Z400 over the Raptor in the woods just because it handles better and has a more plush ride,.....but everywhere else, I would take the Raptor.

But...that's just my opinion.
Ride whatever suits you.

 

According to the dirtwheels battle between the cannibal, z, and 400ex the cannibal blew them away on drags and motocross type handling(suspension action). The z frame is almost identical to the ex so that would explain why dirtwheels felt it handled almost identical to the ex but with more power. However, If you go back to last year and read the cannibal versus raptor shootout or other highperformance shootouts the raptor stayed with the dale to close to determine a winner consistently. Based on this I would say the raptor is a bit faster than the z out of the box stock. But I don't know about the handling department.

 

I have ridden both. The z is a fine ride. It is easy to turn and find nuetral, shifts nice. It is no match for my built raptor though. Kind of hard for me to compare as i have more that 10k in the raptor. Nobody leaves them stock so the true test will be the yoshi 450 kit, axle, shocks then it might be a raptor killer everywhere but the strip. Time will tell. But if i was to by another quad tommorow to have/back up for the raptor/let the kids ride i believe it would be the Z. Close enough to want to save some $$$. If you were only going to buy 1 quad, get the raptor. The mods are out there all over the place. I doubt the aftermaket will be as big as the raptors.

 

My MX partner has just gotten the Z and loves it compared to his raptor. His raptor was all mods too, all the mods that ATV actions project raptor had. He loved it, then he bought the Z and loves it. He's selling the Raptor. I'll get a chance to ride the Z this weekend. The only problem I see is that it is going to have trouble living up to the massive hype that its gotten. But so far it sounds like a true sport quad and more competition to spur on the manufactures. Just a little disappointed that Kawasaki just painted it green and brought it aboard its lineup. Another sport quad from another manufacture like Kawy just spurs on Honda and Yamaha more. Which is good for all.

 

I have ridden both quite a bit. And stock for stock the Raptor is about 2 to 3 quads quicker from 4th gear on. Up to there they are equal. The Z will outhandle the Raptor which was my primary reason for buying the Z and I don't live near the dunes. If I lived near the Dunes I would have taken the Raptor without even thinking about it. I like them both but I mainly ride in the woods on tight trails and the Z just seemed to work better. That and the Raptor seems to get kind of light on the front end for woods riding if you do very many mods. It will come up on you kind of unexpectantly. The place where I bought my Z sells both. The Z sells for 5099.00 and the Raptor for 5699.00 so price wasn't that much of an issue. If I wasn't older and fatter and was still interested in racing I would have bought a Cannondale. Even though they seem to have some new model bugs to work out. My Z has done fine and I think the 2002 and newer Raptor's will do fine also. It's all a matter of the type of riding you do to me.

 

Sorry to barge in on the Yamaha forum but I have to agree with most of you. I am also very surprised that the opinions were not biased. I have a new found respect for Raptor owners. I use to own a 400EX and love just about any quad. I am not brand loyal at all, but the 400EX'ers sure are. They dont want to her about the Z or a Raptor at all.

Anyway, I have owned many 3 and 4 wheelers. Last year I looked hard at a Raptor. I ride with a guy that has one. I have ridden it extensively even though my name isnt on the title. It has great power but didnt handle as well as my 400EX did. On the straight aways, the Raptor and the DS always made me eat dirt and rocks. As soon as we hit the trail, they neither one could keep up. The DS was just to wide and the Raptor didnt rail like the 400EX.

The Z400 is a different breed. The handling is not equally as good as a 400EX... It is better. The suspension is great for a stock machine, better than a 400EX and a Raptor. But the DS and C Dales obviously have better rides.

When I first got the Z, I thought it lacked a lot of low end, and maybe just a tad of the instant throttle response compared to a 400EX, but the bang is great once you hit 4000 rpm or so. Compared to the Raptor though, it doesnt have the grunt. Close, but to quiet.