My Buddy bought a Honda XR400R and he rode it for about six months and really wants a quad. For his first quad he wants to know which one to get. Of course, I am partial to my 400ex so I told him for a beginner a 400ex is good. Especially f he has had the XR already. He really likes honda bikes. I don't want to steer him in the wrong direction because my 400 has been realy good to me and I love it. What would you suggest for a beginner with a minimum of 400cc's. Thanks for the help.

 

So many choices...can you help narrow it down a little more.

What kind of riding does he do?
2wd or 4wd?

What terrain? Trails? Mud? Snow?

Does he hunt? Would he haul game out of the woods with it?

Married (would he want to haul his wife)?

Is comfort or performance more important?

There are so many good choices out there, but to get the right one uses & terrain knowledge is needed.

 

Sorry, I should have supplied more details.

Here it goes.

Riding: Sand and Trails

He definitely wants a sportsquad. No 4x4

He is married, but that's why he buying the quad! ESCAPE!! [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

Comfort with performance if possible.

Hope that helps some.

 

Steer him towards a z400, its not fun when two friends have the same quad because one is always ahead of the other but if they are diferent you are different in different aspects. If he dosent mind working on one though a used banshee would be sweet for the sand, as would a DS.

 

Good point Jackal on the difference. Thanks for your opinion.

 

The new Predator from Polaris has probably the best, smoothest ride of any sport quad out of the box (not counting a Cannondale, but they are more for closed-circuit than running around the great outdoors) and very good handling characteristics (steers precisely, wider stance, more stable than most) but it is also a new and unproven machine in terms of reliability.
The DS quads are also very nice, stable, and smooth, but heavy.
Raptor is another good one, but narrow, and kind of tippy stock.

The 400ex and z400 are very good well-balanced machines, although not the fastest out there, especially stock. They are kind of like the XRs of quads. Sporty and reliable, but not a true racer.

 

Thanks Farmr!!

 

from what i hear about the predator i'd get that

 

What kinda budget?
I'd say get 400ex because of your parts would be interchangeable. Then you'd always be trying to out-do each other with mods, which isnt always a bad thing!

 

Stocktires,

His budget is anywhere from 5k to 7.5k. Yeah you’re right about trying to out mod each other [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img].