I was all set to buy an outty 400 for me and my wife (two machines) when something strange happened. While going in to look at the outty yet again I saw an reprinted article for a 400 shootout where the Eiger beat out the Outty and others! And the MSRP in the article surprised me. I had dismissed the eiger earlier because I somehow thought it cost a lot more than it does. Now that I do know what it costs I am giving it a REAL hard second look. Today I called every dealer near here and the out-the-door price is a cool $1000 (1200 for 5 speed) cheaper than the outty! Times that by 2 machines and... [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-shocked.gif[/img]

I come from a sport bike background but family life, possibility of picking up hunting, and friends that like rougher terrain are pushing me to a 4x4 ute. I would prefer the sportiest I can get but I couldn't stand to spend more than $6000 a piece and even that is very uncomfortable. That rules out King quads, outty 800s etc. In fact, I have been very slow to buy because the way the outty was bending up the budget. My local dealers will do $5400 OTD for an 06 Eiger 5spd, $5575 for auto, and a $200 less for an 05 At least he thought he had some left but was going to look and get back to me. Is it worth $200 to get a newer model year? For the outty I am looking at $6600 OTD.

I have ridden the Outty 400 in the dealer parking lot and liked it. It seems very full-featured. It was hard to tell how sporty it was in the parking lot however. I have not ridden the Eiger at all but on paper it seems to be a great bang for the buck machine. I wonder if the solid rear axle would enhance or detract from it's sportiness.

SO I NEED YOUR HELP!!! [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]
The liquid cooling and indep rear susp aren't terribly important (very nice, but not must-have). The 5 year warranty is nice but I can buy a 4 year from zuk and still save several hundred $$$ (though I think I would pass on it actually). So the question is: What, if anything, am I giving up going to the Eiger? Is the outty worth the extra $$$? How sporty are either of these machines?

Please help me out.

 

First off, the Outlander 400 is more machine than the Eiger. A little faster, IRS and it has the visco locking front dif.

Both are sporty utes, both handle well, neither has any reliability problems, neither will disappoint you. If you like 5-speed instead of an auto, then there is no question since the Outy is only an automatic. IMHO the bigest single advantage of the Outy over the Eiger is the locking front dif - the Eiger has a more traditional limited slip non-lockable front end. Even without the locker, the Eiger is a great all around trail/mud machine.

There is no difference between the '05 Eiger and the '06, although $200 may be lost in resale or trade-in value if you plan on getting rid of it in the next 2 to 3 years, after that it will not matter.

So while the Outy is more machine than the Eiger I don't think it's $1,025 more. Or $1,200 more. And certainly not $1,400 more. Times two = some serious money - More than enough to buy a decent trailer to haul two quads, or pay for a really cool ATV vacation somewhere, or bunches of extra riding gear and/or accessories.

There is a small difference in performance between the bikes vs a large difference in price. I'd seriously consider the Eiger. Find one to borrow or to test drive to decide for yourself if the money saved is worth it.

Jaybee

 

My brother has a 2004 Outlander XT and I have a 2005 Eiger manual. We pretty much share the machines so I get a chance to ride them about the same amount. They are both our first ATVs so I'm speaking from limited experience. We have about 150 miles on each, so still very new.

The main difference is the IRS. The Outty is like driving a Cadillac. You really feel the difference when riding bumpy terrain and whoever rides the Eiger is always a little bit more sore the day after. Weight is also an issue. The Eiger is lighter and therefore feels like you have a little more control of it. Though with that, I've almost tipped the Eiger a few times and the Outlander is like a tank and very sturdy. The Outty rides better but doesn't feel as sporty in my opinion. The gel seat on the Outlander is very comfortable too.

I don't know about newer Outlanders, but one thing I don't like is the single handlebar break. The Eiger has front and rear breaks on the handlebars so its just more comfortble to stop. Our Outlander only has a front hand break so you need to use the foot break for the rear. I guess it wouldn't be so bad if you primarily drove the Outlander, but I personally don't like switching back and forth and having to use my foot.

The Outlander has a little more power, but the Eiger 5spd keeps right up with it. The automatic is nice, but sometimes its fun to shift. As for the viscolock, we don't really use it that much, at least I don't think we do. The Eiger goes through the mud and climbs just as well. We just put it in 4x4 and go.

So if you want a really comfortable ride and money isn't really an option, the Outlander is great. But I got a leftover Eiger for at least $1400 less then the Outlander runs. That money went towards the trailer. The Outlander rides better, but not $1400 better in my opinion. Another factor for us was the XT came with a winch, bumpers and hand guards. If you are getting a base Outlander, you need to consider the price of adding a winch. Suzuki had a $69 deal when I got mine and the install wasn't too bad.


Overall my guess would be your wife would prefer the Outlander. Won't have to shift, very comfortable ride and it just feels safer. You'll like the Eiger. Eaiser on the wallet and a little sportier.

Good luck and hope this helps

 

i would say that the eiger is definetely the sportier of the 2-because of the solid rear end and the 5 sp, the outy has the best riding suspension of any quad out there- in my opinion- but it does take away from its sportiness -and could probably go more places than the eiger when the going gets tough
i agree 100% with outyeiger
oh yeah, i think the one year older model is basically the same as the newer one so save the 200

 

That left-hand hand brake lever on the Outlander will actuate both the front and rear brakes at the same time. The foot brake operates only the rear brakes. There is no way to only use front brakes, although the single lever braking is biased towards the front. Not sure that I'd like it either - it feels strange to not have a lever on the right side but as long as it works well I guess i could get used to it.

I found a quote comparing the Eiger and Outlander 400 - originally in DirtWheels but reprinted in a BRP brochure that I picked up at the dealers this weekend:

"BRP's next mission was to create ATV's that were more powerful and handled better than the competition. That has already been proven true with the Outlander 400. It pretty much outperforms all other 400cc utility machines, with Suzuki's Eiger very close behind."

Jaybee

 

Thanks for all the great info guys. Pretty sure we are going for the Eigers. Manual for me. She hasn't decided yet. She has been a recon rider and is used to shifting but likes the idea of an auto.

 

Forgot to add. Nearest dealer is out of 05 AND 06 Eigers. Nobody else even thought they had them so looks like 06 it is!

 

You should be able to get the Outlander 400 for about $6,000 OTD. IMO more machine then the Eiger...Visco Loc, IRS and the Rotax 400 HO engine is tough to beat and holds its own even against some 400's. If all you got was parking lot time in the seat then you couldn't have appreciated the IRS. I have four quads.....mostly everyone prefers to ride the Outlander.

 

CARider,

I definitely like the outty. If I could get it for $6000 OTD I could probably justify it. The lowest they will go is $6099 + tax and license. That is if I buy 2 at once. If I buy one the best is $6199 ++ which makes 6505 and 6610 respectively. The Eiger 5sp is $4900 +setup & freight fees +tax & license, rounded down a few bucks (by the dealer) to $5400 even. $5575 even for the auto.

I have talked to every dealer for a good distance. Maybe you have a lead for me? To save that much I might be willing go a few extra miles. I would love the 5 year warranty, I like the looks of the outty better, and my wife really liked the outty seat and rear susp. She is actually gung ho to spend the extra anyway. When I ask her which feature(s) is worth $1000+ she agrees that the eiger is a better value but she really likes the outty.

Thanks

 

My wife and I decided on the Eiger because after we factored in the trailer and accessories and warranty, and it met our budget. I have no complaints. They ride great and have plenty of power for what we do with them.

We shopped around quite a bit and I ended up buying at a dealer 300 miles away and saved about $2,000!

Got two Eiger Autos for $5275 ea OTD. The trailer is a 5x14 all tubular construction, $1200. Purchased the factory extended warranty from Troy City Garage for $400 ea. For us, it paid to shop around.

Oh and we each got $100 from Suzuki for taking a one-day safety course... that bought the helmets [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]