i am looking at the z400 and the BF 650i really close. they both seem like a great quads for trail riding. the thing is, is that when the snow flies, am i going to regret buying the z400? i have a foreman 450 ES and the only time i use 4x4 is in the winter, or if im towing something. i know im not going to be towing anything with a z400 but am i going to want the 650 more? ground clearence is also a factor (ROCK!!) but i could just slap a skid plate on z400.
what are the pros and cons of both machines?

thanks

Driveit

P.S since i need a heavy on sport/little on utility type quad...maybe the wolv 450? are wheelies possible on it?

 

These ATV's are both very close speed wise, b/c the 650i is said to be as fast as the 750i, and I've heard of BF 750's sticking right with these sporties in drags, with an aftermarket CDI even beating them in a drag. But there's a lot of things you can do with a Sportie that you can't do with a ute and vise-versa.

Pros of the Z400--- Fast, fun manual tranny, you can jump it, wheelie it like crazy, and you can take it to the MX track.
Cons of the Z400--- No 4wd so mud isn't good idea, also it's chain driven so snow riding and mud riding isn't a good idea. Ground clearance isn't half of the 650i. Snow riding isn't this bike's thing.

Pros of the 650i----Powerful and fast, great ride (vs. the sportie), IRS, ~11 inches of ground clearance which blows away the Z400. Go through all the mud/snow you want since it's 4wd and shaft driven. Wheelies are easy with it's low end grunt.
Cons of the 650i---CANNOT JUMP IT, don't listen to anyone telling you it's okay to jump it b/c these ute's aren't made to be jumped, the frame can crack. Not going to be as fun in the dry summer time when there's not mud/snow around for the 4wd.

Since you live so far north where the winter probably lasts a while I'd recommend the 650i, aside from jumping, these sport ute's can do it all.

 

My motto is to "never ride a utility anywhere I can ride a sport". This means that I have to have both, and push my sport quads to their limit in technical terrain. I only switch to the utilities when the rocks get to big, or the streams get to deep, or it snows, and that means only high altitude riding for me. I say keep the Foreman for the snow, and get the Z for having some real fun in the summer.

I have great hopes for a new class of hybrid machines, similar to the Wolverine. Lighter than a ute, more sporty, and with selectable 2wd/4wd. The Wolverine falls short of my ideal in this class (way to heavy, and what's sporty about a foo foo automatic transmission??), but it's a step in the right direction in terms of design philosophy. I hope the other manufacturers will follow the trend, and come out with better and better designs.

 

not to mention the renagade isnt much better. it sounds like basically a utilty quad, with sport plastics. sure it might have a few better features then a utilty, but its far from a sport. it all sounds good on paper, but so did the wolverine.

 

well what im planing is the foreman can be dads (he loves the thing, lol) and i get a new quad. the winter in the "far north" lol, lasts 2-3 months (w/snow) and once a trail is made by my forman in 4x4 i can cruise in 2x4 all the time except when the icey crap comes. is there a major difference between the 650 and the 650i besides IRS? ive heard the engine is more powerful in the 650i, is this true? also how long does the belt last in the 650's?
how easy is the 650 to wheelie?
im not sure if you guys have ever seen this but when we get hit with snow (4 ft) and get a hot day later and then a freezing cold night, you get a thick layer of ice on the ground in the morning. ive been on top of a least 4 feet of snow and im only down about a inch, if that. plus infinite plower slides and donuts are to fun. but last winter i was heading down the drive way and decided to go up onto the "lawn" and hit a soft spot and the whole atv sunk about a foot or so and high centered, and since theres nothing to winch onto we had to get the truck and pull it out, lol lots of fun.

Driveit

 

You can jump the ute quads, but only about 3 ft max safley off the ground. Like posted, if you try to jump a 6ft jump, have a new frame waiting at home, because you will need it. These things are 700+ lbs and thats to heavy to be launching air born! But i jump mine all the time, just like i said, about 3ft off the ground max. The front and rear irs models like mine do a good job of soaking up the landing.

 

I would say get the Z. It is going to handle better and is probably going to be a lot more fun to ride in the trails.

I would only get the BF if you are looking for something to work with, or to get in big *** mud pits. For nearly everything else a lighter, more nimble quad is going to be your answer.

 

The Z 400 would no doubt be a lot of fun, b/c sport quads are naturally fun since their so small and light. If you could manage to park the Z 400 in the winter months, and drive your dad's 450 then get the Z400, but if your really wanting a new ATV you can ride year round then get the 650i for sure, without 4wd the Z isn't going to be getting much traction in the snow/ice, and it would constantly get stuck all the time.

Yes, the power on the 650i is a lot better than the 650 due to it sharing several compenents from the 750i...it's right on par with the 750 in power, and said to have better handling. The belt should last a while...these belts last to about 1500 or 2000 miles I'd think (not sure though). Wheelies are said to be easy on the 650i, ecpecially with a performance CDI...go to ATVscene.com and they have a test drive article on the 650i and there's several pictures of them doing wheelies. It's got a lot of power for a 633cc motor.

 

how fast does the 650i go???
ajd187 have you taken your sport quad through snow before? if so, how was it?
we are selling our cottage right now and getting a new one sometime soon, so what ever the terrain is like at
the new cottage will choose the quad i guess.
has any one heard about the 07 ranchers? id like to know what there up to.
i think they'll add switchable 4x4, maybe a hondamatic tranny, and maybe IRS. maybe they cut the line completely?
i bet if they added switchable 4x4 and a good IRS they would sell fast.

driveit

 

I haven't had my YFZ in the snow yet because I didn't have it in the winter.

However I did have my KFX700 in the snow a few times. The winter here was sorta pathetic and we didn't get a ton of snow. But it was still pretty fun to ride in the snow. I never really got stuck. You're only going to get stuck if you go out in more than 6 inches of soft stuff. Otherwise you should be fine. Hard pack is going to be a blast because you can do donuts everywhere.