I am new at the atv thing but thinking of buying one new. I have heard both good and bad about the ds650x. I love the aggressive looks of the ds, and personally think it is better made than the ones the japs have to offer. And being a Bombardier fan I have my mind pretty much set on the ds, but only have a few questions. How does the ride, handling, and performance compare to its counterparts (i.e. raptor, KFX ect)? What problems have you had with yours? What mods-upgrades if any would you guys suggest I do right away? I intend to do a lot of trails as well as endurance rides.

I would appreciate all your opinions.


Thanks in advance

 

The ride is great. Better to me than any other quad out there, and I have a Predator. The DS is my husbands. The handling is great also it handles to me better because it is so much more stable IMO. I like the performance better than the Raptor but to be fair I haven't ridden the new 700 yet. Mods it depends on what you want to do with it. Pipe or end cap, carb, GOOD aftermarket CDI, that will at least get you started off right. Don't worry more people will respond when they are not busy. Good luck with what ever you decide on.

 

You're kidding right????

the DS is by far the best quad on the planet!



For reality sake..... It's a great quad for many purposes. For big guys, it's an AWSOME quad. It handles desert and dunes better than most, and the suspension out of the box is fantastic. The quality of the entire bike is where the DS accels past others. Every bolt is grade 8, every piece of steel is solid. The mighty rotax is almost bullet proof. No other quad will hold up as well over time. NOTHING!!!!

It's big, too big for some, and not great on the track or the super tight stuff. It was never made for GNCC. Put it out in the desert and equal riders on other bikes will find it very difficult to keep up. Put it in the dunes, and stock for stock, mod for mod, you'll have a hard time beating it with comparible riders.

Mods are somewhat tough to come by comparatively with the other Japenese quads. The mods are ususally of very high quality and a tad more expensive. Then again, there are very few DS's out there.

First Mods I would do would half to be:

Exhaust and air filter along with re-jetting

In my opinion a Vortex CDI

then a carb- I like the HV44 or 46 from HPR. The Mikuni TM45 is an option as well. Both are great cars and great upgrades for power. There are a few issues that have to be overcome with each.... do a search on Carbs.

That's about it for external... unless you want BLING.

Internal, I'd start with a Piston and cams on your stock bore. After that, the sky is the limit. You can get real nasty, but that's going to cost you some $$$$

Good luck with your future bike.... what ever it is.

Ride safe and smart.

 

The DS is good for sand and drags. Can not compete with the Raptor or YZF on a moto course or GNC. Depends what you want to do with the DS.

 

I'd strongly recommend the DS if you are doing endurance riding (assuming long distance) IF your shopping for a sport quad. I haven't ridden the KFX(V-force) but everthing I've read is the suspension isn't so great. Can't really compare with the YFZ's, 450R's etc, different set up for different riding. The DS constantly wins most of the endurance rallies ATV class but you won't find them in the moto cross type events. The only drawbacks are no reverse and it's a bit on the heavy side at 500 lbs. I'm only selling mine cause I'm getting a Renegade whenever they are released.

 

my 05x had alot more power than my other baja and viper when they were stock , the only thing i dont care for on my x is the shortened rear end. its so torqy that its hard to keep the front end down on hard take offs or super steap hills. the ds is a great bike and overall thats my only real complaint, and this complaint really is not one becouse everyone wants there bike to rare up on them

 

I myself am a Honda guy. I was planning at first on getting a 450R or even a Yamaha 660 as the 700 was not out yet. I happened to go into a dealer in Phila and see a Bombardier DS 650. I never heard of them or had seen one in my life. My biggest problem is that I had to be born a giant at 6' 7" 300lb. Once I sat on the DS I had to have one. Its got plenty of power, a great suspension and is an awesome huge quad. Don't get me wrong here if I was a smaller guy I definitely would have gone with a Honda 450R or my second choice Yamaha 700. These bikes sit lower and are lighter which is better for the riding I do here in NJ. The DS sits higher, does not corner as well and weighs over 100lbs more that the Honda or Yamaha.
If you are an average size guy I would definitly look into the Yamaha 700. Its fuel injected and there are many mods out there for it. One thing that pisses me off is that a lot of manufactures forget about us DS guys when it come to the upgrades.
Hope this helps you in making your decision, D