I own a ds, and have owned and raced a banshee. Both quads are music to the ears. I can't decide which quad sounds the best.

Both are at home in wide open spaces. Both suck in tight places. The banshee is not as wide which helps in the trees, but the ds power is far less tiring. It doesn't matter though, if I want to go fast in the trees, I jump on my KTM motorcycle. Talk about being narrow, smooth and fast. Yeehaw!

Both have been very reliable for me.

I prefer the ds over the banshee for two reasons: smooth and smooth.

1. The ds suspension is a decade ahead. Very smooth though the whoops. It can almost stay up with my KTM, and KTM is the king of stable in the dirt bike world. The ds also is very smooth in small choppy stuff. With the ds I get the best of both worlds.

2. If I rode the banshee at race speeds, I got tired very quickly. On the ds I can ride 4-5 times longer before I start to feel it. I think the key to riding the ds fast, for a long period of time, is to "drive it", not "ride it". Don’t waste energy pushing down and pulling up on the handle bars; the ds is too heavy. Use the throttle for that motion and save your energy for more effective movements.

 

well i have the baja and my brother has a banshee. everytime i jump off my bike to get on his i feel like i'm on a childs quad. the difference in comfort is night and day. my brother on the other hand can't get use to the feel of my bike. I guess it depends on what's best for you. i love the quikness the banshee has, but feel like mine is just as quick. overall i'd never buy a banshee and he'd never buy a ds.

 

the ds has got to be the king of comfort, went riding with my brother the other day and he brought his wifes raptor, it has a lot of power, but when it came to comfort we both were going you feel a lot more bumps. the banshee you have to love, it is forever old and the thing is still there. if i had more room in the garage i would have one of those also. i would set it up to go fast in a straight line. it would be great to see that engine in a new frame with some new suspension. and i have to agree who really rides there quad in tight trees, a motorcycle would kill a quad any time, it just has never made any sence to me why to do that, all my friends that ride bikes laugh about that and i have to agree with them.

 

No argument about the suspension. The Banshee could use better shocks for sure. I find that when I get on a DS it feels tall compared to the low slung Banshee. I think a lot is what you are used to. Both are great machines.

 

I don't like the height like Wyo said. My 315 lbs makes it just that much more top heavy. Even with Works shocks my banshee lacks in the suspension department.

I just don't care for the 4 strokes. Maybe when I get older[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img].

 

Well, I have one ds baja, and 2 banshees. It is no secret that my heart lies with the banshee. I had a 93, and when I returned to the sport the 4 strokes were all the rage, but I felt unhappy, so I turned to my old friend the banshee, and have been very happy.

The baja wins the comfort and suspension departments, but the banshee wins hands down in the power department and fun factor. OH, and of course the aftermarket parts availability. It is great, the machine is so old, and companies are still coming out with new aftermarket parts for them.

I really enjoy riding the baja, but when it is time to shoot the hill the banshee takes the lead. I have about the same amount of money into my banshee and baja, that includes the purchase price which was much more for the baja, and my banshee will outrun my baja up sand mountain by about 12 lengths. That is with my 60 pound lighter freind on it also.

On flat drags, it is much closer with the edge to the banshee by about 2 lengths. For hillshooting the two strokes still rule. The 4's are getting closer, but it still costs them much more to get there.

I have ridden some 760 ds's, and they were fun, but I just dont feel they are worth the money.

Well, there is my take on the whole situation. If you want me to run 20 miles accross the desert, I will saddle up on the ds, if you want me to shoot the hill I will have to choose the banshee.

Bat

 

Bat,

What have you done to your Banshee to make it 12 lengths faster up the hill than the Baja? What is done to the Baja also? TIA

 

I rode a stock banshee a few months ago and wen i got on it, it felt like i was on my old LT185, it feels so low, n not nearly as comfy as my ds, the only i did like was the power, if yamaha ever put that engine in a better frame i might think about it but as it stands now i would never buy a banshee

 

I drove an '03 banshee a few weekends ago and it was fun to ride. Lots of power, quick 2 stroke response. It just felt so small and after riding for a few minutes I could tell that it would beat me to death if I rode it all the time. There was a lot of vibration in the handlebars. Also it wouldn't idle...about a month old and it wouldn't idle. Makes me really appreciate the low maintenance of a 4 stroke [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

redskin, My shee has T5's, coolhead with 18cc domes, and carb mount filters, that is about it for speed stuff, it has a few other little things. It is jetted pretty well on the mark.

The baja, has the woods cdi, carb mount K&N, and big gun pipe. When we ran them it did not have the carb mount, I was waiting on my new one and it had not arrived, so I had to put the stock filter back in the airbox. So, with the carb mount, it should gain a few hp, so it will probably be a bit closer.

You have to realize that I am talking about sand moutain at little sahara utah, it is about 700ft up it. The banshee does very well on this hill. If it were a shorter hill, I probably would not have as much lead.

I will be getting more work done to the banshee, but my friends says it is fast enough. The baja can get it through the whoops, but the banshee catches up quick. Usually I can hold the gears better in the banshee also. Whereas the baja will start to drop rpm as the hill gets steeper.

I dont know, but I know I have less money into the banshee and it is usually faster. I also like the fact that I can usually upshift going up some steep hills, where on the 4 stroke it usually has to downshift.

I am rambling now, but they are both very fun machines to ride.

Bat