May 3rd... will Honda announce the 650EX ?!?!?!?
#22
well lets see, it took them 6 years since to release the 400EX? remeber the little deal they had with the goverment that they could not release a high performance quad for 10 years, am i wrong but isnt 1999 10 years later from the 1989 Honda 250R? i myself highly doubt that a 650EX will come out, i'm thinking along the lines of a 450EX to a 500EX, but if you read in DirtWheels one letter reply notes that Honda is working on putting the CRF450R motor into a quad chassis.. will this be one of the big suprises for the 2002 lineup? maybe
#24
Thats what I am trying to tell some people, but somehow they just don't understand. Oh and yes, price is a factor, but a lot of people have the money to buy a raptor, but don't because they know they don't need something that big. A raptor is only good for bragging rights and racing.
#25
Some people crack me up. "Take it to the woods and you'll never keep up on your Raptor." I'll keep up just fine. Hmmm, it's funny because I ride with a 400EX and I never get left. Why? Because I'm a better rider! 90% of the people who talk trash about the Raptor haven't even ridden one and most of the ones that do give stories like, "My friend just bought one last night and I rode it, lots of power but I just didn't feel comfortable on it. I like my 400EX better." So all of you people mean to tell me that you were as fast on your 400's the day you got them as you are now? There was NO learning curve to the bike and you haven't gotten faster on it? BS if that's the case. I don't ride any bike once and make a value judgement based on that. You learn how to ride ALL bikes faster with a little time on them. Does the Raptor handle as well as a 400? No. Is the handling desparity so bad that all Raptors get left by all 400's? No. Too many people are living by the ATVSport article where the 400EX won the MX and woods courses. Realize that that article was written the previous fall and wasn't published until the April 2001 issue. The writers themselves admitted they needed more time on the bike to learn it but they just didn't get that time. The bike was only 3 months old when this test was performed. Direct quote from them, "Take the time to master this powerful machine, and it could be unbeatable in the woods."
They aren't saying that it will be the fastest but they know the potential is there once the bike is learned. Who knows, it may end up not being faster but I'm not going to use the "bring it to my turf" strategies. Oh yeah, race me on the flat or take it to the dunes. These aren't fair statements. In stock form the Raptor is much better than the 400EX on these terrains but a test of an ATV comes with all facets of riding. Remember, the final verdict is not out on the Raptor yet. A lot of people are going to be eating their hats if Dirt Wheels does the comparison and the Raptor is faster in either the woods or on the track. What's the argument going to be then? I will defend the Raptor but I refuse to bash another quad like so many of the 400 owners I run across.
Finally, my argument with the Mustang vs. Viper wasn't one of performance. It was based on pure cost and sales volume.
They aren't saying that it will be the fastest but they know the potential is there once the bike is learned. Who knows, it may end up not being faster but I'm not going to use the "bring it to my turf" strategies. Oh yeah, race me on the flat or take it to the dunes. These aren't fair statements. In stock form the Raptor is much better than the 400EX on these terrains but a test of an ATV comes with all facets of riding. Remember, the final verdict is not out on the Raptor yet. A lot of people are going to be eating their hats if Dirt Wheels does the comparison and the Raptor is faster in either the woods or on the track. What's the argument going to be then? I will defend the Raptor but I refuse to bash another quad like so many of the 400 owners I run across.
Finally, my argument with the Mustang vs. Viper wasn't one of performance. It was based on pure cost and sales volume.
#27
That was a great little speech you gave there and I fully agree. I believe that the 400EX and Raptor are the best quads you can buy new. I also think both would have a hard time with the 250R. I have a bone stock R, and a few guys have Raptors around here. I'm just waiting for the chance to see how they compare. I would love to see a shootout between the 250R and Raptor.
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