I have a pic of the Z next to my Cannibal to compare seat heights. Rememeber though I took off the Holeshots and put Dunlops, al la Z/Raptor tires, on the rear which lowerd my Dale.
Copy and paste the link....

 

hi, just got the z-400 yesterday going to the track today to see how it does, i road it yesterday just a little seems to have some pep to it does seem to have a little bit more power than the stock 400ex but my 400ex has not been stock for some time know so really cant tell, but riding the z-400 it feels like suzuki did there homework, let you know how she is on the track. thanks everyone who already gave me so much info.

 

14mins, you are dead on when you stated the shifting and clutch are sweet. I agree that it is smoother and better feeling than the Honda. I've owned a ton of 250r's and still have a 400ex, so I have experience with both. I feel the Suzuki is the best combo I've ridden. I also agree that the Suzuki tops out early as well. A pipe and cams will take care of that issue. Maybe I'll try a sprocket change as well.

I ordered my Elka shocks, and they should be here in three to four weeks. I'm still waiting for news on an axle and a-arms.

 

Buddah, since you own both a Z and a EX could you do us all a favor? Could you measure the seat heights of both quads at the lowest arch in the seat and tell us what those measurements are?

 

Guyraptor- I measured at the low part of both seats. The Z400 appears to be really chocked stock. A little tweaking here and there, zoom,zoom. I am not bashing honda, as they are the benchmark. Just time for honda to move back to the top, with something new.

 

Honda can do it again, They were on top back in the 80's, i am actually too young to remember that but i have heard. If honda would just get some more guts and not be afraid of gettin sued they could be back on top just like they were then, they got the engine to do it sittin on the CRF450 or the engine on the XR650. I still like the feel of the 400 over anything i have rode and i have rode many modded quads, it will take one hell of a good handling quad for the suzuki dealer to get my 400EX in on trade, cause i can alwasy get more power out of anything i just like something that handles good.

 

14mins, do you happen to remember what the actual measurements were for all 3 quads?

To whomever said it, I understand about the center of gravity being possibly lower in the Z400 than the EX but I don't really see how. Suzuki mounted the radiator high in the chassis which would add to it's top heaviness. Not only that but with a taller seat height and my 185lb. butt up on it it drastically changes where the center of gravity actually is.

 

Maybe the suspension will sag more once a 185lb driver is on one quad compared to the other, thus lowering the center of gravity. Maybe the measurements were taken with the suspension pulled up. Maybe the tire pressure was higher in one quad compared to the other. Maybe one seat is softer and allows the rider to sink further into it. There are too many variables with this type of measurement. We need hard #'s of the vehicles natural center of gravity. That would be a lot more useful. BTW, the suzuki motor is mounted on a 10degree angle to help the center of gravity. The frame and other factor also contribute to COV.

 

Guy- I will remeasure this evening, and repost.

Rod is expecting his lonestar/custom axis/crf450 quad this week. Review to follow shortly.

 

GuyRaptor, I measured the seat heights on both at the lowest point. The Suzuki has a seat height of 33 1/4 inches and the Honda is 32 inches. Most people that measure seat heights will measure differently than one another, so I'm not sure how accurate this will be. I did my best assesment on the measurement.

Also the radiator on the Z is mounted low on the frame just like the 250r's (which is the best place to mount a radiator), so it lowers the center of gravity. For example, the raptors radiator is mounted high so it's center of gravity will be high. Ride the two back to back on a track and you should be able to tell the difference in how the weight is distributed.