I'm up in the air on what to buy this winter for harescrambles racing. The obvious answers are a 450r or yfz450, they seem to be the choice of the fast riders now. That V-twin sound just keeps pulling me back to the green side though. How is the stock suspension in rough rocky terrain and fairly high speed rutted logging roads etc? If I get a deal on a v-force I won't have much cash left over after the purchase for anything but skid plates/nerfs right away. Is the steering effort really heavy on them? I don't know where to turn, maybe a z400 or something would be better since I want reverse. I'm so confused lol.

 

the stock shocks would be terrible for harescrambles. You'll be wise to get a set of good aftermarket shocks.

The steering is incredibly light on the V. You might also want to invest in a steering stabilizer.

 

To me, the perfect XC race/hare scramble machine would be a 4wd V-force. IMHO, the Prairie (not the BF) is the closest such thing and I believe you can't go wrong with a Prairie 650/700 for XC races/hare scrambles. If its muddy, the 4x4 feature of the Prairie will help you pass most of the sport quads...talk about FUN FACTOR! We've had a very wet year in TX this year, so maybe that is why I am so happy with the Prairie in XC races this year. Ask me again during very dry year and I may or may not have the same opinion. All I know is that I have really enjoyed racing my P650 in the XC races I've been in this year.

Happy trails...[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

The V-force can be set up nice for the woods and if your a big guy it maybe the perfect fit? Its also nice to always be in the right gear, some miss shifting I dont. Like LEP7MM said The first place to start is suspension and to help with bump steer the steering stabilizer is a must in rough terrain. After running down the stock tires and enjoying the quad for a while then you can look into performance mods? ~coop

www.MarylandATV.com
785 V-Force
Prairie 700

 

Im a small guy at 5ft10 and weighing in at 170lbs and the stock V will do great in harescrambles or GNCC. Shocks are nice but not a neccesity<<(spelling) but definitely upgrade tie-rods, cheapo dampner, and a good DUAL exhaust system.

 

I can attest to that I spent almost 2 hours trying to catch him on his stock V, well mostly stock..The shocks were...But I would reccommend changing shocks out..
Sounds to me like your on a budjet...Go with the KFX400 and she will treat ya good..Look for a used one..Speaking of used there are some great deals out there on used KFX700's..IMO there is no other quad out there other than the KFX700 for GNCC9harescrambles) racing..Sure there are lighter faster quads.But the way the KFX700 is built sealed rear brake,Shaft drive and the clearance..Its a no brainer...