Hello Everyone!

I'm new here, but I'm looking for my first ATV and after reading many of your posts, I've decided there's a lot of knowledge here in these forums that I can learn from. I'm looking at the Kaw 360 or the Suzuki Eiger 400. If $ weren't a barrier I'd have a P650, but my wife wants a new kitchen, so you all know how that goes! Anyway, I know the Kaw has the front locking dif. and the sealed rear brake, but are there any other big differences that I should consider? Are there reliability issues with either of these. I'm 5' 11" and 225 lbs. and looking for both sport and utility. I'd like to plow snow and use it for hunting, but also do some recreational riding with friends. Other than drag racing, would I be embarrassed to ride with friends that have a P650? Initial remarks on the 360 said it may vibrate a lot and is really loud, but I like those new Kaw features it has! Are these issues a real big deal? I've heard the Eiger is a nice machine, and I haven't found much negative feedback. I wasn't a big Suzuki fan until reading the positive remarks in these forums. Is it that good? I assumed all machines had their own issues to some extent. Anyhow, any light that anyone can shed would be appreciated. Does anyone know when the 360 accessories will be available? Thanks!

 

I was buying new in January and was originally waiting for the 360 to come out. Decided to go ahead and get an Eiger - and have no regrets. It will be interesting to see the first shootout between these two. It looks like both are good bikes. From what I've seen so far, sounds like the Eiger may be a tad faster (few more cc's, 25 less pounds and more direct power transfer with the available 5-speed). The Kawi has advantages with the long life of the rear wet brake and the dif. lock. Even though the Eiger does not have the dif. lock, it too has an advantage in mud - if the Kawi gets stuck in 2wd, that's it - it can't get into 4wd or use the dif. lock unless the front wheels turn to engage the 4wd system. The Eiger can lock in 4wd at any time. Although the prices are about the same, the Eiger does have the speedo.

All in all I don't think anyone will be disappointed in either the Eiger, P360 or Rancher.

BTW, in the woods, I have no trouble keeping up with, or running away from a P650. The P650 will stomp me on on open fireroad, but in the woods they're equals. You'll certainly not get laughed at.

Jaybee

 

The 360 has the same locking system on the front as the 650 , I have a 650 and I ride with a 360 , either one can be stuck in the mud and engage the 4-wheel drive system , they will have to spin the tires a little after the switch has been flipped before the wheels start to pull. The eiger looks like a fine machine , glad to see another manual shift 4-wheel drive quad out there.

 

Thanks for the replies. Why do you prefer the manual tranny in this machine? Is it just a personal preference or is it more durable? If I want to plow snow, would the manual be a pain?

 

A few reasons that I prefer the manual transmission:

1. Locked into what I know. I've never had a auto shift quad.
2. Reliability. You don't often hear of manual shift components failing. In reading the posts from those with automatics, it looks like the next dirty word that the auto-censor will delete will be "belt". I just didn't want to worry about the possible maintainence problems. This was my main reason. Also the reason I originally wanted a P360. Really love the idea of that rear brake system.
3. Power. According to the service manager at the dealer that I use, the 5-speed has more useable power than the auto. He knows his quads.
4. Slightly lighter weight for the 5-speeds.
5. Lower cost. For those models that offer auto and manual, the manual usually runs about $300 less. Since I already preferred the manual, I could not see paying more for my 2nd choice.

Can't really comment about how it will plow snow - haven't done that.

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Question for Jeffro - I've pulled out one stuck P650 from the middle of a large muck puddle. He went into it in 2wd as I described in the earlier post. Short of wading in water up to the racks and manually trying to turn the front wheels 1/3 of a revolution to lock in 4wd, I saw no other solution other than towing him forward with another quad. Have you been in this situation? And have you been able to lock in 4wd by spinning the rear wheels? Now you've got me wondering if there was something else we could have done had he been alone.

Jaybee

 

I have been in a similar situation before and so has my friend on the 360 ,all we did was flip the switch to 4-wheel drive and hit the gas , the rear wheels turned a few rounds and then the front kicked in and out we came , My wife has a Kodiak and it works the same way ,not sure what to tell you unless there is a short in the wire for the diff or something , when you flip it in to 4-wheel drive it should engage reguardless of what the conditions are ,good luck maybe you can check it out.

 

I've noticed on mine that it absolutely will not go into 4WD until the front wheels can move. You can hear it trying but I don't get the indication until the fronts have rolled a few feet.
Because of this I'm very carefull to make sure I get the 4WD indication before I actually need it. The Eiger on the other hand can be stopped dead and all it takes is flip of the lever and it's ready to pull.
If there was one thing I could change about the Prairie it would be the electronic 4WD shift and the one thing I would change on the Eiger (besides more bullit) would be the addition of the cable pull front diff lock!

 

DITTO what Wooley and Jaybeacon 55 said: My p-650 WILL NOT go into 4WD from a dead stop, UNTIL the frt. wheels turn some. Not sure HOW MUCH they have to turn. I learned this little quirk the hard way, high centered ,accrossed two ruts of red clay! I now try to look ahead on the trail, and get it into 4WD before getting stuck! It is a little aggravating, but I'll live with it. The P-650 is awesome!

 

If you are going to be doing much plowing then I would actually lean toward a manual shift. On my P650, Low range and reverse are at opposite ends of the gear selection gate. It would be much quicker with a system like the Rancher where you just push the red button down, squeeze the brake and kick it down to reverse. (The Rancher ES would be cool as well).
I do not know how the Eiger goes into reverse.

 

Interesting Jeffro, I wonder why yours did shift into 4wd - could there be some kind of adjustment to make it kick in. The P650 I was with was exactly like Wolley and trx reported. Got stuck in the muck and tried for several minutes to lock in 4wd. No way, no how. All it did was spin the rear wheels and toss up a lot of mud. The P650 is my brothers, he can fell it engage into 4wd after about 1/3 of a rotation of the front tires.

The Eiger shifts on top right side of the tank. From front to back it's L - H - R. It can sometimes be a bit baulky getting out of reverse, especially when new but should be easy for plowing - the baulky problem usually causes you to go from R to L, which is what you'd want to plow with.

Jaybee