FIRST KFX700 RIDE IMPRESSIONS
#1
03-19-2003, 02:33 PM
FIRST KFX700 RIDE IMPRESSIONS
Well I spent the weekend trail riding on my new KFX700, so I thought I would share my Likes and Dislikes with you.
First off, the weather is raining and windy here, and we were riding on mostly mud trails with a few gravel sections. The mud areas include a lot of Red Clay.
With that said, I will tell you that this is absolutely the Best (2 WD) trail quad I have ever ridden. Even in the not so favorable weather conditions, it was sure footed and virtually unstoppable. Going from my KFX400 to the 700 is a totally different world. The shear size of the 700 and the width of the seat area takes some getting used to.
Ergonomics on the 700 are very comfortable. The foot begs are big, and support you feet great. Positioning, for me anyway was spot on. The handle bars are just right for me, however, the Rear (Left) hand Brake lever is way too far from the grip, making it virtually useless. Due to the fact that I have been piloting a Manual shift quad for many years, I use the foot actuated Brake lever 99.9% of the time anyway, so it's not a huge deal for me, but my Wife can't even reach it.
The motor, what can I say, it has gobs of torque, and I had NO troubles going Up or Over any obstacle. Even on the higher speed sections of the trails, when I approached a mud puddle or a tree branch that had fallen, a simple blip of the throttle and a slight tug on the bars would pull the front end up and over it. On one occasion, I was forced to stop on a roughly 45+ degree hill made of Red Clay, to wait for another rider who had not made it to the top. Once the way was clear, everyone told me to back down to the bottom and try it from there. Instead, I tried to go from where I had stopped. To even my surprise, it spun the tires over a couple of times and then it bit in and went right up the hill. Mind you it was pouring down rain, and if you know anything about Red Clay and how bad it is when it gets wet, you can understand my surprise.
I will say that the only downfall that I experienced from the motor is that it has a definite drop off in power in the top end. Whether this is due to the smoothness of the Auto Trany, which gives you the feeling of traveling much slower than you actually are (It's hard to explain unless you experience it.), or it is due to the 700 being choked down by the engineers to keep the speed down, is hard to say. But the bottom end through the midrange is a Rush.
The Trany, I have mixed feelings about. Being used to shifting, it took some mental concentration to get used to not having too, and listening to the motor do it's own thing. One thing I will say, is that the power delivery is Smooth and Deceiving. You don't get that bang between each gear pull that you get from a Manual Quad. So it is real hard to gauge just how fast you are going. You definitely feel an incredible pull, that doesn't seem to let up until you reach a fairly decent speed. On the other hand I thoroughly enjoyed Not having to worry about shifting or being in the right gear.
On the down side, (Some may not consider this a Down.) I found myself tending to be going a little faster than I realized I was going, which caused some intense Braking situations. This had some to do with the Incredibly Smooth power delivery and a lot to do with the Stable well Balanced Suspension. The one thing that I absolutely don't like about the Auto is the way it free wheels when going down hill. I found that if I continually tapped the throttle, it would stay engaged and allow the compression of the engine to help slow you down. However, continually having to tap the throttle while maneuvering through tight downhill trails is a nuisance.
The Suspension is where this quad really shines. Some have said that it is too hard for them, but I personally found mine to be pretty close to where I like it. Steering is Awesome. I experienced No bump steer, I experienced No light or loose feeling in the front end. Granted under the conditions, there wasn't a lot of traction, so under different conditions, this might change as the rear-end is able to get a better bite. This guad is Stable with it's wide stance, and even under hard acceleration around corners with the backend coming around, the front-end went exactly where I pointed it. Ther was Never any feeling of tippyness.
On the down side, for the same reason that I love the stable Wide Stance of this quad, it is also a hindrance. The 700 is just shy of 4 feet across in the front. This makes it a little more difficult to maneuver when the trail gets tight. The Brakes are almost TOO Good.
Overall, I LOVE it. Are there some things that I would change? Maybe. I would like to get the power in the top end freed up some, and I don't care for the Free Wheeling on down hill stretches, but all in all I am Very Pleased with my KFX700.
In the next couple of weeks, I am going to head to the Dunes, I will let you know my feelings on the 700 as a Dunner.
First off, the weather is raining and windy here, and we were riding on mostly mud trails with a few gravel sections. The mud areas include a lot of Red Clay.
With that said, I will tell you that this is absolutely the Best (2 WD) trail quad I have ever ridden. Even in the not so favorable weather conditions, it was sure footed and virtually unstoppable. Going from my KFX400 to the 700 is a totally different world. The shear size of the 700 and the width of the seat area takes some getting used to.
Ergonomics on the 700 are very comfortable. The foot begs are big, and support you feet great. Positioning, for me anyway was spot on. The handle bars are just right for me, however, the Rear (Left) hand Brake lever is way too far from the grip, making it virtually useless. Due to the fact that I have been piloting a Manual shift quad for many years, I use the foot actuated Brake lever 99.9% of the time anyway, so it's not a huge deal for me, but my Wife can't even reach it.
The motor, what can I say, it has gobs of torque, and I had NO troubles going Up or Over any obstacle. Even on the higher speed sections of the trails, when I approached a mud puddle or a tree branch that had fallen, a simple blip of the throttle and a slight tug on the bars would pull the front end up and over it. On one occasion, I was forced to stop on a roughly 45+ degree hill made of Red Clay, to wait for another rider who had not made it to the top. Once the way was clear, everyone told me to back down to the bottom and try it from there. Instead, I tried to go from where I had stopped. To even my surprise, it spun the tires over a couple of times and then it bit in and went right up the hill. Mind you it was pouring down rain, and if you know anything about Red Clay and how bad it is when it gets wet, you can understand my surprise.
I will say that the only downfall that I experienced from the motor is that it has a definite drop off in power in the top end. Whether this is due to the smoothness of the Auto Trany, which gives you the feeling of traveling much slower than you actually are (It's hard to explain unless you experience it.), or it is due to the 700 being choked down by the engineers to keep the speed down, is hard to say. But the bottom end through the midrange is a Rush.
The Trany, I have mixed feelings about. Being used to shifting, it took some mental concentration to get used to not having too, and listening to the motor do it's own thing. One thing I will say, is that the power delivery is Smooth and Deceiving. You don't get that bang between each gear pull that you get from a Manual Quad. So it is real hard to gauge just how fast you are going. You definitely feel an incredible pull, that doesn't seem to let up until you reach a fairly decent speed. On the other hand I thoroughly enjoyed Not having to worry about shifting or being in the right gear.
On the down side, (Some may not consider this a Down.) I found myself tending to be going a little faster than I realized I was going, which caused some intense Braking situations. This had some to do with the Incredibly Smooth power delivery and a lot to do with the Stable well Balanced Suspension. The one thing that I absolutely don't like about the Auto is the way it free wheels when going down hill. I found that if I continually tapped the throttle, it would stay engaged and allow the compression of the engine to help slow you down. However, continually having to tap the throttle while maneuvering through tight downhill trails is a nuisance.
The Suspension is where this quad really shines. Some have said that it is too hard for them, but I personally found mine to be pretty close to where I like it. Steering is Awesome. I experienced No bump steer, I experienced No light or loose feeling in the front end. Granted under the conditions, there wasn't a lot of traction, so under different conditions, this might change as the rear-end is able to get a better bite. This guad is Stable with it's wide stance, and even under hard acceleration around corners with the backend coming around, the front-end went exactly where I pointed it. Ther was Never any feeling of tippyness.
On the down side, for the same reason that I love the stable Wide Stance of this quad, it is also a hindrance. The 700 is just shy of 4 feet across in the front. This makes it a little more difficult to maneuver when the trail gets tight. The Brakes are almost TOO Good.
Overall, I LOVE it. Are there some things that I would change? Maybe. I would like to get the power in the top end freed up some, and I don't care for the Free Wheeling on down hill stretches, but all in all I am Very Pleased with my KFX700.
In the next couple of weeks, I am going to head to the Dunes, I will let you know my feelings on the 700 as a Dunner.
#2
03-19-2003, 03:06 PM
#3
03-19-2003, 03:18 PM
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FIRST KFX700 RIDE IMPRESSIONS
I got to ride mine this weekend and found that when the conditions are better for getting some traction you will find that the front end becomes very light and your steering suffers. Not a bad thing if you are in some wider trails but not a good thing in tight trails.
Dont ask me how I know this.
Front rim trashed, wheel hub bent, and frame bent.
Round one to the V-Force.
Dont ask me how I know this.
Front rim trashed, wheel hub bent, and frame bent.
Round one to the V-Force.
#4
03-19-2003, 03:44 PM
#5
03-19-2003, 04:09 PM
#6
03-19-2003, 04:22 PM
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FIRST KFX700 RIDE IMPRESSIONS
Yes it was.
Caught a tree with the right front wheel. I was not going that fast. Tweaked the frame. I will live with this for the next few weeks and see how it is. The frame is a little weak for this type of hit as far as I am concerned.
Frame: $640+$800 labor=$1440
Hub: $80
Front Rims: $185
Tires mounted: $50
Great Wife: PRICELESS
Caught a tree with the right front wheel. I was not going that fast. Tweaked the frame. I will live with this for the next few weeks and see how it is. The frame is a little weak for this type of hit as far as I am concerned.
Frame: $640+$800 labor=$1440
Hub: $80
Front Rims: $185
Tires mounted: $50
Great Wife: PRICELESS
#7
03-19-2003, 06:58 PM
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#8
03-20-2003, 01:06 PM
#9
03-20-2003, 04:16 PM
FIRST KFX700 RIDE IMPRESSIONS
Thanks RPM.
I am a very experienced mountain sled rider so all those CVT nuances are no problem for me. We are used to bliping the throttle on the way back down after pressing a mountain slop [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img] With that said , AND your findings, it sounds like the V-Force will be a 10/10 when I get to ride it!!! 12 days and coounting[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img].
As far as the mid range to top end flat spot, that could be fixed by a different helix angle and or pipe. Is the flat spot the same on a flat pull vs a hill climb???
I am a very experienced mountain sled rider so all those CVT nuances are no problem for me. We are used to bliping the throttle on the way back down after pressing a mountain slop [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img] With that said , AND your findings, it sounds like the V-Force will be a 10/10 when I get to ride it!!! 12 days and coounting[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img].
As far as the mid range to top end flat spot, that could be fixed by a different helix angle and or pipe. Is the flat spot the same on a flat pull vs a hill climb???
#10
03-20-2003, 04:37 PM
FIRST KFX700 RIDE IMPRESSIONS
I noticed it on the flat all out runs. To tell you the truth, it climbs so well that you don't need to use full throttle to go up and over any of the hills I rode on.
I need to say, that it's not like the thing just falls over dead on the top end, it might be that it just pulls so hard in the bottom to midrange, that you notice when the Torque eases up on the top end. The other thing that I mentioned in my First Ride Report, is that the power delivery and the CVT are so Smooth, that by the time you run out of legs with the 700, you are traveling at a pretty decent speed. In fact it is deceiving.
I ordered my Paddles, so when I go to the Dunes (It looks like maybe 2 weekends from now), I am going to try the 700 with the stock tires and then with the paddles. I will post the outcome on this Thread when I do.
I need to say, that it's not like the thing just falls over dead on the top end, it might be that it just pulls so hard in the bottom to midrange, that you notice when the Torque eases up on the top end. The other thing that I mentioned in my First Ride Report, is that the power delivery and the CVT are so Smooth, that by the time you run out of legs with the 700, you are traveling at a pretty decent speed. In fact it is deceiving.
I ordered my Paddles, so when I go to the Dunes (It looks like maybe 2 weekends from now), I am going to try the 700 with the stock tires and then with the paddles. I will post the outcome on this Thread when I do.