Not anymore! I have what I want! Power, reliability and NO surprises! Heres hopin' that your injectors stay clean and your valves never need adjustin'. I goin' out to finish breakin' in my BAD *** BANSHEE! Adios!

 

By the way AZRENEGADE, have you ever walked into a Yamaha shop, and had a salesman refuse to sell you a product because the manufactuer is FIXING a problem? I think not. I ride Yamaha, and am VERY proud of my machine, but you have to admit, compared to what this new company is putting out, Yamaha, Honda, Suzuki, and Kawasaki SUCK!

 

AZRENEGADE its people like you that make me wonder why they even want a quad. Your excuse for not getting the Cannondale is lame. Are you shure it wasnt because your pal wouldnt (couldnt) cut you a deal. The spindles should have been upgraded a long time ago. In my opinion you cant say anything bad about the C-Dale because you didnt even ride it to check out the power, suspension,handling,or ergos. I think if you could have ridden one you wouldnt even think about getting FREE UPDATES because the only thing you would have thought is MAN THIS THING IS AWSOME! Im not going to say you made the wrong decision by getting a banshee, maybe the C-Dale isnt for you, but its real sad that you didnt even give it a chance when thats what you put your shirt on for and headed to the dealer with the money for. If some one told me that they didnt get a banshee because they didnt feel comfortable on it ( handlebars, footpegs, seat, ect.),or I didnt get an EX because they have a weak connecting rod, those things I can understand ( because those things havent and never will be fixed by the manufactures) I just cant understand your reason!

 

Dont know about my injectors, but my air filter stays clean. I guess the reason is,Im always taking the clean air away from all the other quads HA! I just hope that you can find air filter cleaner cheap, because your going to be cleaning them after everytime you pull up beside a C-Dale. Sorry guys but I couldnt resist.lol lonestarbanshee.AZRENEGADE did you take the money to buy a Cannondale and walk out with a stock Banshee? That seems even more crazy. Why not spend some of that left over money for a set of pipes, boost bottle, K&N, jets, tires, and a lot of filter cleaner because you would still need that.

 

Cdaleracer,

You overestimate the abilities of your quad. Don't ever think that a 4-stroke will match up with a fully developed 2-stroke. Banshees were conceived with one arm tied behind their backs due to the legal mood of the time. Once setup in a fashion comparable to and as efficient as the current trend in 4-strokes they are untouchable. Please don't turn this into a name calling post.

 

"Please don't turn this into a name calling post" now thats rich AZRENEGADE!!! I think you started bashing the C-dale with your first post. You don't own one or have ridden one and you feel you have some right to bash the C-dale. Isn't there a Yamaha forum you can't take your righteous opinons?

 

Since when is relating a true experience bashing? I merely conveyed my experience shopping for a Cannondale and stated my opinion. I didn't go on how I was going to run over Cannondales with my new Banshee or how I dreamed about covering a fellow rider with mud! Personally, if they mounted a 2-stroke in a Cannondale frame I would buy it in a heartbeat. In my estimation it would be the perfect quad. Suspension and arm ripping power! Awesome! Not likely to happen, though.

Frankly, the only thing that will stop the Banshee is the environmentalist. Then they will come after the 4-strokes. Don't kid yourself, they are never satisfied. Once the Banshees are legislated against, you boys better start figuring out where to retro fit the catalytic converters!

 

AZRENEGADE maybe I was out of line alittle,but I couldnt help it after seeing BAD A*# Banshee like its meaner than the C-Dale or something. Then the part about the injectors. C-Dale has had a few problems but as far as I know the injectors arent one of them. The Banshee is one of the most thrilling rides ive been on, but my C-Dale is the most. As a matter of fact I want a Banshee and have wanted one for a few years now. Ill never give up my C-Dale though and it will always be my main ride. Ever since I heard a Banshee with a Dyno Port two into one pipe a few years ago I cant get that sound out of my head. I didnt say anything bad about the banshee in my reply. I also didnt say anything about a fully developed two-stroke. No I dont over estimate the abilities of my quad, what I said was from experience not by what ive heard or read. If you like two-strokes then I think that you would have loved the Cannondale. Its more like a two stoke than it is a four-stroke. How can this be? I dont realy know except that It has a very high rev. limit. Maybe something to do with the EFI, porting,and cams. Every one that Ive let ride mine from Banshee owners,250R owners,CR 500 owners to 300ex owners ect. have all been VERY impressed with the power and handling. Like I said before Im not going to say you bought the wrong quad.Maybe the Cannondale isnt for you,but you should have took one for a spin before making up your mind I think.

 

VERY impressive thread here, guys! I must say I am more interested in Cannondale now than I was before reading it. Can't say enough GOOD about actually hearing from a factory rep in this forum. That's more than any of us could expect from the Japanese companies. Thank you, Mr. Montgomery!! I wish you guys all the best of luck. (Even if I do own every one of Yamaha's sport models) I like what I see on the Cannondales, but I just can't get over that UGLY plastic design! Mr. Montgomery, can't you guys do something about that as well? Yamaha DID the nail on the head with the Raptor's plastic design. Not saying that is the most important thing in the world, but styling DOES make a difference! Make the Cannondale look that good, and you've got me for sure!

 

Hmmm....this thread has really run the gamut but I have to say I am thoroughly impressed. Having been in manufacturing for the past 10 yrs I must say how impressed I am that Cannondale cares enough to come here seeking information on improving their quad(s). The lengths Cannondale has gone to in order to prove their number one goal is making a great product is commendable. If I were making my purchasing decision right now I would buy one of the Cannondales but as it stands I bought my Raptor in April and won't be making another ATV purchase for another year or so. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love my Raptor and do not regret my purchase for a second but I have noticed the problems being reported with a few too many Raptors and the lack of an appropriate, or even interested, response from Yamaha. Nobody can get such a complicated piece of machinery completely right in the first production run. Honda didn't do it, the 400ex had it's share of growing pains. And now the Cannondale and Raptor have also had some early production run issues. The true difference between the two companies is how they responded to these issues. One hid them and has tried to fix them in a way that reduced their short term expense(Yamaha). The other openly admitted the problems and went above and beyond to fix them(Cannondale). I truly respect when someone stands behind their work, including admitting and remedying their mistakes. As I said I absolutely love my Raptor but come my next purchase you can be sure I will be going to the company that makes the best, stands behind their product, and has advanced the sport. At this point my money would clearly be going to Cannondale. Yamaha will really have to step up to the plate to get my money again.

This thread has incorporated brand bashing, flag waving, and patriotism. Cannondale may have tripped over themselves a bit getting started, but they learned from those mistakes and have become a better company for it. In my opinion there are few things more patriotic or American than that.


...now if only that FX weren't so freakin ugly! Really, I do find it rather difficult on the eyes.