Hi all,

My local dealer is offering an original Cannibal at a discounted price b/c it's missing the updates. Seems like a good deal considering it has some of the goodies the brand new Cannibals don't, like the better shocks, etc, etc.

I ride in mostly very tight woods where I would be lucky to see any gear beyond 3rd. Honestly, is this the right quad for me? I'm an average rider, not a racer by any means, who likes to ride as fast as the terrain allows. I ride with 400EX's, 300EX's, and few Warriors. We all seem to ride at the same pace b/c the terrain limitations. Right now I have a 400 Scrambler with some mods that smokes my friends 400EX in a drag race. But like I said, we're all pretty much even in the woods. I use to own a Banshee before the Scrambler and I would like to get back to the manual clutch and light weight chassis.

Any input would be appreciated!

 

What do you mean exactly by missing the updates? The recalls and updates have to be done on the FX400's, some were safety issues. If you are referring to the updates such as the ball joint replacements, they are not even suppose to be selling the quad until these are done.
There is no way I would buy the FX400 without having all the recalls and updates performed.

 

The updates, as I understood them, were things like the new computer, seperate engine and gear oil.....all the things the brand new models have that the old ones don't. The recalls were all performed on this unit, so I'm not worried about that. I guess I'm mostly concerned about the old computer and mapping. I've heard that the new computer and mapping makes the quad a lot better to ride, especially in the woods where a lot of low end power is needed. I could update to the new computer, but that's a $1,000 upgrade.....

 

OK, now I understand more, as long as the recalls and updates were done then it might be worth buying. The crankcase oil and transmission oil situation is the same with the FX400 and the Cannibal, they both are separate "housings" if you like to refer to them that way. To be honest, I had an FX400 and I hated that "twitchy" feeling the steering had. Even with all the recalls and updates to the front end, it still did not solve that problem. I'm sure a steering stabilizer probably help eliminate that. I'm happy to say I don't have that problem with my Cannibal. They obviously made some change in the steering stem/a-arms, etc., something that alleviated that problem. So if you get the FX400, you would probably want to invest in a steering stabilizer or just be aware that you might have that same issue. I believe the EC1000 computer is suppose to be more reliable and the fuel injection is suppose to be better on the new C'dales. I had some issues with my FX400, not sure if that was fuel injection related, computer related or what but so far, I have not had any problems with the Cannibal. I would say unless they are selling the FX400 for a considerable amount less than the Cannibal, get the Cannibal. You can also still find Cannibals with the Ohlin shocks.

 

I have an 'old' cannibal, #20, and love it. It has performed well for me but i haven't spent much time in tight woods yet. (next wknd) The 'dales are hiperformance though and i'm not sure it is the best woods machine. The high compression/high rev engine might be too much clutch work for woods.
I'll report back after i try it in the woods 3 days next wknd.

 

Ryanstones, that sounds great! I'm really looking forward to hearing what you think about this machine in the woods.

briansgi, you're right, this machine has the better shocks. The dealer said that it's basically a FX in red plastic. Although the machanic mentioned something about installing a different cam, at no cost (recall possibly?), that will smooth out the low end. Have you heard anything like this before?

 

I'm not aware of any cam replacements that have been done to address any smoothing out of low end. Both quads that I had/have, the motor's ran the same, in other words, they scream!!

 

I've spent some time in the woods and the Speed does great. The trails I've been on are tight and I rarely get past 3rd. The only thing I'll warn you about is I have a tendancy to get on the gas hard coming out of tight corners in 2nd and the front end like to come up [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img] I also have a Scrambler, its a 500 with HPD performance mods, no comparison. I thought my Scrambler was pretty fast, but the Speed walks (runs) away from it. I'm only keeping it for when I ride with my friends with utility quads where I need the 4 wheel drive.

 

JayBR,

Thanks for your thoughts about your machine in the woods. I believe the Speed has the new EC1000 computer, correct? I heard the new computer makes these machines a lot friendlier in the woods. I'd like to hear how the older machines respond to the woods, b/c the machine I'm looking at has the old FI computer.

Thanks again!

Looks like the Speed might be the better machine for me.....

 

You can always get the older machine and upgrade the computer to the new EC1000, I believe the upgrade cost is like $350. If your getting a really good deal it may be worth considering.