Scrambler/Harescramble/Review
#1
10-28-2000, 12:21 AM
Here is some feedback, (my opion), on my 2000 scrambler 400 that I have had since spring. Last week I entered my first race (at age 39) in a harescramble which really brought out the pro's and con's of this bike for me. The quad is completely stock. Im not much of a racer and did not even try to win. My goal was to survive and finish. The trail portion of the track was VERY tight through the woods and VERY bumpy. conditions were dry. A few rocks, roots and alot of bumps. The Motocross section had large smooth table tops and a couple decent hills. Through the woods the scrambler bounced and bounced and bounced. There was hardly a flat spot out there. It was so bouncy I started laughing a bit. It was hard to controll the 500+ lb beast going through this stuff as fast as i could, on this tight twisty course. A bump here and a bump there is no big deal to hit at speed, but put them every where on a skinny trail and its a different story. I have also notice this on trail rides but never to this degree. The other bikes (400ex, and banshees mostly) walked away, They were also better riders then me too. :-(
The bounce problem I feel is 90% a tire problem. The titans have the whimmpiest side walls around. Hitting bumps at medium speeds will easily compress them to the rim and there is nothing to slow the tires rebound. They do have excellent traction traction though. The whimmpy tires also effect steering and stability in corners when pushed as they will roll give an unstable feel if the back end isnt sliding around.
Once out of the woods and Out on the track portion things got better oddly enough. Smooth wide long turns allowed the quad to open up and slide bit. The scrambler is very easy to jump despite its size, and is well balanced, and mostly landeds well but sometimes with a bit of a clunk. Nothing major though. It wont jump high and far like a 400ex because......its not a 400ex!. The track did not include the whoop sections......good thing too.I think the whoop sections of a motocross track would have to be taken rather slowly. Handleing in this type of BUMPY tight terrain was on the poor side I thought.
The motor is great. The 400 puts out excellent power and the tranny does a very good job getting it to the ground smoothly, Never a thought about what gear I was in from turn to turn, up a hill or hitting a jump. No gear jamming to keep a power slide going, just stay on the gas! When I wanted to go I hit the gas and the power was there. Its also easier to use more body english when your feet dont have to be in a certain position to shift and break. No complaints about the tranny and motor from me. Brakes work well too. No dought its harder to get the back end to slide around using the brakes, but its do-able using both hand and foot in the right amounts. One hand to go and one hand to stop keeps things simple enough and does allow you to concentrate on the trail more. Not saying this setup will benifit pro riders and such, :-) I did bump into 1 tree and busted the brass washer out of the a-arm and bent the inner shaft a bit, but didnt know this till after the race and back in the pits. A-arm is fine, and the parts are cheap and easy to replace.I noticed no difference in suspension action though. I didnt think I hit the tree hard enough to to do that but the quad is heavy, and bumping into a very stationary object (a large tree).....well something has to give I guess. Also I noticed the front was pushing and harder to steer in turns on laps 3 and 4 and realized that I had hit the 4 wheel switch on while bouncing around. taking it out of 4 wheel drive had the turning back to normal.
Do I want to sell this bike now after its somewhat poor race pefrormance?......No. I raced for fun, and thats what I had. If I raced to win though it would have to go. This quad is heavy and bounces around some, It cant leap big tabletops in a single bound and all that stuff. But.... there is no sport type bike that is as comfortable to ride (long trail rides), you can stand up and ride and not be hunched over etc, there is no quad as easy to ride, Right side is go, left side is stop. its plenty fast stock, It will easily beat a stock warrior in a drag. 4 wheel drive rules in the mud and slippery stuff and hills, and its optionable and even makes riding tricky stuff a bit safer I thought.
Will I race it again.....yes, but first I am going to get the holeshot xct's and some works struts, although I am not sure how bad the stock struts are cause of the way the tires perform. but I hear they are much better. Anyways part of the fun is buying cool stuff!
Other notes; I placed 13th out of 15 in the woodsman class (I wasnt the slowest), I was the only scrambler out there. If it was a muddy sloppy mess like harescrambles are supposed to be I may have even had more fun! previous quads owned are 300ex and warrior (I used to like to shift). Have been riding quads for 5 years and All statements above are in FACT, my opinion! :-) Hope this helps anyone thinking about investing (or not) in this style quad. Later..GJ
The bounce problem I feel is 90% a tire problem. The titans have the whimmpiest side walls around. Hitting bumps at medium speeds will easily compress them to the rim and there is nothing to slow the tires rebound. They do have excellent traction traction though. The whimmpy tires also effect steering and stability in corners when pushed as they will roll give an unstable feel if the back end isnt sliding around.
Once out of the woods and Out on the track portion things got better oddly enough. Smooth wide long turns allowed the quad to open up and slide bit. The scrambler is very easy to jump despite its size, and is well balanced, and mostly landeds well but sometimes with a bit of a clunk. Nothing major though. It wont jump high and far like a 400ex because......its not a 400ex!. The track did not include the whoop sections......good thing too.I think the whoop sections of a motocross track would have to be taken rather slowly. Handleing in this type of BUMPY tight terrain was on the poor side I thought.
The motor is great. The 400 puts out excellent power and the tranny does a very good job getting it to the ground smoothly, Never a thought about what gear I was in from turn to turn, up a hill or hitting a jump. No gear jamming to keep a power slide going, just stay on the gas! When I wanted to go I hit the gas and the power was there. Its also easier to use more body english when your feet dont have to be in a certain position to shift and break. No complaints about the tranny and motor from me. Brakes work well too. No dought its harder to get the back end to slide around using the brakes, but its do-able using both hand and foot in the right amounts. One hand to go and one hand to stop keeps things simple enough and does allow you to concentrate on the trail more. Not saying this setup will benifit pro riders and such, :-) I did bump into 1 tree and busted the brass washer out of the a-arm and bent the inner shaft a bit, but didnt know this till after the race and back in the pits. A-arm is fine, and the parts are cheap and easy to replace.I noticed no difference in suspension action though. I didnt think I hit the tree hard enough to to do that but the quad is heavy, and bumping into a very stationary object (a large tree).....well something has to give I guess. Also I noticed the front was pushing and harder to steer in turns on laps 3 and 4 and realized that I had hit the 4 wheel switch on while bouncing around. taking it out of 4 wheel drive had the turning back to normal.
Do I want to sell this bike now after its somewhat poor race pefrormance?......No. I raced for fun, and thats what I had. If I raced to win though it would have to go. This quad is heavy and bounces around some, It cant leap big tabletops in a single bound and all that stuff. But.... there is no sport type bike that is as comfortable to ride (long trail rides), you can stand up and ride and not be hunched over etc, there is no quad as easy to ride, Right side is go, left side is stop. its plenty fast stock, It will easily beat a stock warrior in a drag. 4 wheel drive rules in the mud and slippery stuff and hills, and its optionable and even makes riding tricky stuff a bit safer I thought.
Will I race it again.....yes, but first I am going to get the holeshot xct's and some works struts, although I am not sure how bad the stock struts are cause of the way the tires perform. but I hear they are much better. Anyways part of the fun is buying cool stuff!
Other notes; I placed 13th out of 15 in the woodsman class (I wasnt the slowest), I was the only scrambler out there. If it was a muddy sloppy mess like harescrambles are supposed to be I may have even had more fun! previous quads owned are 300ex and warrior (I used to like to shift). Have been riding quads for 5 years and All statements above are in FACT, my opinion! :-) Hope this helps anyone thinking about investing (or not) in this style quad. Later..GJ
#2
10-28-2000, 10:14 PM
Very good post GJ.
I have to agree with everything you said...except the power part of it. I too am getting rid of the stock tires up front and also getting works struts.
One bump O.K.
Two bumps O.K.
Three or more...watch out! It just bangs.
Like I said, the only thing I disliked about my Scram400 was the power. I simply needed more. But besides that you described the ride exactly as it is.
I have to agree with everything you said...except the power part of it. I too am getting rid of the stock tires up front and also getting works struts.
One bump O.K.
Two bumps O.K.
Three or more...watch out! It just bangs.
Like I said, the only thing I disliked about my Scram400 was the power. I simply needed more. But besides that you described the ride exactly as it is.
#3
10-29-2000, 01:54 AM
you sure said it right!!,, im used to a big bore dirt bike,i miss the shifting, as in gear down for whoops or a wheelie thru a stream crossing, but i cant bitch too much . i am thinkin about gearing up a tooth or so on the rear sprocket for more lowend. i really dont want to spend the bucks on a pipe & head mods,,im cheap,,okay?,lol.i love the snow,,so this quad is the only choice,,reverse,4x4,,& good front shocks,(rear does pogo bad)! very good user report,GJ!!!!are you a magazine reporter?, i live at 8500 feet,,so i have a slow sled wish i could ride it at sea level,,i bet i would actually like the power,,later ,scrambler bros,,
#4
10-29-2000, 01:53 AM
I have to agree. I rode on a motorcross track with a Banshee and a warrior. None of us are experts, but all experienced riders. We were riding single file, not racing. However, we were riding hard. Bragging rights ya know. Anyway, the order was the banshee, the warrior then me. I was all over them on my Scrambler except going into one turn that had a lot of bumps leading into it. I'd have to slow down more than they would there, but right out of the turn I'd catch right back up to them. Obviously the bike can only do so much, the rest is rider input. But I was very happy with the performance of my scrambler with the exception of the handling in the bumps. Works struts may be in my future.