I've been anxiously awaiting the first King Quad to arrive so I could trade up. 3 different dealers had me on the list and not one called me yet. I happened to be driving by one of them yesterday and stopped. Right out front was a yellow King Quad parked on their rock pile.

First impression is that it looks big. From the rear, the fenders look like wings and are very wide. Lots of room under the fenders for wheel travel, as they likely expect folks to add the bigger mud tires. Very cool looking IRS and front grill/bumper, although it is a plastic bumper face that will break.

Upon starting the motor, I immediately noticed lots of vibration, epecially off-idle. This continued even after warm, so I don't think it was a choke issue. Very annoying. Nowhere near the thump of the v-twins.

The test ride. First thing I noticed was the amount of mush in the suspension getting in and out of the throttle. I've never ridden an IRS machine, but it felt like the shocks were set very soft. It would rock like a boat, front to rear. There is certainly more power than the Vinson, but not to the degree of the V Force. Keep in mind that I was on asphalt and it was hard to read the suspension. Felt like the rear tires were trying to break loose on acceleration, but I never felt like the front end wanted to come up. Perhaps adjusting the rear suspension to a more firm setting would help alleviate the squat and help bring the front end up.

Power. After riding up and down the street a couple of times on the King, I jumped on a Twin Peaks 700. This also felt like the tires wanted to break loose on the asphalt, but the front end did not come up on it's own. I didn't want to over try my stunt riding, since I was in dress clothes and the sales guy was watching. Of course, the Twin Peaks felt more natural, with the familiar 700 motor and solid rear axle. The sales guys said they had lined up the King Quad and the Twin Peaks for a drag race and the Twin Peaks took off and left the King after a few feet. No surprise to me after riding both. I expected more performance from the Fuel Injection, in both idle characteristics and power.

Conclusion. I had hopes of really liking this and trading the Vinson for the King. My first impression was disappointing, but then so was my first ride on a V Force. There seemed to be quite a lot of difference between the first V Force I rode and the second one, which I bought. Maybe the King I tested was a dud. Most everyone else seems to be impressed so far. I'm not ready to lay out $7199 at this point. Perhaps another test ride and some off-road obstacles would make a believer out of me. Then again, it's hard to match the adrenaline rush from a Banshee!

Bottom line is that I am very happy with the overall package of the Vinson, especially the handling and maneuverability on trails, but want more get up and go.

 

hey pairof98s,

I bought the Red KQ from Pefromance last Friday. It must have been a yellow one you where riding. By adjusting the shocks to the third setting all around it helps with some of the sqaut. Overall i think this is probably the best all around IRS machine on the market today. It may not have the power of BF however, it does hold its own. After riding the KQ at Enroee this past sunday i'm glad i went with it. It perfomed excelent in Enroee's agressive turns and powered out of them with ease. It hanldes much like a Rincon but with way more power out of the turns. I don't drag and can careless about the top speed. I can't compare it to a Twin Peaks because in never road one. SRA's and IRS machines suit diffrent people for the for the type of riding they do and probably should not be compared.

 

pairof98s; I too test road one last weekend and thought the same thing, I waited all this time thinking it was suposed to as fast as the Twin Peaks and handle just as good with a smoother ride. My dealer did warn me that if I was expecting Twin peaks power not to bother and he was right. I am sorry to say its off my list, I guess I am down to the AC V2 and or a SRA BF with the 750 if they deside to go ahead and build it, or that rummored 800 V-twin Bombis working on, if they release some info on it befor next spring. I plan to wait a little longer that AC is real pricy for a 650.

 

coopdeville,

Guess you are the one who traded the Grizzly in. Glad to hear you are happy with your purchase. Before seeing the one yesterday, I was impressed with everything about the King Quad on paper, except for the width. I had concerns about riding on narrow trails. Once I saw it in person, I was amazed at how wide the fenders are. It is definitely larger than the Prairie/Twin Peaks, Grizzly and Rincon. Haven't seen the BF yet, but it is probably the same size.

I too had to adjust the suspension on the Vinson to get the handling more to my liking. 3rd notch did the trick. Like you, I don't drag race and I don't care about top speed. However, I do ride pretty aggressively and like to get out of the hole quickly.

Does yours have the vibration that I mentioned? That was the biggest thing that turned me off. The King I rode shook like my old Polaris 400.

I still think it could be the best IRS big bore out there, but I don't have enough experience with the others now on the market. I gave up on Polaris long ago due to the weight. I figure that I should ride something I can lift the back end of.

When are you going back to Enoree? Haven't been there yet, but I'd love to hook up and go. What are the trails like? Saturday could be good for me.

 

yeah when we test rode the v-force it stunk. but alot of people who bought it love it. test drives at dealers can be kinda misguiding. and the shock setting must have been pretty bad, any irs bike on the softest setting doesn't do to well.

 

just out of curiousity, did you guys ever see the atvscene king quad video? just wondering its pretty good. mad eme a beleiver, but now your testimonys are getting me kinda worried. http://atvscene.com/machines/suzuki/kingquad-05.htm

 

I to wasn't impressed with my King Quad test drive. Poor on bottom end power similar to the Honda Rincon, but and excellent mid-range though. Driving it hard didn't feel as solid as the Prairie. I to still prefer my Prairie for it is well balanced and customized to fit my needs. I'm also going to wait for Bombardier Outlander800 V-Twin.

 

x2468,
Yes, I saw this video. It is called marketing. Any quad can look good in a commercial add. Look at the professional driver in the video and how he transfers weight to get the King Quad to powerslide like it did. It was not normal maneuvering. But, Yes, the video was interesting, but the real test drive gave me the answer I was looking for.

 

Pairof98s,

Yes it was my Grizzly you saw. as far as vibration i only noticed it at idle. No more then my Grizzly had. The trails at Enroee are awsome for fast woods riding. There is no hill climbs just rollers. Fast straight aways with jumps and berms for turns. I hopefully will be going back next weekdend. I will send you a PM.

 

yeah well im waiting for the maxxis 12 hours of america thing. if the KQ sucks i'll have to go fo the brute force. but that just sucks. i really dont want that peice right now, hearing all the problems it gets. i dont know if they are posted here but at highlifter half the page is full of things like broken tie rods, cracked headers, a-arm recalls etc etc. btw, you dont shift your weight when you ride? when i watched that it reminded me of how i ride trails, which i thought was interesting.