I am a prospective King Quad Purchaser and I gladly signed the petition today. I ran across the reverse problem by Chance.

I looked at and test drove the Kingquad today at my local dealership. The salesman (who was new) told me a customer had brought in one for routine service work and that it had larger tires and after market rims and wanted to know if I would like to take a look. I said yes and we went back in the service area. The salesman started the kingquad up and drove it forward. It looked brand new and when he went to put it in reverse it did not work - first thought that crossed my mind - new quad with major problem NOT ROUTINE SERVICE WORK.

Since I have been home this evening I cranked up the internet and have been reading about all the horrible problems that everybody seems to be having with reverse.

MY QUESTION IS: HAS ANYBODY BEEN HAVING THE REVERSE PROBLEM ON KQ THAT HAVE BEEN PURCHASED AFTER THE SUPPOSED VIN # SEQUENCE?? AND HAS ANYBODY BEEN HAVING PROBLEMS AFTER THEY GOT THE ECM UPGRADE FOR THOSE WHO PURCHASED WITHIN THE SUPPOSED VIN# SEQUENCE??

I AM PRETTY DISAPPOINTED I WAS REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO PURCHASING THE KQ - I THINK I WILL BE LOOKING AT THE COMPETITION TOMORROW.

Thanks
Charles
Jackson, Mississippi

 

You will find alot of info on reverse failures if you go to www.highlifter.com website.Do a search,or just look at the 1st few pages.There have been a couple failures after the ecm upgrade,(which is a sorry fix for a MAJOR problem)!!It's a decent quad with a MAJOR DESIGN FLAW!!!!Come on Suzuki,your LOSING SALES EVERYDAY!!Good Luck on whatever you should decide to purchase!

 

They all should have or will be getting the new ECM. But don't let that put you at ease, the ECM is not the problem. It is a bushing on the shaft the reverse gear spins on...it overheats and seizes tearing the shaft out of the case. The only reliable fix is going to be hard parts, the good news is they have designed a new setup for the reverse gear, the bad news is they are only offering it in Canada right now, and are quiet about it down here.
The ECM is a joke..it limits the reverse in both normal mode and overide mode and is a bugger to work with if your stuck! It just is an attempt to slow the things down in reverse so they don't heat up, but it seems they are not that effective at doing that either!There have been three poster on the two sites that had the reverse go after the new ECM was installed!
The KQ is awesome, nothing out there like it for power and handleing, great engine braking, great jumper, and locker, and wet brake , EFI... it was really well designed...except the reverse gear. If you could wait a bit, it might be worth it to see if they are going to do a recall and fix them all...if they do ..it's the best all-around quad out there and is a ton of fun!

 

One other thing, those that have had reverse fail have compared vin#'s over on highlifter and there is no connection. The vins were all over the board. Give Suzuki cust. service a call and see what they say. They still are trying to pass the new ecm off as a fix. So far they are really dropping the ball on this "flagship quad".
Cust. service for American Suzuki # 714-572-1490.
One other thing you might be interested in, it seems the quads that fail in Canada are getting a bearing fix and those in the U.S. are getting the same old crap bushing. Check this out at highlifter/ Suzuki/ The fix. The pictures have mysteriously been taken off the post but I have them on my hard drive and so do others.
looks like you beat me to the punch Monzooki

 

I feel bad for the folks go go into a dealership and ride one (they are a great handing machine no doubt), see a glowing review by ATVtv, or a glowing magazine article and then go fork over 7 grand on the machine not knowing:
A. That there is a serious mechanical defect with the reverse.
B. The only fix Suzuki has announced de-tunes the machine and still doesn't fix the problem.

For those that actually know about the defect and still go ahead and purchase one while hoping and trusting that Suzuki will do the right thing...well more power to you. You have more trust in a manufacturer than I do. Personally I can't fathom why anyone would plunk down that kind of money on a knowingly defective product. Yeah it rides great. Yeah it handles great. In fact the handling and ride is probably the best out there. But the thing has a serious defect that Suzuki evidently is not addressing. Worse yet they are slapping a de-tuned ECM in it that handicaps the machine in reverse and from some reports in forward gear too. It looks as if Suzuki is attempting to get off on the cheap by de-tuning the ATV so the defectively designed revers holds out just long enough to get it beyond the warranty. You can make your own judgments as to the ethics of that.

I liken the KQ to a hot girl with VD. Yeah the KQ is great perhaps the best in its class but it in effect has VD. Like the girl she may be a great ride but there is a serious problem that makes it unacceptable for most people.

Suzuki needs to redesign the reverse, fix all the machines already out there and put an ECM in that doesn't cripple the reverse gear or the performance. So far Suzuki has done none of that. They need to stop listening to the damned accountants and lawyers and do the right thing for the folks who sank over 7000 dollars on a defective machine.

I sure am glad I didn't buy one. It was on the short list. Seeing how Suzuki handles this issue in regards to its current customers will be a major factor on my purchasing a KQ in the future if it is fixed. So far I'm not impressed with how they are handling this.

If anyone from Suzuki is reading this: STOP LISTENING TO THE DAMNED ACCOUNTANTS AND LAWYERS AND DO THE RIGHT THING FOR YOUR CUSTOMERS. FIT IT AND FIX IT RIGHT. NO HALF MEASURES.

 

...remember the days when you bought a suzuki..and we'd be so proud of it...couldn't wait to take it to the local "watering hole"...NOW we are fighting,pleading, just wishing the d*m company would keep reverse in it...!!

Suzuki's new top ten list for excuses:

1. We find no problem with the Kingquad

2. Change your riding habits

3. You can purchase the extended warranty

4. Are engineers,tech, & service people believe the fix is adequate

5. Really how fast do you want to go in reverse

6. Its not our problem..you put larger tires on

7. We take care of our customers..when there is a real problem ..

8. Canada suzuki, Japan suzuki, & USA suzuki are different companys

9. Your warranty parts are "In the Mail"

10. Don't call us..we'll call you !!

PS a # 11) Suzukis new solgan The worst is yet to come...

 

Don't buy a King Quad until they redesign the reverse. '05 machines are going to be forever known as the machine with the reverse design flaw and will/are depreciating very fast. If you must own an '05 KQ, wait for a used one to show up that is out of warranty - you will be able to buy it dirt cheap. Thanks Suzuki for leaving us holding the bag for your mistake!

 

With this up and coming recall on the vinson and 2nd issue with the flagship? atv of suzuki, I do not think anyone should buy any Suzuki until they get their act together. I really feel the reverse issue will be swept under rug and the 06's will have the fix. The only way Suzuki will fix them all is after a couple million dollar law suit from the first person who gets hurt and can associate it with the easily proven design flaw. The update stated the new ECM will " ensure the durability of the reverse idle gear" and with the few failures we know about after the ecm update proves the fix was not sufficient. Now we have to give our quads up to get the throttle assembly fixed, and then hopefully have to give em back again for a reverse overhall?