I'm getting real close to buying a couple of quads. I just got my trailer and I'm saving for the bikes now. I have been reading a lot and have settled on the LT Z400 I think. I'm 6' 1" tall, so when I sat on the 400EX and the LT Z400, I found the Z to be more comfortable to me. The seat height and handlebar height on the 400EX seemed a little low. When I sat on the Z, my posture felt more natural.

I toyed around with getting a 660 Raptor, until I read how much better the 400's were on gas. I live in Arizona and I'm 41 years old. I have lost all of my desire to jump and to do adrenaline pumping riding. Which brings me to my real question...is the Z400 a rever or not?

I had the opportunity to ride a Banshee at the dunes and I did not like it. Sure it was crazy fast, but I never got it out of 3rd gear anyway and I noticed I had to pull in the clutch a lot and rev it up just to take a moment to look around and choose a direction, or make a tight turn. I see a ton of posts about how great the Z is for trail riding, but everyone keeps saying they would prefer the 400EX on tight trails because it can be bogged down and still run well, while the Z wants to be reved up.

Since my experience on the Banshee, I realized that I don't want to always rev it up to take my time when choosing a direction. I am going to be riding BLM roads in Arizona, local trails around the valley and a few times a year out at the dunes. I will never be in a midwestern state, riding through thick trees and mud. Around here, the trails are dry, hard and rocky, mixed with lose dirt and sometimes sand. Then of course there is the dunes.

Do you have to rev up the Z to ride in those places, if you want to go slower and see the sites?? Am I way off to compare the Banshee to the Z in regards to being a revver? Any help would be appreciated.

 

A liquid cooled 4 stroke like the Z400 is great for desert riding, the air cooled 400ex might get a bit warm if worked hard in dunes and tight terrain in desert heat. Remember, you can always get risers and different handlebar bends to fit your body and riding style. so dont judge a quad for the way it feels from the factory.
comparing 2 strokes and 4 strokes is hard, 2 strokes loved to be revved out, while 4 strokes make torque much lower in the rpm band, so you wont need to red line it to dune like a 2 stroke.

 

You can putt around until your heart is content taking in the sites on a 4-stroker.
Totally different ride than what you had on the Banshee.

I had a '88 250R in my 20s and never got into the jumping and crazy riding, but was it
was still good a trail quad for me up here in NY.

 

Hey I'm from AZ too! I'm not much of a trail rider, but I just rode my friends Z400 around the Lake Pleasant area (the Boulders). I own a Banshee, and I think I prefer the Z400 for the trails. I'm not sure how well it does at the dunes, but I'll stick to my shee around the dunes.

 

With my old kfx, I rode in the "sight seeing" groups and with a few "rip up the trails" guys. I thought it worked very well for both.