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<< [i]In my opinion, the 400EX and Z are great 4-wheelers. The EX has to be awesome for Suzuki to want it's frame geometry for their newest hi-performance quad. All Suzuki really did was put in a more powerful motor, new Raptor-ish plastic, and Raptor tires. And by copying partsfrom the 400EX and Raptor (before the Z, the2 best quads available in my opinion) and made the new high mark for an ALL-around sport quad. Without the EX and Raptor the Z probbly wouldn't have come to be. So, I believe the old saying is true, imitation is the best form of flatery.&quot;


amen again...preach it brother!!!

 

I've rode mine hard since May with no problems what so ever. You will always have a few issues with any quad. Honda has there share of problems as well. I've had better luck with this quad than I did with my EX and with my R.

 

If you like the EX, you will like the Z even better. There is NOTHING REVOLUTIONARY ABOUT THE Z. It is simply an EVOLUTIONARY IMPROVEMENT ON THE 400EX. Suzuki did a knock-off copy of the EX, and put a WAY BETTER ENGINE in it. If Honda had done this, they would be selling all those bikes instead of Suzuki. Honda wasted its R&amp;D resources by giving us new utility bikes, one after the other. Honda dropped the ball on this one!! Even if Honda anounces a new quad on the 12th, it will be a long year before we see it on the showroom floor. If Honda had any *****, they would tell the greenies to stick it, and bring back the 250R.

 

*just want to add in there that the good ol' EX DOES have a 9100 RPM cut-off from the factory.

 

YZGUY said it right about the Z, it is just the next little step up from the 400ex. Both are fantastic sport quads. They will always be compared as they are the same size, price and are aimed at the exact same market niche. Good job by Honda, better job by Suzuki. Honda will {like any company will} only come back with an improved quad when they start losing sales {money} to the competition. I'm sure they are monitoring the situation. The Raptor is just different enough that it may not be hurt too badly by the Z-400 in sales but I think Yamaha will have some reaction to the Suzuki. Whatever the factories do it won't happen overnight, it takes time to make changes. We as quad riders {and buyers} will benefit from the competition.

 

If the EX is so great then why is everyone selling their EXs and buying c'dales,Z400s and others? &lt;fuel to the flame?&gt;

BTW I do like the EX a lot and I for one am glad they chose the EX to copy. Better than copying a Raptor...uhh...Plastic... Crap! they did that too. Oh well[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-cool.gif[/img]

MX &lt;owner of the best of every machine&gt;

 

motoexpress-It is good that people are selling their EX's and getting Z's, because that is the only thing that will get Hondas attention!! And all those USED EX's on the market, means even more competition for Honda dealerships. Like I said earlier, the Z is only incramentally better than the EX, but we need to reward manufacturers for their inovation (even if all they gave us was a better engine!). Otherwise, the manufacturers will get complacent. I am willing to bet that the new Honda announced tomorrow is going to be an 04 model??? That is another whole year. No way did Honda's R&amp;D department anticipate the competition they would get from the Raptor and Z.

 

It will be an '04 for sure. I predict that we will be disappointed as well.

MX

 

Hey those used 400EX's are a good thing. It makes my oldest sons next ride a little more affordable. I saw one listed the other day for 2800.00 and they are averaging around 3200.00 to 3600.00 depending on the year and condition in this area.

 

I think a 400ex for $3,000 is a real bargin because it is still one of the best machines made. I don't question it's value at all.

MX