If you want to go everywhere the 4x4s go, you can, but you better be in shape and ready for a pounding



I strongly disagree. There are plenty of places a 2 wheel drive will NOT go, no matter what the fitness is of the rider, that a 4x4 can go. On the contrary, i will NEVER jump my 800lb machine 30ft, 8ft high and not fu*k me and my quad up. But i have seen a ds650 do it.

 

Identify the type of riding you plan on doing 90% of the time. What quad best suits that type of riding? Now think about where you'll be doing most of your riding. Next weigh the pros and cons of a sport bike and a ute in that environment.

Sportquad pros
Quicker
More nimble
Lighter
More controllabe in the air
Don't hurt half as much as a ute when they roll over you

Sportquad cons
Low ground clearance
Less protection from mud and stuff tossed up by the tires
Will get stuck more more often
Can't carry much on them (say, a cooler/tools/supplies)
Sporty suspensions typically equal rougher ride, faster fatigue

Utility pros
More ground clearance
Good protection from stuff tossed up by the tires
Can carry plenty of extras
Can be used to pull out other quads when they're stuck
IRS and Ute style suspension typically equals softer more plush ride
(easier to ride w/ a girl on the back)

Utility cons
Not as quick as a sport quad
Bulky,heavy
When they do get stuck, they can be a pain to get out. (especially by yourself)
Hurt a lot more when they roll over you

That's just a quick comparison... I for one know that I can't ride my yfz hard for more than an hour before I'm so worn out that I have to take a long break... I can ride my grizzly all day and hardly be tired...

 

Hey V2 I do remember a hill you had to lock in 4x4 and I made it with my Z ,J/k, I agree totally that 4x4 has great advantages on many trails and mud holes ,i don't use my Z400 for mudding not made for it , so every machine out there does better in some situations then other machines just have to know the limitaions of your machine .

 

Just get a quad based on where you'll be riding and how you want to ride. If you like steep mountain trails and taking-in the views on a day-long ride, I'd get a 'ute. If speed is more your thing and there aren't too many deep 'holes or boulder fields and you just go out for an hour or two at a time, go with a sport quad. That being said, I go riding with my brother a lot. I ride an '07 Eiger 400 4x4, and he rides an '01 Prairie 300 4x2, both autos with low-range. I ride mostly in 2wd, but we run on some pretty nasty terrain. He can get his Prairie almost anywhere the Eiger will go, but he has to hit it with more speed and bouncing around, while I just throw it in 4x and walk up it. Now, a lot of the reason he can go where he does is because his machine rolls on 25" tires. There's no way a sport quad on 20" tires with 4" of ground clearance would make it up the rocky slopes that we ride on without breaking something really quick..

 

I agree 100% with Honeyduck96 I've been there before, I used to ride a 250 fourstroke Mojave with a bunch of guys on 4x4's, and at the end of the day I was worn out and dirty as he!!. I can only remember one time having trouble and luckily had a 4x4 behind me to push me through. brusk if you do decide to go with two wheel and aren't in to much of a hurry you might want to wait until the new Honda TRX 700 is out, it has independent rear suspention wich = more ground clearance and it's less taxing on your body, and fuel injection. From my experiance it takes buying a few quads before you figure out exactly what the perfect atv for you is. I still don't have it figured out. Good luck. TG

 

are You a firefighter by chance ctateusa1

 

if you want my opinion, I would definitely get a sport quad like the 400ex or the 450r.. I have a 400ex and the only reason I picked it over the 450r (besides higher maintenance) is because it has reverse. If I were you I would get a 400ex and put mud/rough trail tires on it, it will be a LOT more fun just riding in the first place as compared to getting a heavy/slow utility with no acceleration, higher costs, and the fact that the first wreck you get in you'll have to spend $800 to get everything fixed that got bent.. it happened to me when I had my despised suzuki eiger 400, I rear-ended someone with barely a 5 mph speed difference and had to replace the left headlight, the entire front plastic fender, the front bumper, the winch mounting plate, and the front rack. Then I got a 250ex and had to replace the handlebars once and I wrecked all the time throughout the 3 years I owned it. So if I were you I would definitely go with a 400ex or a 450r

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: sugarhead

are You a firefighter by chance ctateusa1</end quote></div>

yhea howd you guess

 

I have an eiger and an ozark. Obviously one is 4x and the other 2x. 4x4 is the way to go. After I got both my sport quads stolen I went utility and never looked back. You should always ride with a 4x4 if you don't have one IMO. Getting "delayed" can SUCK on a sport quad all that clutch feathering and the amount of brake pads and sprockets you go through is expensive. The only time I wish I had a sport again is when I see a construction site and remember how easy it was to download and have fun just about anywhere. Not the case with utilities.

 

A construction site?..........That can't be a very safe place to ride?.............Caper..........