You think? The 450 is going to force the other manufacturers to push the envelope.

 

they have potential..

 

I know what a sport quad is made for, I have ridden them for 15 years, and sometimes where I ride you've gotta putt putt around or you'll smack a tree and be severely injured or dead, or you'll go around a corner hit a fair sized log and be airborne and hit a tree and be severely injured or killed. I like the stiff suspension for the track but some people can't handle the stiff suspension all day. I myself like it and can take it all day, but I'm fairly young still and I have just started to get sore after riding sometimes. Going almost 70mph on a quad is not slow. It might be slow for drag racing but it's not slow. If you can spin a quad around in some of the crap I ride in then more power to ya. I do agree reverse is not a neccesity but it's nice on a trail to have. Give the yfz at least a month on the market to give it the KING OF ALL QUADS title. I'd still love to own one but my z is plenty fast for me now.

 

I don't think it'll make as good of duner as the rappy but will probably perform better everywhere else, but I could be wrong.

 

[quote]
Originally posted by: 14mins
We ran a new 450 against a built 440 kawi and the yamaha put 1 1/2 in 300 and 2 1/2 in 660. The kawi was built to the max. (50 plus horse by trinity standards) the yamaha was stock. (15mins ride time) We did not have a stock raptor to line up with it out of 100 raptors. Yes it will kick z's butt, no if and butt

It might have beat this 440 kawi and it might have been built to the max for a 440 but there is also a 450 kit, which is what the yfz is a 450, albeit it is a stock quad. Anyways when Kory Ellis raced the two 450 z's of Tim Farr and Doug Gust on a yfz they got the holeshot on him and pulled away on him early and he had a few very minor mods on his yfz. Tim Farr won and Doug Gust came in second, and Korey on the yfz finished third. Yes that is impressive for an almost stock quad (it did have some mods) but if you were trying to make everyone thing a yfz will beat any hopped up z400 or kfx then I know that's wrong. I mean they will beat some like this 440kawi evidently but it wasn't built to the maximum capibilty it could have been. I know the two racing z's probably had $20,000 in them but they won the race, that was the goal. I'm sure if you put $20,000 in the yfz then it would be a whole other story but I don't want everyone to think they can't make there z's competitive at least against a stock yfz because you can, you'll just have to shell out more dough, than it might be worth. If you already own a z, kfx, raptor, whatever and don't have the money for a new yfz, just wait and see if it dominates like we all think it will, then start saving your money.

 

I cant wait to ride the new 450. My cannondale was FAST, for a stock quad. Terrible low rpm behavior though. The rear suspension is also very stiff, even with the compression backed all the way out. Had Cannondale gotten a couple more years under their belt, I'm sure the result would have been awesome, but we all know that will never be. The new Yamaha, is very exciting, and I for one don't think that the price is too high, IF it delivers the goods. Im sure the motor will be better mannered than the cannondales, and Yamaha probably won't go out of business any time soon. If they don't have any major reliability issues, like cracked frames, or crank plate bolts backing out (sarcasm), they have a sure winner.

 

The quad that ran agaist the yamaha450 was equipted with fcr carb etc. It in itself is a very impressive quad.

 

Yeah, I know that. I said it would probably cost more money than it's worth to fix a z to beat the yfz. If I were competitivly racing or had any thoughts about trying to be a pro someday there's no question I'd get the yfz. I wish I could have seen the race firsthand or on video or something. I kind of just got that info from heresay. I've been praising the yfz in most of my posts that are concerning it but I guess I still feel the need to defend my z. I'm trying to go about in a way that isn't envious, like all the 400ex guys that have ragged on my z. I'm a beleiver in the yfz, make no mistake about it. I just don't want to call it the best ever,yet. I'll still say the raptor has it until the yfz knocks it down and keeps it there.

 

Don't feel the need to defend your Z. I just bought a predator and like it but am also drooling over the new YZF. This launch was really unexpected I think because yamaha made so few upgrades to the banshees, warriors and blasters over the years. They also had a hit/miss for the sport/race crowd with the raptor. Who could have forseen this? This quad hits the mark and will cause the whole racing quad market to grow. Even though it may be a little faster than your Z, In most situations, a fast rider is worth more than a fast quad...

 

It is exciting to see the manufacurers enter the sport arena and now to see an entry that is of the caliber of a YZ or CR dirt bike is even more exciting. The YFZ is an honest to goodness race machine. The Raptor, LTZ/KXF, and 400EX are all great sport machines, but they are not the same machine that the YFZ450 has turned out. We have already built a pipe, jet kit, air box mods for it and gotten the motor into 50 hp land. We haven't touched the motor yet. How exciting is that! I have been told that fairly easily that it can become 300 lbs. That is a race quad. We plan to go crazy with it. Pistons are on the way, as are programmable CDI's and who knows what else Curtis will dream up for it. At any rate, rejoice in a manufacturer seeing you guys and all that you do and giving you a product that is full out development and directed right at you! The LTZ/KXF, 400EX and Raptor are great quads, but they are not all out efforts at pure performance. They are good all around reliable sport machines that we have all taken and made into full on race machines for whatever our favorite type of racing might be. It is an exciting time, hold on to your shorts!!!