Hey all,

I have a buddy who is looking to buy one of the new YFZ's real soon.....it will be his first quad, not the first he's ridden but he's not an accomplished rider yet.....he rides street bikes (he learned on an 1100!) but not much on the ATV side of things.

Is the YFZ too much for him? He was looking at the Z400 and EX but didn't like the feel of the EX and the Z400 wasn't in the picture after reading an article about how great a trail machine the YFZis....

I told him that the YFZ doesn't have reverse and is probably too much to start out with.....but he wants what he wants.....

Anyway......is the YFZ a good trail machine for an "Average" rider....and by trails I mean trails back in the mountains (Hatfield/McCoy type trails for those familiar), rocky and muddy trails....not a whole lot of open high speed trails....

Should he be steered towards the Z400 or something else? Any advice would be appreciated!

I even suggested the Raptor over the YFZ since it has a couple of years behind it and it's a bit easier on the wallet.... (I'd get a Raptor mainly for reverse [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img] ) I know it's a bigger engine but from what I've read it's not at the level of the YFZ (stock for stock).

 

If he can handle a street bike hes probably got enough sence not to get himself hurt on it. But it will take him a while to learn to use it fully. I dunno about using it on really rough trails though. I would guess anywhere a Z400 or Raptor can go it can go though. They dont have any huge offroad advantage over it.

 

It's good for trails....as long as they aren't too technical were you might need a low end....not only that but they have a low ground clearance and a plastic skid plate (you can change that).....But as far as going through mud....I did that this past weekend and the mud flies!!!! The plastic does nothing to protect you from the mud, I was covered head to toe and my googles were f**cked.....other than this, oh yeah it's fine for trails.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

lol nice

 

sh*t man, I leared to ride on a 55 hp banshee that I still own 2 years later. I just didnt ride it in the powerband when I first got it, and now I do. I guess its just how crazy you want to be on it that will hurt you. The first time I opened it up, it scared the bajesus outta me. So I never opened it up after that and just played it cool until I felt safe enough to ride it harder. He will get used to it, and its going to feel like a snail to him.

-Nick

 

Where was the article saying the yfz is great for trails. I've heard that it's a little to racey for tighter spots in the woods. I don't think the z exactly likes to putt putt around in tight trails either but I figure it would do better than the more high strung yfz. I think the ex rides at slower speeds better than most sport quads but the z's reverse gives it a pretty good advantage. No matter how good a rider (unlike some guys say) sometimes you'll be in a place you could use reverse. You might not absolutly have to have it but it's a lot easier than picking up the rear end of a 400 pound machine and lugging it around. Of course the yfz is lighter but 20 or 30 pounds isn't much difference when you're lifting them around. If you ever plan to race I might go ahead and get the super fast yfz.

 

For a guy that has a YFZ you should know they put out about 45 hp. Are you sure you have one?

 

when i was 12, i went from a 300ex to a raptor lol

 

Thanks for the input....I'm not exactly trying to change his mind just trying to give him as much info as possible......he's gonna buy whatever he wants (and it should be that way).

 

Ya, I would go for a YFZ...great reviews about it. The bad thing is though is its high price. A Banshee, even a Raptor would be good too...and their cheaper. I myself am going to buy one of those three, but I am doing more research...