I have a question for jy2276. How do you figure a 4 stroke will get the jump off the line over a two stroke, especially the banshee. The drag race you saw must have been between an inexpereinced rider because I drag raced a stock 400ex against my Blaster and i got the jump off the line and its not because of inexperience on the rider of the 400ex, its because two strokes get the jump off the line. And why do you think the most common drag quads are two-strokes?? just a little to ponder about.

 

You are not going to know what is fastest until it is released as a production unit(Raptor)and it shows up at your track, riding area, trail system, etc. You just cannot put any faith into the magazines. They are at best, unprofessional in their testing methods and at worst biased towards a certain model. They too are guilty of Raptor mania. There are too many variables. Best around a motocross course. There are so many different types of tracks and some favor better handling and some favor big power.
One final note. When the 400EX came out it was billed as the only production ATV to ever have an aluminum swingarm. How did they forget about the 88-89 TRX250R, the Tecate 4, and the early Quad-Racers? That tells me that when a new model comes out they lose there objectivity. Lets go ride.

 

I love these top speed posts. I've done this top speed measuring on my quads on different occasions and the numbers I come up with vary quite a bit. For example, I clocked my warrior at 51 Mph in one direction and 59 in the other direction one time on back-to-back runs. That was with and against the wind; that's how much difference it made. Same thing on the Banshee, about 70 Mph in one direction and 79 in the other direction. Is the top speeds of the Warrior and Banshee 51 & 70 or is it 59 & 79 Mph. Neither. It's somewhere in the middle. Also, a slight uphill or downhill makes a big difference just like the wind.

As somebody asked, I do think cut fenders do make a difference in top speed due to the reduced drag; maybe 1 to 2 Mph is my guess.

 

HOW CAN U TURN A 80'S FRAME INTO A 2001 FRAME FOR $700 (NOT POSSIBLE) I LIKE THE BANSHEE AND ALL BUT IT WILL NEVER BE A RAPTOR AND THERE IS A NEW KING OF THE HILL AS FAR AS STOCKERS GO

 

FASTEST QUAD IN PRODUCTION I BELEIVE IS THE STATEMENT THEY CHOOSE

 

Hey guys cant help but throw in my too cents on this topic. I have never been to impressed in top speed for two reasons. 1 with a change in gearing any atv can go 70. 2 its not a good indicator of power vs. weight. I ride a ATC 250R and stock can and have outrun anything, 500 zillas, bansees. Now where I ride there is no area to run 70 so the man thats quickest wins. The closest race I ever had was the 500 but I had 6 bikes on him and I was in 6th tapped out for a long time before he started to reel me in with his top end, but by that time we had to hit the brakes cause we ran out of room. For me the rush and quickness is the most fun.

 

Man, nobody has even rode this quad yet. I think alot of you that have went out and put a deposit on this quad just may be a little let down when you do finally get it, whenever that maybe! Yeah the banshee is a 80's quad but it is still the king when it comes to pure accelerating horsepower! No 4-stroke can give you that feeling of the power band hitting you trying to rip you off the quad! I am sure the Raptor will be a good quad but don't praise it to be the best sport quad ever when it hasn't even seen the first trail in real life! And for $700 I can make I banshee out run a Raptor easily if it is only a few mph faster. That is pathetic, a 660 and it is no faster than that. If Yamaha was smart they would have just done some fine tuning to the Banshee because it is hard to beat! Banshee's Rule!!!!

 

Because as anyone knows a 4-stroke has more bottom end than two stroke so that equals more power off the line. The reason I know is because I had a 400EX and I would race my buddies 2000 Banshee all the time and through the first 3 gears I would pull away from him until he got into his power band and then there was no hope for my 400EX so that is why I know own a 2001 Banshee and their is nothing like it. My EX would eat blaster's alive though so your friend may want to get his checked because their has to be something wrong with it. Banshee's Rule!!!!!!

 

You can't change gearing and go as fast as you want. You can gear it to the moon....but if you don't have the power to pull the additional gear, you are not gonna be going faster.

 

That is true JY2276....when you hit 4th gear on the 400ex, look over 'cause the Banshee is passing with a head of steam and checking out.