I have a '99 400ex. It is the best bike for me and the way I ride. Then again I ride with some fast company. One of them has a susuki500r quadzilla, modified and one other guy has a modified banshee then two more or less stock banshees. Yeah I am the slow boy with these guys. But I am not to far behind. I just have to ride hard to keep up. Anyway I think those Raptors look pretty cool. I haven't rode one but I did sit on one in the Yamaha shop. I really like the looks of the front end with the slotted nose and the headlights are pretty cool too. They are priced to high but then again aren't they all. Oh well I just wanted you guys to know that even a Honda rider thinks the Raptor is cool. But for me the 400ex is the best bike. Mike

 

 

Oh by the way. Hey expathfinder. I will race your xpress 400 anytime and stomp it in the dirt. You have got to be kidding. There isn't any way it could beat a ex. Sorry guys I had to say it.

 

ok andrew i was going to flame u but i wont go there... instead i just want to tell u that u have seen the wrong raptor riders, cause if u seen me ride u would see that the raptor is a very sweet quad, and would stomp many on a mx track, yes it has its weak points but what quads dont??? even the legendary 250r evolved from 86 to 89 so no quad is ever perfect..

-98 mx banshee
-01 raptor
-88 250r (gone but not forgotten)

 

only thing im hiding is a big bue can of woop ***,ive raced my raptor against what ive been able to find to race,one was a fmf piped banshee,with reeds and aftermarket ignition,he beet me once and i beet him once,the other was a piped 400 scrambler and it didnt even come close,so as far a drags go im just lookin for a ds 650 and quadzilla there the only STOCK quads out there that will give this thing a run

 

xepathfinder, Those machines you saw were stock and even dirtwheels said that with pipes the banshee at least can and will beat a raptor in a drag.

 

Hey man, I have been at a drag race, and seen a slightly Modded Polaris Sport 400 STOMP a Modified Banshee. You guys might think I'm lying, but I ride a Banshee and 2 polaris', and I"m not knockin either. Considering that the Polaris Sport 400 Basically uses the same engine, (smaller carb) as the Express/explorer 400, I think that it has a chance. My Grandad has a Polaris 400, and I like it. Very smooth, Fast, good power delivery. Sure it's not an all out sport bike, but hey, I've had it up around 70 on a straight road before. The Polaris Speedo goes to 60, and The needle was covering the S in Polaris. Maybe I"m a little weird, but I actually like Polaris'. They are somewhat quick/fast, they handle good, most are somewhat reliable (96 polaris express 300, been in the shop 2 times, still on origial belt and spark plug) and it really pisses me off to see someone jump on someone else because of the brand they ride. I'm not sure it is the situation, but they might've bought the atv that fits their budget, If money was not an object, they atv that fits their needs/wants. No atv is perfect, Everyone wants something different. You guys need to stop whining and RIDE. After all, that's why we're all here.. isn't it?

 

Lonestar,
Excellent post,
I didn't start this post to **** people off. It's just everyone (including Yamaha) says how bad this Raptor is than you hear it's getting beat by stock & slightly modded Banshee's & DS's and you begin to wonder. So I see these Raptors thinking "cool, let's see these bad boys!" Then they all just sit around. So I'm thinking what's up? Yamaha's own ad says it devours the competition. I know everyone buys a quad for different reasons but there is always an *** or two that just buys the fastest quad just to say they have one or because they can't make a quad fast themselves. Maybe all these guys just liked to putt about & just liked a sporty quad with convience of reverse & were Yamaha brand loyal, who knows. It just seemed odd that no-one on a Raptor wanted to "see where they stand."
As far as Polaris being fast I agree. I like the feeling of that kind of power through all 4 wheels on a launch. I have people ask how much I've done. Not alot really, pipe & stuff, I say. They all seemed surprised. Especially after getting beat in a drag by an overweight 4X4 I think they read too much Dirtwheels. As far as saying Polaris doesn't make a real Sports quad, yes they do. It's a race quad they don't make. But, becareful what you wish for. Tweak that 400L motor with a bigger carb & clean up the ports some & put it in a lightweight 400EX type frame with dual a-arms & it would probably be the fastest quad made. That would suck for all the diehards... The fastest quad an auto? Oh perish the thought !

 

Now that would be interesting. A Stock Raptor Verses a Stock 500 quadracer. Im sure the 500 would win hands down though. Those 500's have MONSTER top end speed.

 

I totally understand where your coming from. And by the way NJ660Raptor, what's wrong with ripping around like DOUG GUST? LOL And Andrew, These guys may be right, those Raptors could just be in their BREAK IN PERIOD. But if they aren't, I pity the people that were on them, the wasted $3000. They should've bought a used 300ex or Mojave. If all your gonna do is sit on the seat, get out of the way to do it. Andrew you have very good points on this post, but hopefully soon these guys will wake up and realize how to ride what they have! I'm sure the Raptor really rips.. the only thing I've done on one.. is sit. Maybe those Raptors weren't theirs.. maybe they did like I did? lol Oh well, there will always be people that disagree and argue but I guess all they will ever do is sit on the computer and gripe, while all of us "riders" are out having fun doing what we love.. RIDING. Later,