i want to buy a new quad in the spring and i cant decide on the 700 or the 450. all i do is trail ride and want to take a trip to the dunes. any info?
is reverse really needed? with a few changes could the 450 be a good trail bike?

 

Reverse is a nice feature but no its not really needed.

A yfz 450 is a good trail bike, especially on faster type trails.

That said I am mainly a trail rider and 90% of my ride time is with a 06 YFZ 450 and I wouldnt switch for anything. The torque and low end power of the 700 just makes it great for trail riding. It handles any kind of trail with no problems and after a long day of riding rough trails, you will appreciate the softer ride and less clutch work required with the 700. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

I think our YFZ is a great trail quad, but it has Ohlins shocks and a steering stabilizer. Reverse is not a big deal for me because the YFZ is light enough to pick up and turn around if you need to. Then again, I haven't had reverse on a sport quad in several years, and never had it on a bike, so I am used to not having it. The last sport quad I had with reverse was on a Rappy 660, and its reverse was geared so high it wasn't very useable anyway. I often found myself just quickly picking it up to point it the right direction instead of riding the clutch in reverse. Maybe some Rappy 700 owners can tell us if the new Rappy has a more useable reverse.

One advantage the Rappy 700 has is fuel injection. It took 3 or 4 tries to get the YFZ jetted spot on perfect, and that is a pain. Their both great ATVs. Right now if I were to buy a new sport quad for trail riding it would either be a Rappy 700 or an Outlaw 525 (just for the engine, not the Polaris part of it). If I were to buy a new sport quad for desert racing, which is what we use our YFZ for, it would be another YFZ just like it.

 

at my local yamaha dealer they say the 450 is a bad idea for the trails with no low end power and bad ground clearense. i rode a 450 and like how it rides alot better than my 660. is a new 700 closer to a 660 or a 450 in means of how it rides?
if u had to choice would u pick a 450 or 700 for trailing

 

Don't believe everything your Yamaha dealer tells you, they are typically at the bottom of the pecking order when it comes to knowing about their product. For just trail riding (no racing) I would get the Rappy 700. One race a year makes it worth getting the YFZ though [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img] . And the YFZ has pretty decent torque if you ask me; its not like a 700, but it has a lot more than a Banshee, LOL.

 

The 700 is closer to a 450 than a 660. They used the geometry of the 450 to develop the 700. The measurements between the 2 are pretty equal, than main difference in handling comes from a stiffer suspention on the 450 and a higher center of gravity on the 700 (mainly because of the motor) and a extra 46 lbs.

If going to race by all means look into one of the 450's but for trails the 700 is the way to go.

You will have people argue the the 450 is a good trail bike and it is, I ride with one almost everytime I ride but saying it would be better at trails than a 700 is as silly as me saying the 700 is a better MX quad than the 450.

 

The torque of the 700 is great and with a few cheap mods its only better. As far as the reverse, I don't know if I'd buy a quad without it. I love that feature. Its like not having a reverse in a car....but to a lesser degree. You can't really turn your car by hand, you get the idea. If the shocks on the Raptor aren't good enough for you, just get some elka triple rate shocks or something. I love the Raptor though. Couldn't ask for much more

 

First thing I would ask is what size are you? I compared the 2 bikes by reading the magazines last summer, and was set on getting an 06 YFZ due to the DOHC, resi shocks, low weight....sounded perfect for what I like to do(dunes\desert). Then I went to the dealership and sat on one. Im 5'11" and the YFZ felt like a kids bike to me. Its too cramped, bars are too low. I sat on the 700 and it was perfect. The size, the layout of the controls and EFI really sold me. The reverse is nice to have for backing it out of the toybox. If youve never had reverse, you wont miss it.

I would like to try and ride a YFZ with a +3" taller steering stem for comparrison. The magazines hype that bike up so much it sounds like The quad to have.

Just remember its more expensive to modify a 700 then a 450 when it comes to the basic 3 mods. The 700 had 2 head pipes which makes it more expensive. The 700 needs a programmer to add fuel when you do intake and exhaust mods(Dobeck is the cheapest at $200), wheras the 450 can be rejetted with a few jets, maybe a needle for very little money.

 

After seeing both of them run at the dunes a few weeks ago I would get the 450. The raptor 700 is a sweet machine but the 450 is faster stock, and has the sweetest suspention out there. Ive got a video if the rappy and yfz racing i will have to see if I can get it on here.

 

im 5,6, 185 and my best freind just baught the new suzuki 450 and man its awesome i love yamaha but i might buy one them. any info on what i should do? the 700s out i want to start hitting the track soon and go to the dunes because i never been