probably so. banshee will be gone in 2004

 

dont get mad at me for buttin in, but i just read a thread about the new honda, which was a joke started by a yamaha owner. so i figured that id put my 2 cents in over here.

it sounds like a good quad, but how do we know that its gonna happen, kinda like the honda 450?
ill believe it when i see it.

 

I agree with you, Stevie, let's see who makes it to market first, and with a better product.
I still like my 660, there's just nothing like that rush......and it handles pretty well for something so powerful and light. THe character at dirt wheels who originally called it 'tippy' didnt understand what he had between his legs...an entirely new technology.
Let's call it the 'tippy technology' now everyone wants the HP to torque to weight ratio of the Raptor.
anyone match it yet?

i guess its part of being a 20th century American and cubic inches....i hit the trigger {I mean squeeze the throttle} and it launches, no prep. just hit it. excellent!

 

Id hardly call the Yamaha raptor an "entirely new technology". Its tippy for 3 reasons. 1. Its not even as wide as a 400 EX. 2. Its got a high center of gravityand 3. its too short.. I know some of you guys like your Raptors, but they simply made them too small from the get go. I mean, no dimension on a 660 CC quad should be smaller than a 400EEX, but they are. thats a joke, and a bad one at that.

Hopefully Yamaha gets it right next time..

RoostKing...

 

A mid size quad is where the market is at, and where it is going. A large sports quad is not practical. I would hardly say Yamaha got it wrong. Just take a look at the raptor sales. The raptor is defining and leading the market. Making the way for better future quads.
Its not the be all, end all, but it is shaping the future of our great sport.

 

Yep, too short, narrow and tall. Motor seems OK though.

The Predator seems to have nailed the geometry and seems to have a reasonable amount of power. Let's see if it holds up better than past Polaris quads.

 

I think when Yamaha started to design the Raptor they were gonna use the YZF400 engine, but when the DS650 came out they decided to shoehorn that big 660 in the chassis. They probably had to make the chassis about 1.5-2" taller than originally planned, but they were to far into development to make any drastic changes to the chassis. This could also be the reason they were having durability problems with the carb boots & tranny.

 

Its dirtwheels!! Comon, what about that new 750 ex, or that new honda????
Thats what I thought..

But I dont doubt you, I will have to look at the mag..

-nick

 

Is it really a fact that yamaha will discontinue the banshee in 2004?

thanks
800

 

I spoke to a reliable source at my local Yam dealer who said Yamaha would have made the 426cc into a quad if it wasn't for the lack of an electrical starter & the problems that would have followed. He thinks Yam will put the 450cc into a quad but not until 2005 because it will hurt Raptor sales too much & may lead to the demise of the Raptor. Its just speculation but I thought I'd throw it into the mix, its not my opinion!

2much4u, what issue are you talking about because an old issue (Dec or Nov, I forget) mentioned that a reliable source felt that Yam would release a 450cc quad as early as mid summer 2004 or was it 2003? not sure.