Bought a 700xx!

[yamaha225dr]

I picked up this quad yesterday, it's an 08 Honda 700xx. It is bone stock, power wise. The rear tires are Kenda Kutters. I haven't gotten to ride it enough to see how it compares to my KFX 700, hopefully I will find out this weekend. I know the Honda is faster but that is not my main priority.

[oscarmayer]

sweet! ejoy. i have never owned one, but talked to several about them. it is more of a trail blazer with the IRS rear on it, so don;t go trying to do MX racing with it or you could blow the rear end out from what I as told. enjoy it. nice quad.

[yamaha225dr]

Thanks! I ama trail rider,that is why I was attracted to it. I haven't gotten to ride it enough to form an opinion yet.

[SteveCZ28]

i have a kfx 700 as well. so id be curious about the irs of this 700xx. i have a raptor 700 as well, i like my powerful bikes

[kaymo]

id be trying to figure out how to make it a leaner...

[yamaha225dr]

I will hopefully get a ride review soon.

[atc007]

Super awesome amazing quads. Take your time setting it up and dialing it in to where you want it. You won't be disappointed

[yamaha225dr]

Yeah, two of the most hated quads ever made. LOL The things people hate about them are what is appealing to me though.

[nachop]

You are correct yamaha225dr. And most of the people that hate them have never ridden them. They only read what others have to say about them. I happen to have both quads and absolutely love them both. You will not be disappointed with the 700xx. And it CAN be jumped with no problems. No, it is not an MX machine, but that does not mean you cannot catch some pretty good air. It does take some getting used to over a solid rear axle. Where SRAs slide effortlessly, IRS requires much more effort. The 700xx comes geared high and is easy to stall out due to this. Two of the best mods that you can do to this quad is to replace the countershaft sprocket from a 14t to a 13t and buy an aftermarket sway bar for it. I replaced mine with an 11/16 L8ton and it was definitely worth the money. And I am a cheap SOB. Anyway, the KFX is much better on really tight, twisty trails. But widen the trails up a little...and look out. That's where the Honda shines. Obviously, different riders may get different results but for me the 700xx beats both the KFX and the Raptor on roomier trails. On wide open dunes, I like all three 700s with a slight edge going to the Raptor, followed by the KFX, and then the Honda. Top end is not important to me, but of ALL the stock pure sport quads I have ridden (except the LT500), 700cc and under (and I have ridden all of them except the Polaris 525, and KTMs), the 700xx is the fastest. It may not get the hole shot, but once in third gear, the others begin to fall behind. The 700xx is really a remarkable machine. It is a shame that Kawasaki and Honda bailed on the big displacement quads. Looking forward to reading your impressions of your new quad.

[yamaha225dr]

I swapped out to a 13 tooth sprocket today, even though I still haven't gotten any seat time but just by doing research, I knew it would be best for my riding area here in Oregon. Now, if I was still in Louisiana where everything is wide open then stock would be best. Even with the 13 tooth sprocket, guys are still hitting mid to upper 70mph and low to mid 80mph with the stock gearing. That is some tall gearing! I see now why the Raptor always beat the Honda in hill climbs drag races in the ATV magazines. Just sitting on the Honda and rocking it side to side, I can tell it needs a stiffer sway bars for an aggressive rider but I think it will be fine for me. Although I am only 29 years old, I ride fairly conservative now. I had a few pretty scary wrecks when I was younger and try to be careful now. I have three young girls to raise and can't afford to act foolish. So far, I have two complaints and one is not due to Honda. The handlebars are aftermarket and the crossbar pad blocks the warning lights. My second complaint is the reverse lever, I don't understand why Honda used that design but it was dumb. The Kawasaki has the best gear selector I have ever seen on a quad though.

[yamaha225dr]

Alright, I got some seat time on both quads today! The Honda likes to be ridden hard and feels sportier but doesn't like to turn, the rear end wants to hook and it takes a much different technique then the KFX. The Honda is definitely faster but it lacks in the low end versus the KFX but boy oh boy does it build into a hefty mid-top end rush! WOW! The thing just revs and revs like a 450 and it loves revving and wants to be ridden hard but it hates turning, like a muscle car. The suspension is nice and plush, you can fly over some pretty narley bumps and not have your teeth beaten out. The fuel injection was sweet, cause I was riding on gravel roads heading to the top of a mountain and it never had a problem in the high elevation but my KFX with the carburetors got to where it was harder to start. The KFX feels quite a bit bigger, due to the wider midsection from the CVT transmission but the KFX was more confident inspiring which made me feel faster when racing up the mountain and back down. I could fly into the turns, hit the back brake pitch it sideways and just fly around the curves. I had an oh crap moment on the Honda cause I expected it to do the same but instead it understeered and I had to frantically lock up all the brakes to keep from going off a cliff. It is an unpredictable slider. The KFX has a quieter engine and exhaust, the Honda begins to make some racket at high rpms like a Honda 450r quad and honestly the 700xx engine reminds me of a 450, just not as fast revving. It can be lugged a gear but doesn't seem to be very happy doing it. If I could only choose one quad to have, it would be the KFX. The Honda is very nice though and will not be going anywhere, I just gotta get some more seat time on it. Also, it has a 13 tooth countershaft sprocket, instead of the stock 14 and the rear tires are Kenda Kutters, instead of the stock tires, so those may be a culprit to the understeer. The KFX is bone stock.

[nachop]

Yes, tires do make a difference but the aftermarket sway bar does WONDERS for handling. I know there are other manufacturers of sway bars for the 700xx, but I don't know anything about them. I am sure that they will improve handling as much as the L8ton does. And since it is the only one I have tried, it is the only one I can rate. I am extremely satisfied with it. You may notice that you lose a bit of the plushness of the suspension with the stiffer sway bar, but it is definitely worth the trade off. I did think it was odd what you mentioned about noise. My quads are stock and the Honda it quieter than the KFX. Could be that the packing of one exhaust is more worn than the other. Also, you may know this already. Another good mod for the 700xx is to replace the front shocks with Can-Am DS450 shocks (minor modding is needed). For that matter, TRX450R front shocks for the KFX also does wonders (minor modifications also needed).

[atc007]

There are several ways to make her lay down and corner. First, the stock rear rims WILL go. As well as most likely the cutters...You need wider, rims in whatever size you prefer. A set of aftermarket shocks ,,,set up properly,,,will take the place of the sway bar for all but a few flat trackers lol. Nothing wrong with a swaybar,,,,or even stock shocks. But you have GOT to play with ALL of your setups till you get that bike where YOU want it. No one else....Your liking. Only takes a few hours of tweaking,and you will have the gnarliest beast you could ever ask for ,,all around and overall. Then you'll be getting a pipe and programmer Believe that or not,,as FAST as that beast is now... Once SET UP properly, that chassis will be begging for even more... Great quads....

[yamaha225dr]

I'm gonna replace the sway bar at some point but I am not gonna toss a bunch of money at it trying to fix a problem that isn't a big deal to me. I may of sounded like I was complaining in my review above but I was just trying to give an honest comparison for anyone interested.

[nachop]

No, you did not sound like you were complaining. I think all of us look to improve our machines in some way even if we do like them the way they are. As for the money part, I totally agree. I don't put a lot of money into my machines. The suggestions I made are relatively cheap compared to others mods you can make. I spent about $350 dollars for front shocks for both the KFX and the TRX. And atc007 is right, I already have the programmer, just waiting for a complete exhaust system. I, unlike many, am looking for the quietest (non oem) exhaust I can find.