We Ride Suzuki’s All New 2009 QuadSport LT-Z400

By Ray Larez
Photos by Kenny Jones and Ray Larez
Video by Joe Tolle

The LTZ400 was first released in 2002. With its only competition being the Honda TRX400EX and the Yamaha Warrior 350, it was instantly considered a class leader. With a peppy liquid cooled engine, excellent handling characteristics and styling ahead of its time, the Z400 became a huge hit for Suzuki. The mighty Z400 was such a great machine Kawasaki and Arctic Cat worked a deal with Suzuki which allowed them to use the same design and technology for their new sport 400s. Soon after this the KFX400 and DVX400 were born. As good as the Z400 performed on the trail it did better on the track. In fact Doug Gust proved that the Z400, with a little aftermarket help, was more than track worthy by winning the first Pro Production Grand National Championship in 2003. In 2004 the new Pro Production class merged with the old Pro class. With gates full of Yamaha YFZs and Honda 450Rs Gust certainly had his hands full. In the end Gust and his Z400 annihilated the 450cc competition. He won the championship with 8 overall wins, 12 podiums and won by a massive 110 point lead!

Fast forward to today and every manufacture is on board the ATV race scene with impressive 450cc race machines. It’s obvious, even with Gust’s incredible 2004 season, the Z400 isn’t the race machine of choice anymore. But with the recent updates that Suzuki has made to their strong-running, fun little Z400 — it’s clearly still capable of all the sport performance recreational riding you can throw at it. With that said, Suzuki decided to have us come out to test their new and improved 2009 Z400 at Vessel’s Stallion Ranch in Sunny Southern California. Here’s what we have to say about the all new Z400…

Obvious Changes
First they started off by overhauling the styling and over all look of the machine. Suzuki looked no further than their sexy LT-R450 racer and incorporated the fenders and all the details right down to the head light from the 450. They also included the T-shaped seat Suzuki is known for. We’re big fans of the T-shaped seat, not just for its sharp looks either. It’s great for positioning your body perfectly and comfortably for high-speed cornering. They also made some ergonomic changes to aid in better handling and comfort. The foot pegs have been lowered 5mm and moved back 2mm, while the handlebars have been moved forward 10mm and lower 5mm. This gives the rider a totally different feel than they got with the old Z.

We were able to compare the new with the old one. The ‘09 felt sportier and easier to ride, which made carving the trails a lot more fun than the older version. Also we found that our riding position was more relaxed as well, thus making it more comfortable to ride for long periods of time. Suzuki also widened the foot pegs to LTR standards. This gives you a more secure feel on the machine. Other changes to the chassis include an inch wider stance in the front. This is done by widening the A-arms a half inch on each side.

Suzuki also made a few structural changes in the frame and sub frame tubing. The sub frame was round, now it’s square. The chassis frame itself has been changed in some other areas as well. Again square tubing has been added. This adds more strength and added rigidity. With a stronger chassis and a wider sportier feel this is one awesome trail machine! The one down side that we found was the fact that Suzuki elected to use the same old swing arm and that same old difficult chain adjustment.

 

Soaking it all up
Not a whole lot changed in the suspension department. They did beef up the rear shock mounting points to make the chassis more structurally sound. Suzuki also changed the shock valving to give the machine better low-speed handling while allowing it to still soak up some of the larger jumps and hits. Lastly, regarding the suspension department, Suzuki made a few caster and camber setting changes to improve steering and handling.

As for the ride, the shocks worked fine at low speed but seemed a little bit stiff at high speed. With a little tinkering there’s no doubt we could dial the shocks in for our own size, weight and riding style.

Feel the power
Motor wise, Suzuki adapted the fuel injection system that they perfected on the LT-R450. The new fuel injection package really helps the Z’s lower end power. It has a way smoother almost electric-like power delivery.

Of the many changes this year’s Z400 received, the new fuel injection system may be our favorite. It makes the machine a lot more rideable for lesser experienced riders and more fun for those that are more advanced.

Since the engine is now fuel injected Suzuki had to change the intake ports, which also helped with the low end power gains. The low end power difference was really felt when climbing a hill or up and slight angle.

The front wheels would just loft off the ground effortlessly but not in a jerky uncontrollable way. Of course now that it is fuel injected you can ride the new Z on any trial at any elevation without worrying about jetting issues.

 

Accessorize!
Suzuki had a full line of accessories outfitted on one of there prototype vehicles for us to check out. One of the accessories was an exhaust system made by Yoshimura with the Team Suzuki insignia branded right on the muffler. Like all Yoshimura products it was top notch. Other accessories on display was there own line of aluminum products. Nerf bars and front bumpers are available. For those more adventurous types needing more undercarriage protection, they have a full line of skid plates ready to go.

Summing it up
Suzuki has made many major improvements to the Z400, which was already a true winner (literally). The motor was right on and we especially enjoyed the low end gains. It’s more rideable now all the way around. We really liked the smooth power delivery that the new fuel injection system allows.

It’s also worth noting how much easier it was to lug the engine around if we were so inclined. Although there were limits on how well we could test the suspension, we felt it worked quite well in the conditions we were presented. We never really got to push the machine and air it out like we wanted, but we must say we had a blast on the new 2009 Z400 nonetheless.

The styling is so racer at first glance it might appear that you’re lined up against a QuadRacer LT-R450 at the next drag race you encounter. Look for the centered muffler to tell the difference. The new ergonomics gives the Z more of a race-bike-feel than any trail bike we’ve ridden. At the same time, it’s far more comfortable than the previous Z400s.

As for the handling, we did notice some front end push on most of the trails at high speed which may be cured with a simple change of the front tires.

For a class leader like Suzuki’s Z400 to be changed this much is awesome! A really good sport performance ATV just got better. The new LTZ400 is night and day different than last year’s model and with only a $200 difference in price tag over last year’s model it’s a steal as far as what you get for your dollar.

We would probably pay that for the fender upgrade alone. Also being $1200 less than the LT-R450, this is a great quad for the entry level guy. And after a long day of riding the new Z400, we can promise he’ll have just as much fun, that’s for sure.

 

Specs
Engine:	4-stroke, liquid-cooled, DOHC
Bore Stroke:	90.0 mm (3.543 in) x 62.6 mm (2.465 in)
Compression Ratio:	11.3 : 1
Fuel System:	Fuel injection
Lubrication:	Dry sump
Ignition:	Electronic ignition (CDI)
Transmission:	5-forward and 1-reverse
Final Drive:	RK 520SMOZ10S, 96 links
Overall Length:	1830 mm (72.0 in)
Overall Width:	1190 mm (46.9 in)
Overall Height:	1145 mm (45.1 in)
Seat Height:	810 mm (31.9 in)
Ground Clearance:	265 mm (10.4 in)
Wheelbase:	1245 mm (49.0 in)
Curb Weight:	193 kg (425 lbs)
Suspension Front:	Independent, double wishbone, coil spring, oil damped
Suspension Rear:	Swingarm type, coil spring, oil damped
Brakes Front:	Disc brake, twin
Brakes Rear:	Disc brake
Tires Front:	AT22 × 7 R10 ?? tubeless
Tires Rear:	AT20 × 10 R 9 ?? tubeless
Fuel Tank Capacity:	9.5 L (2.5/2.1 US/Imp gal)
Color:	Yellow, White

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