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By Rick Webster
Suit Of Armor - Protecting our '05 KingQuad
We took possession of our '05 Suzuki KingQuad about 45 days ago,
and have been putting it through its paces since then. In typical 4X4REVIEW fashion, we have raced it, thrashed it, jumped it,
bumped it, scraped and spindled it, and in general, beat the snot out of it. The KingQuad's plastic front shroud, muffler shield
and skidplates were starting to show the abuse though. While they were definitely holding together, the gouges and scratches
we had inflicted were deep, were becoming obvious, and we were a little concerned about protecting the more vital parts.
We needed to find a way to protect these vital parts and fast. We had an off-road adventure planned in 2 weeks that would
include rock crawling, mudding and a whole lot of tough trail riding. This, however, was a 'no bling' mission to find
purposeful, lightweight armor. Function over form was the quest and we found that Suzuki has a large line of aftermarket
products, designed with that in mind.
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What We Chose and Why
Since we use our KingQuad like a Swiss Army Knife, we wanted to find armor that wouldn't interfere with the various types of
terrain it sees on a regular basis. We didn't want to overload the Zuk with heavy items, or that hindered approach and
departure angles. We found that Suzuki has
skidplates and guards made from top quality components designed to protect the underbelly, front end and
suspension components.
Other manufacturers make similar components, but are typically made of heavy steel or have, in our mind, gaudy chrome and
plastic components. Suzuki on the other hand makes their skidplates and guards from 4mm thick 6061 T6 aircraft-grade
aluminum, plenty strong for brutal terrain. They cut the shapes and patterns with precision form, then press fold the edges
and tabs, which are finally TIG welded as needed. Lastly, a brush finish is applied, making them attractive, but not flashy.
Of Suzuki's arsenal, we chose front and rear A-Arm guards, front shroud and under-belly skidplate system.
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A-Arm Guards
The front and rear A-Arm guards, in typical Suzuki fashion, are engineered to the nines. The bolt heads are recessed to avoid becoming damaged or caught on obstacles. The front edges of rear A-Arm guards have beveled surfaces to reduce the chance of snagging on obstacles, but are still tall and strong enough to give extra protection for the sway bar ends.
The A-Arm guards also feature a raised rear surface to help protect the drive shaft boots from trail-nasties when backing up.
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Front Shroud
The front shroud is also made from aluminum as the A-Arms and under-belly skidplates. The shroud provides the lower front portion of the KingQuad with greater protection from trail obstacles, yet allows for easy access to any aftermarket accessories, such as winches, snow plows, front racks and more.
Under-belly Skidplates
The underbelly skidplate system is comprised of two interlocking components, which are made from the same 4mm thick, aircraft-grade, 6061 T6 aluminum. The skidplate includes drain holes for oil changes, as well as access to the drive belt housing's rubber drain plug, in the event it becomes water-logged, so it can be drained on the trail. The main skid plate is also pre-drilled with six holes to allow for easy attachment of the popular Warn snowplow-mounting bracket, without requiring modification by the dealer or customer.
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| American Suzuki Motor Corp. |
American Suzuki MC/ATV Customer Service
P.O. BOX 1100
Brea, CA 92822
phone: 1-800-828-RIDE (1-800-828-7433)
website: www.suzukicycles.com
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