My husband and I are at odds as to whether or not my son is too young for this ATV. I would rather start him on a Power Wheels battery operated 4 wheeler, but my husband insists that this is the way to go. What are the advantages of buying an ATV over starting him on a battery operated? I'm afraid we're just asking for trouble, but he insists I'm being overprotective.

 

hi , i have 2 kids one just turned 4 last week and the other is 19 months. i bought a mongoose 24v battery operated 4wheeler for my oldest when he was 2 it is a great machine much better than the powerwheels i got mine at atwoods and i have seen them at academy sports also they have an all metal frame chain driven and 3 speeds top spped is about as fast as a 4stroke 50. now my 19 month old is riding this and is getting very well and i have stepped my 4 yr old to a honda crf-50 motorcycle and a yamaha raptor 80. but if your kid hasnt ridden any powerwheels much i would for sure look at the mongoose 24v atv it is great!! and if you have an atwoods aound you i highly recommend them i think the price was $325 and it was well worth it. it has held upvery well

 

my boy will definetely be on a real quad by the time he's 4. He's 17 months right now, he has a power wheels. When I give him a ride on my quad, he starts yelling go go go and kicking until I go faster. He tries to press the throttle. If I let someone pass, he gets upset and says go go go. Yep, he's gonna be a handful. He loves the whoops, and wants to go faster through them. When I hang on to him, he pulls my hand off.

 

It's probably old enough. I would imagine it's got a throttle limiter and probably only a top speed of 10 mph or so anyway.

I would suggest starting on a dirtbike with training wheels instead though. It's a lot safer -- if he flips it, or dumps it it's a lot lighter and less likely to hurt him. Then when he gets bigger you can take the training wheels off. If you get him an XR50 it will run forever, and it's got lots of potential so he can ride it until he's 9 or 10. And then after that you and your husband can mod it and use it as a playbike. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

It's also cheaper. You can get an XR50 for around $1000. Throw in a set of training wheels and you're still at only about $1200. And the XR will be running long after that Meerkat piece of junk is in the trash.

Also if you start him on a dirtbike your options are limited to his abilities to ride as he gets older. If you start him on a quad your options are limited to manufacturer's recommendations for what is appropriate for his age regardless of his height, weight, etc.

 

My son was 4 1/2 when he started driving his LT80, but it had a tired motor, worn out clutch, and the throttle limiter turned way in, so power and speed were never a problem. It only took a month or so of constant gravel pit running to get his skill and confidence up to slowly open the limiter and allow him a little more speed and power to climb small rises and bumps. That winter, I had the engine rebuilt, serviced the clutch, and it ran like a different quad, plenty of hill climbing power, and decent trail speed. We went for day long rides on local trails, camping trips, even went to the Black Hills when he was 6. The nice thing about the LT80 was he was able to ride the same quad from age 4 1/2 to 9 before he out grew it, from there it went to a friend with a 7 year old, then a couple years later,to another family with 2 small kids. I don't know where it is now, but both my son and I still talk about the fun times he had on his LT80.

 

HI, I have one boy he's 3 1/2 and been riding his 50 cc quad for a couple of months. We had the same debate gas or electric.? I was gas she was electric, guess i won (ordered online when she wasn't home). With the throttle limiter turned down low its no faster than a electric. But as he gains experience, we can keep turning the limit up. Thats why i like gas, he will not out grow the bike anytime soon.



Really want him to ride a 2 wheeler, but a new crf 50 with training wheels here is $1600-$2000 and the quad was $550, electric quad about $400. He seems to love riding so a crf will come into play someday then. At 50 cc i think he will out grow the bike ( size wise) before he runs out of speed and power. Heck 50 cc hauls my 210 lb frame pretty fast down the road ( wife says its pretty funny looking). Thats my 2 cents worth.