After reading through most of this forum, I'm having a hard time deciding what to do here. On one hand I can get a new 06 sportsman 90 for 1800 (or a pred 90 or a 50, or simular Japanese quad), dealer is begging to get old stock out of his showroom, but its a 2 stroke) or I can order a mail order quad for 500 to 600.
I know I have the skills to fix it, but I often don't have the time. (do people ever get the bugs, or do they keep coming??) Mind you many little things I adjust or fix myself, because it takes longer to drive to any dealer here then it does to fix it for my Polaris to.

My son is only 3 but has worn out his battery quad and is ready for something that can be limited to a walking pace. I'd also like something that will grow with him for 2 or 3 years. He has 2 twin brothers coming soon and I have little doubt when Cole is ready to step up, their will be someone to fill his shoes on the mini.
We have 1500 ft of driveway, a 4 acre lawn, then 25 acre field and more swamp land (think 4x4 for swamp) I'd like a mini that has enough low end power (low gearing) he can ride in the bumpy field without burning the clutch out. I was kinda thinking shifter quad here, as the autos are not really CVT, just cetrifuge clutch, 1 ratio + slippage, not variable. Polaris has a real CVT, do any of the other chinese quads have one? (yes I know polaris and cat are chinese to, with a dealer to holler at if frustration gets the best of you)
I'm still really debating skipping the 50 and going 90, just for the grow factor. Can sprockets be swapped to keep speed to 3mph to start? are the parts available? its a long time b4 we wll need 30 mph.

If the Polaris was a 4 stroke I'd be real temped, the new ones are now. Who makes the best big manufacture quad, reliabilty wise.
I'd like 4 stroke and I'd like reverse, and all wheel brakes can't hurt either. Auto would be good if it is truly a "variable speed".
Kick start or rewind backup would be good to have with the electric starter, for trail riding away from home.

With the shifter quad It could just be left in 1st to help limit speed.
Do these use a the oil bath "wet disc" clutch to prevent burning it out, like the big shifter 4 wheelers.

I wish the chinese quads had some actual brands so you knew the difference between a Sunl and and one that is actually worth 500 or 600 bucks. I would not even mind paying more to get all wheel brakes, real cvt, reverse, backup manual starter, taller tires (that hold air at 3 to 4 psi, little guys feels bumps too) for use off the driveway.

What do you suggest??

Thanks
Ken

 

A mini would fit him right now,and he can enjoy it for a couple of years.I purchased a BMX mini 110 fully automatic from bestpriceatv.com I have no complaints about it.It will be passed down to the next kid in line in a couple of years.I would buy it all over again.There are some bad reports on here about bestpriceatv,I had no problem. Its the best 500 bux I ever spent

 

at 3 years old not to many atv will fit him like the kazuma meercat, good little atv, the only thing i don't like about them is that they have a simi automatic transmission (4 speed rotary transmission without a clutch. at 3-5 years old it hard to teach kids this age how to shift and there ankle strienght isn't stong enought to downshift. most people just put it in 2 or 3 gear and let the kids ride it without shifting it, other than that great atv for the 3-5 year old , fits them perfit, has foot brake instead of hand brake, which is good for this age group, we had 2 of them for 2 years for our grandsons, we purchased them when they were 4 and 5, they had a blast on them but outgrew them after 2 years, we paid 500 each and sold them for 300 each, you might want to consider on of these, if you decide on buying a meerkat consider raceway atv just a little over 500 shipped.

 

1 st gear is to slow to leave them in??
I was more worried that he'd learn to shift to soon, just set throttle back to prevent over revving.
If they take off in second or 3rd gear ok, then clutch burnout should not be a problem if shifted correctly on rougher terrain.
I think he'd master shifting given a year or so. Shift leaver can be removed??
Thanks
Ken

 

Being that he is only 3, I wouldn't consider anything bigger than a 50cc. My son is 5 1/2 and has been on a Polaris Predator 50 since he was 3. He still fits well on the quad. I would highly recommend one for your son. If you put your son on a quad that is too big for him, you are just asking for an injury!

The Predator 50's have the foot risers which allows smaller guys to fit better on the quad. When he starts to grow, you just remove the foot risers (attached with just a few bolts) and it gives him more leg room. It also has the other safety features such as a wrist tether and a tether in the back for mom and dad to control. It also has the throttle screw to adjust the speed. Lastly, it is a name brand, dependable quad! If you want a quad that you can pass down to your twins, stick with the name brands.

I will get slack from other members because I push the "Name Brand" quads over the Cheaper ones, but you get what you pay for! I have seen, first hand, the problems people have had with the Cheaper quads. Nothing is more frustrating to a kid (and a parent) than getting to the track (or to the trails) and not being able to ride because their machine breaks down!

To those of you who are going to yell at me for trashing the cheaper quads - this guy asked for advice, so I am giving him mine. He doesn't have to take it, but I felt it was important to give him my opinion.

Good luck in your decision!

 

for his first atv at that age.....no brainer...chinese.

kazuma meerkat is a good one to start with or check out raceway for something best place to buy one from..hands down.

hoyt

 

Blazer
I liked the predator except that its 2 stroke, My old 400 sportsman has a cloud of 2 stroke smoke behind it because I seldom work it hard enough to burn clean.
Is the preditor kinda like this? For trail riding how far will it go or how many hours on a tank of fuel? What would you est minimum speed it will travel without burning the belt? Top speed?
I don't mean to push the little guy beyond his ability, but when I was eight I was riding a full size snowmobile. He has been driving his battery quad since he was 18 mo steering around obsticles in the shop or yard. But now he is bored with it at 1.5 mph
I'd still like to keep him at the 3 to 4 mph range though.
Does your so use the front brakes or are the rear sufficient?
I guess we need to sit him on one and see how it fits him.

With the chinese quads the 90's are not much bigger then the 50's and somewhere I read it was more to give it enough power for the auto trans.
How much was you predi? Dealer sounded pretty motivated to sell so I'm hoping its a sharp price.

As for the the other small mfg bikes (not right to say Chinese as the polaris is off shore too) sounds like there are many satisfied customers too, I'd like some feedback from pople who have had them for awhile. Spoke with the Yamamha dealer today to, they are about 3x as much as Kuzuma etc.
I don't mind doing maintenance and fixing the odd thing, but I dont want to spend 20 hours a year doing it.
Thanks for all the replys
Ken

 

all the youth quads have limiters you can slow them way down, the 2 strokes dont smoke bad my buddies kid has a unison dc 90 it doesnt smoke bad. if the money is not a problem go polaris.

if you want to save some money and let him grow a bit buy china these quads are good starter quads for little kids because there not getting the **** beat out of them.

if you read the forums i think the china quads are getting better the problems are less than they were a year or two ago.

i went the china route for my son and i sure dont regret it he has a 110 i sold that one and he now has a 150 redcat

theres alot of help by 2manytoys and others for the little problems you might have.

for alot of people money is a issue thats why they buy china but if money isnt a issue buy polaris. you really cant go wrong either way.

if china quads were that bad i dont think 2manytoys would own like 20 of them and you would see alot more negative posts on them.

hoyt

 

I would still go with a 50 vs. somethng bigger. When we took my son to his last open ride, he rode for a good 4 hours without having to add gas. I never had a problem with it smoking. My daughter races her Polaris 90 and my son rides his Predator 50 a lot, and we have never burnt through a belt. Also, you can adjust the speed of the quad to go as slow as you want. Lastly, I find that my kids almost always use their back brakes. Being that the throttle is on the right side, it is easier for them to use the back brake because it is on their left side (the Polaris does not have a foot brake - the rear brake is on the left and the front brake is on the right.) Oh, also - the Predator 50's retail for about $1800, but if you can find a "last years" model, I have seen them advertised for as low as $1499. in our local trader magazine.

Also, keep in mind that if a 2 stroke breaks down, they are cheaper and easier to fix than a 4 stroke!

 

My son was 3.5 yrs old when I got him his first quad.. It's a 70cc.. (Check my pictures) I just have the speed turned down, until he gets a lil bigger.. I haven't had any problems with it, and it pulls the both of us with no problem.... Here is a short video we made for a friend to show how much power it has for a lil 70cc...

My son and I on his 70cc quad


Here is a link to the exact same quad that raceway sells..

70cc quad