Hoping for some advise! I want to enjoy some time with my kids before they grow up and loose interest. My son is 15 about 6' 150 lbs and my daughter is 13 5'5" 90 lbs. I am 5'9" 185lbs. I am looking to buy 3 new quads and a trailer for the three of us to enjoy for a few years before they run off for College.

We have never ridden before but really enjoy the outdoors so I thought this would be a lot of fun for a few years. I don't want to spend a small fortune but I am afraid to buy used (I don't want a large repair bill).

I am sure I am not the first to post this questions but some updated infor would be awesome!

Thanks All!

 

What would you do with them? Ride trails, mud, race, etc

 

Good question! I see us taking them primarily trail riding in Ohio and PA some mud but not swamp riding, again we are inexperienced riders so speed is not a priority. I am guessing the top speed I am looking for is around 40MPH, is that fast?

 

yes 40 is fast, 25 is about as fast as you want to go on an unfamiliar trail. As far as machines go it sounds like you could get away with 2 wheel drive, don't underestimate 2wd they can do well on most terrain, except deep mud. as far as manufacturer I would say any name brand. You get what you pay for. Anything 300 cc and up should be plenty of power for all.

 

Don't shy away from used just because it is used! If you go out and buy three brand new quads and then realize that they aren't getting used or the sport isn't what you thought it was going to be, you will get waxed on resale. If you buy used and it doesn't get used a whole lot over the course of a year and you sell it used, you aren't going to feel the crunch-as badly at least!

We ride in Ohio primarily..and at Hatfield McCoy too...unless you are looking for the mud, you can get around it! I bet that I ride 99% or better in two wheel drive with my grizzly. If you are looking to trail ride 40 mph will be more than enough. I know that on CL, there are good used recon 250s that you can pick up for 15-1800 in good condition. As far as your boy (if he is like most boys) he is going to push the limits if he can...look in the 350-500cc range! The best advice I would give is get out there and ride a few and see what they offer and what sizes are fitting!! I would not jump in on three brand new quads and a new trailer before I knew it was how I enjoyed spending time!!

 

Mudslinger, Thanks for the advise! I was having a hard time with quotes I was getting for new ones. Do you think a 90 would be ok for my 13 year old daughter?

 

To save money a 250 2wd would help if buying new . We have full grown men on our ATV fishing trip and they load them up with camping gear and make down our rough trails.
A 250 2wd will do 40 mph easy enough but most trail will not allow that type of speed.

I have bought used ATVs 5 times and never bought a bad one yet and saved thousands.
Everyone on this forum rides a used ATV. Even newer mint condition machine sell for much less then new.

 

I would not buy a 90 for a 13 yr old...she isn't going to be 13 forever!! I saw a guy selling a quad on Craigslist the other day- he bought it new and rode it for 110 miles- it is now almost 3000 dollars under the new price!!

TLC-My quad was new--for about a tenth of a mile!!

 

When they leave the show room floor and get home their used.
A girl I know won a New 660 Grizzly as a door prized, when she sold it with zero miles and warranty she had to still sell it for $1000 less then what a dealer sells them for because it was still considered used as soon as it was in her name.
Its just the way it is. The first owner always takes the big hit.

 

Welcome to the atv world! For the record, the entry level quads for beginners are generally bulletproof. Other than replacing the occasional bearing or bushing that may wear out, keeping fresh oil in it, and servicing the air filter, a good example should need little maintenance for years.

I would look at the entry level sport quads for your daughter. Yamaha 125, Honda 250EX, Suzuki Z250, Polaris Trail Boss, etc. 90's are a lot of fun, even for the occasional adult rider, but realistically are to small for a 13 y/o to be saddled with long term. Even the entry level utes tend to weigh 500 lbs, probably to big for her to handle right now.

Your son is of the size to ride pretty much anything, but I would steer clear of the race and big bore stuff. A good example of machines I find to be both great starters and also reliable for used machines would be the Honda 300 or 400 EX, or the Yamaha Warrior/Raptor 350.

Those machines are also appropriate for yourself, or you could get more adventurous and go for a bigger sport or even a 4x4.

I prefer the lighter weight and better handling of the sport machines for young beginners. There are models out there that have the ute style, just gas and go transmission vs foot shifting and possibly even using a manual clutch though. For what it is worth, most pick up the manual shifting pretty quick, maybe a ride or two.