Just a word of caution to those buying a quad, new or used: check that all the nuts and bolts are tight.

I noticed that my 99 Scrambler 500 had considerable oil seepage around the rocker cover and timing sprocket cover after every ride of any duration. When I took it all apart to check the valve adjustment, I was able to remove EVERY bolt on both covers with only a socket and extension--no wrench needed. You can assume that when I reassembled everything, I torqued the bolts to spec.

But this isn't just Polaris. When I had my Warrior, I trailered it home after an 8-hour ride and when I went to unload, the chain adjustment brackets were lying on the trailer under the quad. Same thing happened to a friend's Warrior. And my son was ripping along a mountain trail on his Warrior and lost the bolt out of his right front shock. Fortunately for him, the dropoff was on the left side of the trail.

The plastic nut holding the ignition switch on my 97 Lakota fell off and was lost on the first ride.

Considering the high price of replacement parts for ATVs and the fact that most dealers have to order the parts and/or fasteners you lost, checking your ATV over first could save you substantial money and keep you from missing riding time.

 

Yes...Loose bolts on a quad are always a problem. When you buy a quad new from the dealer...they do not put any hours on the engine..They just put the machines together and place them on the showroom floor...When you purchase the machine..they go ahead and prep it for final sale. (every users manual has a checklist and mentions that the bolts should be check and tightened accordingly after the first few hours on the machine. As the engine breaks in, you will notice slack in alot of the bolts...thats normal. As the engine heats up and cools down, the metal components expand and contract)
For me...as a rule of thumb, I always check all critical bolts and screws before and after every ride. On my banshee...after an engine tear down... I started the engine, tuned the carbs, Did a ten- fifteen minute run, stopped let it cool completely..Check tightness(torque wrench)...repeat .. The bike runs great, and Now I never have problems with loose bolts.
Also....Nuts such as the ones on shock towers...or ones that are not frequently taken off can and should be held with Lock-Tight or the equivalent. Be wary with lock-Tight though.... Make sure to use kind that says that you can still remove the bolt/nut...There is a Kind of lock-tight that is permanant and will ruin the threads when removed.
Another option is to safety wire all critical nuts/bolts. As the racers usually do. It's more work than the lock-tight, but is an excellent choice.