Regardless of manufacturer does anyone think that the probability of more problems occuring on quads which have been modified is more likely and that the more extreme the modifications the more likely of even more problems?

It SEEMS as I read through different forums the people who seem to have the most problems have some kinds of modifications and just seems to me that the problems tend to be more with the mod's then the OEM parts of the quads.

I've been really hesitant to mess with any of my quads because I've had zero problems or break downs and never been stranded, this is priority #1 for me.

 

i've notice most problems seem, to go along the lines of mistakes on the owners part. but anytime you put more stress on things the life is shortened.

 

i've notice most problems seem, to go along the lines of mistakes on the owners part. but anytime you put more stress on things the life is shortened.
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This is a good point. My grandfather always told me......"you see those guys with the cars all jacked up and loud mufflers peeling out all the time, they are always working on their cars, you kno why....... because the engineers design everything to work a certain way and once you start tinkering with things there is always a better chance you will have problems...."

 

i think if you go with some known builders you will find good life and very good reliability from your machines. i used powroll on my hondas and they are as good as stock maybe better. my ds has plenty of mods just put a new piston in the, old one was fine.

 

You had a smart Grandfather. It takes a long time to reengineer component replacement specifications that will work as good or better in reliability. For me, reliability means BMW, so Rotax engine should last forever if maintained properly. 2 'catches' of performance parts: 1 - they are rarely balanced correctly and usually require more building to balance power band, 2 - once you get power band balanced, you may have exceeded forces on rest of oem engine/chassis and ulitimately you may be down more than up pouring money in between up-times. You cannot predict what will go wrong, but just assume a manufacturer specs out performance at lowest possible cost. Therefore any increase in performance in one area may unduely stress components in other areas until breakage occurs due to fatigue. Being system problems, they often effect many components and it gets complex very fast; so you have to start over to stock to keep from blowing money needlessly.

When you decide to change something, take your time and find basic measures that effect performance and reliability. Its not easy. Once you can figure out a realistic maintenance cost/interval per performance upgrade, then you have true measures of benefit and cost (minus research time).

 

I don't know how long BRP has been using Rotax engines but I remember as a kid in Minnesota in the mid/late 70's still seeing a LOT of those old yellow Ski Doo snowmobiles puttering around the lakes and ditches in the winter. I had a 73 Yamaha that always had some kind of problem.

 

I think the majority of the problems that occur when installing aftermarket parts are from mere installation defaults. No all but most. I agree they do make some very good aftermarket parts today and can be very reliable. But as it has been stated in the past, the more you mod, the percentage of reliability decreases. JMO. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

MODIFY
Main Entry: mod·i·fy
Pronunciation: 'mä-d&-"fI
Function: verb
Inflected Form(s): -fied; -fy·ing
Etymology: Middle English modifien, from Middle French modifier, from Latin modificare to measure, moderate, from modus

a: to make minor changes in b: to make basic or fundamental changes in often to give a new orientation to or to serve a new end <the wing of a bird is an arm modified for flying>
intransitive senses : to undergo change
synonym see CHANGE
- mod·i·fi·abil·i·ty /"mä-d&-"fI-&-'bi-l&-tE/ noun
- mod·i·fi·able /'mä-d&-"fI-&-b&l/ adjective

Im not trying to be a smart Azz here its to say lets have some common sense Stock is going to last longer than a modified motor, you modify your machine to increase performance, give and take its that simple the more you Modify the shorer the motor life MIGHT be, again most of us are weekend riders and that could take years to see the wear, and even if you have the experience of rebuilding the motor, the cost saving of reusing parts is an advantage (Pipes Carbs Cams head work) pistons rings gaskets re coating the cylinder not a bad trade off for even more years enjoyment......gose back to How fast do you wanna go?? $$$$$$$

 

ERBE, very good answer....couldnt have said it any better myself. Thanks for clearing that up for us. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]