Hello all.
Hopefully ya'll can help me out choosing between the two.
The 05 Bomb is a Quest 650xt with 178 miles stock. Its about 4hrs away and asking price is $3500.
The Kawi is an 04 Prairie 700 with 470 miles is 20 minutes away and asking price is $2700. The issue with the Kawi is that the seller says that is smokes for 3 to 5 minutes then clears up.I dont know if this is normal or not. Also, the Kawi looks repainted silver and has no markings at all. The plastics do look a little rough.
The ATVs will be used to tow an arena drag and to tow a roping dummy.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

Also found an 07 Vinson 500 with 1300 miles 4hrs away and the asking is 3995.
Again thank you

 

Depends what color the smoke is and where it's coming from. If it's white and comes from the carb or the exhaust, I would say it's probably normal especially if you're in a cold climate as long as it improves after warmed up. If it's blueish or any dark tint, it may be burning oil especially if its coming from someplace other than the exhaust or carb you probably have a leak somewhere. This could be caused by excessive oil in the crankcase or worn out piston rings.

What are you basing this shortlist on because that's a pretty wide spread (500-700cc) for something that you know needs enough torque and towing capacity to tug whatever it is you're looking to tug. I'd start by looking into tow and horsepower ratings, then move on to transmission types/reliability and auto vs. semi-auto. Good luck.

 

I like the Can Am it was a more expensive ATV then the Vinson.
The Quest and Vinson are both reliable ATVs. Vehicle Reviews for 2007 Suzuki Vinson® 500 4x4 Auto

The Vinson did have Diff lock in there last year of 2007.

Forget the Kawasaki if its smoking. Thats the sellers problem not the buyers.

When I by used ,I just want to add gas and ride, not figure out what's wrong with them and why its smoking.

 

Interesting…personally, if I felt the Kawi was a good fit for my needs, I would zero in on the Kawi first since it's only 20 minutes away (vs 4 hours for the others). IMO, the seller is showing his hand a bit by mentioning the smoke. If he thinks its a problem, then you can use that to your advantage in the negotiation. If it's dark smoke, then walk away and never look back but if its white and goes away after it's warmed up, make a big stink about it anyways and work him hard on the price. Of course, it could turn into a hot mess ultimately but there is no guarantee that the other two options won't have headaches to deal with either (at a higher asking price, I might add). If anything, I would leave an offer on the table and continue to check out other quads. That's just how I would approach it though.

 

The odd thing about the Can Am and Kawi is how can a 9 year old machine have only 147miles That's less than 2 tanks of gas over almost decade.
Same with the 05 Kawi. 500 miles if just 5 fill ups in 14years.

There are people on this forum that do that milage on a long weekend.

At least the Vinson kind of makes sense. Even 1300 miles is not considered high to me.

 

So true, TLC. Add a good carb cleaning from sitting for months (years?) on end to the list of "things to complain about during negotiation that might not actually be a problem". Low miles/hours are a good thing to some degree but personally, I like to see that the bike has seen some normal use and is still ticking…

I bought my last quad with 1284 miles. It now has 1353. That was 2 months ago.

 

Thank you guys for the help. There are two more on craiIgslist that Im trying to get info on. Polaris 800; miles and year unknown and a yamaha grizzly 1380 miles but year unknown right now.
I guess the Vinson is out then due to size?
My newb way of thinking was that if I over work it the belt slips oh well. With a true tranny if I over due it, what would be the cost? Way more expensive I assume.
Thanks again

 

I was just thinking. I could offer $2200 for the Prairie and take it right to the shop? Even at another $1000 that would just be $3200. How much do you think it it would cost to fix nearly everything that possibly has issues?
Again, I really appreciate it.

 

Way more than you probably would want to spend. Don't mean to sound like a jerk but so far all we know is that it smokes. It's impossible to put a price tag on repairs with that amount of info. I suggest you phone a friend and take them with you to check out these machines. If not, hire a mechanic to inspect the machines BEFORE you buy. Better yet, since you seem ok spending some money, buy new. $3200 would make a nice down payment and your monthly payments would be pretty low. Keep in mind though that even new machines can have problems but at least they come with a warranty. Good luck.