i've heard from several people(including mechanics that own 2 strokes) that 2 stroke quads are have higher matinence then 4 strokes. is this true??

 

YES

 

You have to know how to ride them, its not hard, wind it up and let off now and then, if its hot cool it down, it will last a long time, if ridden hard every day you'll probally have to replace the piston ($100-300) once a year, but if you ride it every weekend you may be able to go for 5+ years on the orig. top-end, its all how you ride it. 2-strokes are cheap and easy to fix (anybody can do it) 4-strokes are kind of complex and expensive to fix. But 4-strokes also usually last longer..

 

YEAH, I though it was obvious by now.

 

Liquid cooling is a feature that addresses the problems brokemybanshee wrote about, related to rapid heating and cooling. It also quiets the engine. And if you ever decide to put an auto-type heater on your atv, you will be set with the liquid cooling setup (as if). 2 strokes get bigger gains by far than thumpers by adding aftermarket pipes, improved reed valves, better air filters, different heads, etc. And 2 strokes make substantially more power per cc than thumpers. You still have to put up with noise, narrow power band, 2 stroke oil, spare plugs, blue smoke and top end repairs. 2 strokes are politically incorrect, and there are predictions of an outright ban on them at some point in the future.

 

I love my 400EX, but 2 strokes are lots of fun.

It is true that 2 strokes require more attention, and are generally less reliable.
However, my 85' CR125 was reliable as ANY 4 stroke. I had ZERO problems with it....
untill I cracked the intake boot and neglected to fix it. about 3 months later (riding about 3 days a week) The piston got too hot from the lean mixture from all the extra air in from the crack. Broke the piston skirt. Had the motor rebuilt with performance stuff.
Never had a problem with it and put many hours on the rebuild too. Sold it about 3 weeks ago, running perfect like it always did. (I ALWAYS ran 32:1 gas/oil) Never once fouled a single plug the 4 years I owned it. (yes, I ran the SAME splitfire ALL 4 years without fail)
Gees I miss that bike already....
(the little 200X I bought is a fun little trike though)

-Matt

 

My old RM80 I had threw highschool was very reliable as when properly jetted and taken care of they will last a long time. I run Amsoil at 32:1 with it jetted so there is very little smoke visible and the plug a medium tan. Never fouled a plug, never sized a engine and never have had to replace a ring on the bike in the 2 years of ownership...just rember to clean the airfilter[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

my friend has and RM125 and he has raced 4 times with it and has put in 3 new top ends ! like brokemybanshee said its all in how you ride it !