I've resently bought a 400ex for my self and my 8 year old daughter has shown a great enterist in riding. I have lokked at the 90cc honda and she fits it good with a couple of years to grow. I have also thought of buying a 250 recon for my wife and letting my daughter ride it buy here self when she get to right size. I just can't see spending 2600 dollars on a fourwheeler she will grow out of shortly. if you have any suggestions on a fourwheeler tha would suit my needs it would be greatly appreciated.

 

Get the recon. It's actualy worth the money.

 

$2600.00 for a TRX 90? Dang! Makes the $700.00 my dad spend on my first quad ( 85'Yamaha YMF80) seem good Id pick up a used one as i see them in the paper for under $500 all the time now that all our rideing areas are being closed around here Also get the recon, as they are super fun bikes that any adult can ride.
Joe

 

I have a Recon and I love it.it is very easy to ride and it's big enough for large riders.I've seen them sell for $2500.00 used.I got mine for $3500.00 plus tax and everything.It's great for ridding on the trails.It's light enough that if you get stuck you can pull it.I'd go ride one and see how you it.

 

FourTrax2K

To a great extent the quad you end up getting for your daughter will depend on her maturity and her stature.

Four years ago my then 10-year old daughter began learning to ride my Kawasaki Bayou 400 4x4. But she was (and is) very mature and very responsible for her age. She was also very big for age, 5’ 7” and 100 pounds.

The X1-F Superwinch and Kawasaki factory winch mount on my Bayou 400 made it nose heavy and caused the steering effort to be very high, but not unmanageable though the heavy steering did cause her to tire quickly.

Last year after three years of intensive training on the Bayou 400, I bought her a much lighter steering used ’91 Kawasaki Bayou 300 4x4. She had also grown a bit more during those three years. She is now nearly 5’ 9” and weighs 125 pounds. She and the Bayou 300 4x4 are a perfect match. This past April we attended the AHPA Poker Run in Cochranton, PA. She rode her 300 Bayou 35 very tough muddy miles on Trail B with no problems.

My daughter’s flawless performance at Cochranton this past April was due to the intensive training, drill and practice she went through for nearly four years prior to that. And that is a point I can not stress enough. Training, drill and practice, and lots of it will be required to make your daughter a safe and competent rider.

I previously posted a detailed account of my efforts to instruct my daughter. A lot of the responses to that post were from the Junior High School set. These individuals believe they are capable of piloting anything from a Banshee to an F-15 with nothing more than a brief explanation of the control layout, and that disciplined training is a personal imposition and a waste of their valuable time. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Safe, disciplined training under close and constant adult supervision is the one thing that will keep your daughter from potentially becoming just another ATV injury/death statistic. Your daughter may be too young to take the ATV Safety Course, but you can take it and teach her what you have learned. You can register for the course by calling 1-800-887-2887. If you can’t locate my post on teaching children how to ride in the forum archives, email me privately and I will be happy to send it to you.

With all of the above in mind, and if your daughter is of average stature for an 8-year old, then perhaps the best, and most economical, choice for a beginner quad for your daughter would be a small used utility quad in the sub-250cc range. Examples of this type abound, there is the Honda Type II, Kawasaki Bayou 220, Suzuki LT160, and Yamaha Timberwolf just to name a few. There are several advantages to buying a small used utility quad. Your daughter will not soon out grow it. Your wife could use it. You could use it for yard work (at this time of year my daughter routinely uses her Bayou 300 to pull a Sears 14 CF dump cart filled with leaves), and if your wife and daughter should lose interest in it, you can sell it with very little loss.

Think about a small used utility quad, it could just be the answer to your problem.

Army Man

 

the trx 90 is big bux........but most kiddie bikes have high resale value if well maintained......i say buy a used bike around the 160 cc size......my 5 yr old rides an 80cc.

 

I know this seems a little crazy but i would get the 300ex i think this because i have a 6 yr old cousin named bethanie that loves driving mine around even though it flys her mom lets her drive it around i would like to be able to tune it down for her but i can't be botherd!! if u buy her a 300ex she will kepp it for ever if she takes care on it!!!

 

Definitely buy used (not abused). As kids grow older and get bigger, they may start to do things on ATVs that would make any parent wince and turn their head the other way. So, if some damage happens to the ATV, there's no real love lost 'cause you didn't blow a month's salary buying it.

Good luck!

William Hayes
aka REBEL
Juneau, Alaska
'96 Yamaha Big Bear SE, future owner of Honda Foreman 450S