i bought a 2002 prairie 650 last thursday from a dealer. it had 670 miles on it a winch, it seemed to be in good shape. the motor runs great. ithere's a small amount of damage to the plastics here and there, nothing big, a couple in long cracks, muffler is rusty, and some paint on the front bumper gone. i bought it for $4500 out the door, which i thought was was a good deal cause they wanted $4970 before tax and such. the did charge me $50 to bring it to my house because i live an hour away. got it home drove it for about 45 minutes and when i got home noticed oil leaking from the front axle. there is a hard plastic piece that slides in the differential that the inner cv boot is attached to that has popped out about an inch so you can see where the axle connect. this is on the right side. i went back that day and told the dealer, they'll fix it for free but want me to pay $100 to ship it back and fourth. i live in maine and looked up the law. i can ask for my money back even though i don't have a warranty, i believe. what the hell should i do? i don't want to pay $100 for moving again. i think i want my money back, or would like to use it as a trade in on a new honda as long as they give me what i paid for it. any advice??????it's was fast and fun for a a few minutes now it's just a headache [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-sad.gif[/img]

 

Sounds to me like it's a headache because you have no way of transporting this thing. Am I right? If this is the case, you might be disappointed with whatever you buy because sooner or later a quad will likely need to be wrenched on. Even new ones sometimes have gliches from the factory that need to be addressed, and warranty work doesn't include transport to-and-from the dealer.

I would probably try and fix the thing myself. What you describe doesn't sound too bad. You might be able to go on the Kawasaki web site, pull up the parts diagram, and order what you need. In the end, you're money ahead, rather than getting the dealer to come out and retrieve the bike.

 

I'd just bite the bullet and pay them the $100 or come up with a truck or trailer so you can transport it yourself. Sounds like the dealership is making a reasonable effort to do things right for you - It's not their fault that you live so far away. Look at it this way - if you lived in the same town as the dealer, would there be a problem?

I don't know where you plan to ride but I cannot imagine not being able to transport my ATV sometime. Small trailers can be had for just a few hundred bucks, might be worthwhile investing in one.

Jaybee

 

i didn't mention the mileage, it supposedly only has 676 miles on it. my problem is not just with the cost of shipping but with the whole deal. think about it, you go to buy your first wheeler and you pay $4550 for it, money you saved up and worked hard for a long time. you don't even ride it an hour and it is broken and they want more money already. if it had been a month or 2 i wouldn't have a problem. my fear now is that maybe something worse will go wrong. maybe the whole front drive goes out, now what do i do? i should've bought new and used the 4500 as a down payment. does anyone think a dealer would go for this? give me my full purchase price back and use it as a trade in?

 

i just planned on using it around the, to plow snow, hunt deer, and a little fun now and then. i live in the middle of maine we have thousands of miles of snowmobile trails and old logging roads so i don't need to trailer it to find a place to ride, just to get it fixed i'm screwed. lol

 

If you put $4,500 down on a new quad, your monthly payments would be about $50 for a new Prairie 700.

(6.9% over 60 months, MSRP)

 

Just this one time, I'd find someone (friend, relative, etc.) with a pickup truck and have them haul it to/from the dealer for me. And like someone said above, start thinking about purchasing a trailer to haul it around.

Mark

 

I really don't think you'll get your money back. They have so many time to fix it before its considered a lemon. Do you have a place to rent a small truck or UHAUL truck and after they fix it tell the to STICK IT UP THIER A.S.S and never go back.

 

Around here a quad trail would get mightly close... if it's leaking alot I wouldn't drive it until some that knows what they are doing looks at it because you mention worst... well that's what it will do... it will not heal it's self. BTW you do have a 2-3 year old bike that you have no clue on how it was driven and maintan... people can clean em good and they look like new on the outside but that doesn't mean it's looks new on the inside. Also if it's the front diff that's leaking personally I feel someone washed it with a pressure washer that didn't know what they were doing. Now the boot snap I think can be replaced by a universal one that you don't even need to take the quad apart... just clean it well. (As some else too) Now the oil I would check your front diff fluid level and color. White means waters in seals are bad or it wasn't changed in a long time. The boots should not have oil in them there should be a little greese thou. To slow down the rusting of your muffler try rubbing oil/wd40 in a rag on the muffler before each time you wash your machine.

 

you have 30 days to return it and i would return it .don't take the chance. if you don't know how to fix your quad i wouldn't buy anything without an extended warrenty.