im looking for a lakota or a 250ex for my kids. i want one with auto clutch. any advice? thanks

 

All the reviews done say the lakota is the better machine. For you the lakota is the best machine, 2 reasons.

1) You live in new hampshire, the lakota is a much better hill climber and more stable on off camber trails. The 250EX is light on the front end and a lil under powered for those rough spots in the mountains.

2) You own a prairie. Almost all kawasaki maintenance items on all thier quads are the same, meaning all tools, plugs, oil filters and so on are the same for each machine.

I believe thier is no choice here for you. The ex is a good machine, I have no problems with it. Just the lakota is a better machine.

 

FYI - There's an article in the new ATV Sport about an ATV rental company. They say their favorite quad is the 250EX bacause of the low maintenance. They run theirs 8 hours a day, 7 days a week. Dirtwheels mag did a shootout between the two a few months ago. The Lakota won in almost every category, however, if reliability is important to you, I'd go with the Honda.

 

didn't mean to sound like I was bashing the 250EX, I think it's a graet machine. I just come from those parts of the country and know the terrain. The only bad point about a sport type honda is the fact they set the engines back in the frame further than kawi does, good for handling on performance based courses but not for hill climbing. This creates a light front end.

My other comment about staying with the same machines is, I have honda bikes and kawi four wheelers. I found out by pure accident that staying with all honda XR and CR bikes and then staying with the lakota and bayou has saved me tons in standardizing parts and maintenance.

The honda is a lighter, not much less power than the lakota, but is a graet machine.

 

Gaff,

I know you weren't bashing the honda. I've never had the chance to ride the Kawi. I don't have a 250EX anymore, and I think they are great beginner bikes. The suspension on the Honda is way too stiff though. Just fine for dunes and mild trails, but I can see your point. I always had to get my weight over the bars to do any real hill climbing, especially if there were any rocks or obtacles. I had it about 8 months and had to have more power.

 

I want a bit more power also. I was hoping to get the KFX version of the Z when they come out. My dealer assures me that I have the first one he gets. Looks like maybe august.

I have no complaints with the lakota, went a little over board modding it, but thats every thing I get. Now I'll take the big loss selling it, oh well, wife says I'm not all that bright any way.

Well good luck with the Z[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]