After reading gobs of posts and racking my head, Im considering getting the FX-250 when they come in and dealing with the ridiculous red-sticker thing later (I hope that will change). I was hoping to get a little more input from anybody with experience with the 250. Its looking like the 150MKII's are determined to be not as fast as advertised by the manufacturer, and are having some recent occasional tranny trouble. I was wondering if the tranny in the 250 was beefier to handle the increased power, and if they have been found close to as fast as advertised? Is this water-cooled engine also a Loncin / Honda clone, or do we know? Any experiences or opinions on reliability or otherwise on this unit would be greatly appreciated, and double thanks to those who have provided information so far. FX-250

 

The 150MKII transmission issues are 95% due to user error. In other words, on the current MKIIs, if you force the forward/reverse lever one way or another, or shift into reverse while still moving forward, you will more than likely cause damage to the linkage or the gears. The new MKIIs, as well as the other 150cc ATVs, should be shipping very soon with the new gearboxes which have a revised gearbox setup and stronger gears. Let me just say there are no problems (knock on wood) with the transmissions in the 150's if you shift the correct way. To shift the vehicle into reverse and back to forward: sit on the machine at a full stop, and gently begin moving the shift lever; if any resistance is felt, rock forward on the ATV, while continuing to move the shift lever. Most of the time, the atv will shift right into gear. If that doesn't work, turning the handlebars to the left while shifting into forward reverse will also work.

As far as the 250s go, they are nice machines with noticeably more power than the 150's. They have about the same dimensions as the MKII, but with the liquid-cooled 250cc engine. The engine appears to be a Honda clone. I'll find out and let you know for sure.

 

Thanks for the info.........

 

I too, have been trying to find out all I can about these Chinese 250's, but have not found much on the web to detail on how they perform. Other than dozens of websites and e-bayers, it's tough to find unbiased details on these machines. Biggest fear is that they will be unreliable or underpowered. I am 6ft, 185lbs.

I called Raceway to find out more on the two different 250's they sell, but did not get much information from the girl who answered the phone. Most likely I need to talk to someone else there.

I am really interested in purchasing two of these ATV's, but am not sure if I should get one LX and one KMX or both of one model. I understand the basic differences between the two, but I am most concerned about their reliability. The prices are very good, but I also do not want to spend all of my time working on them. A little work here and there is ok, so long as they keep running and don't leave me stranded.

I also am in California & will deal with the red sticker. Most of the riding will be on forest roads in the Sierras & the areas I will ride are all red sticker ok all year.

Anyone out there own one of these machines. Would like to head good luck/bad luck stories.

Anyone at Raceway I should talk to?

Thanks

 

You need to talk to John at Raceway. He can give you any info that you may need.

 

I have had some experience with the 250s, so let me see if I can help you guys out a little. First, neither of the 250s is underpowered for most riding. In fact, with some basic mods (exhaust, intake, wheel spacers up front) the FX-250 stays pretty close to a Honda 300EX. As for the KMZ-250, if you talk to just about any rancher, he'll tell you that any quad over 250cc needs to be 4WD or you'll just be spinning the wheels. Therefore, the 250cc motor yields plenty of horsepower for utility use, as well. In terms of reliability, they are reliable as long as they are put together properly, and some basic maintenance is performed on them. You will notice that the Redcat 250s are liquid-cooled (with the exception of the Redcat/Lifan LX-250), so there are some added parts you must check during assembly and before riding. First of all, make sure there are no air bubbles in the radiator and make sure the cooling fan on the radiator is blowing the correct direction (air getting blown backwards). If either of these items are missed, the quad will overheat. Period. If you make sure to check these things, it will not overheat. Also, you must make sure the quads have transmission oil as well as engine oil (checking the transmission oil was left out of the manual...assuming of course, you get a manual at all.) There is a small 10 or 12mm bolt on the left side (driver's side) of the ATV, right behind the "Kazuma" engine tag, on the bottom of the engine/transmission. This is the drain plug. Loosen it, and make sure fluid comes out. If none does, add fluid in the fill hole, exactly adjacent to the drain plug, but on the left side of the engine, behind the "Kazuma" engine tag. Another thing I recommend is to contact summit racing, and get a little fuel tank safety foam (like what is used in race cars) and put that foam in the coolant overflow resevoir; these machines have a tendency to leak fluid from the overflow resevoir when riding over bumpy terrain, and the foam will prevent losing any fluid, while still acting as a coolant resevoir.

You will be impressed with the power from these units and should not be disappointed.

Hope that helps,
Jonathan

 

ogfalcon, thanks for your post.

I was able to talk to John @ Raceway today and he took his time to talk about the machines. He seems like a pretty good guy & I think that I will be doing business with him soon. I am a pretty good mechanic & don't mind keeping a close eye on the ATV's drivetrain. Sounds like as long as you stay on top of them, then they are reliable.

I was reading that the suspension sucks on the 150's. Is that also the case with the 250 utility types?

Also, for the KMZ auto trans, is it using regular ATF fluid or something else?

Thx

 

Actually, the suspension quality depends really on the make of ATV; in other words, you really can't make the general statement that all the 150s have crappy suspension. With that said, some of the 150s do have crappy suspension; the Redcats/Jackels/Kazumas, seem to have some of the best suspensions in the Chinese import market. I really like the suspension quality of all the 150s and 250s we've dealt with in the past. Good quality; nice travel; not too stiff and not too soft; and adjustable. You can actually adjust the preload of each of the three shocks on the vehicle with a special tool that rotates a disk on the shock. (The tool is included in the packaging material, so don't throw all of that stuff out, until you find the tool kit).

As for the transmission question, the transmissions aren't your typical automatics; in other words, the transmissions are "automatics" in that you don't have a manual clutch or have to shift gears, but the transmission doesn't really shift gears, either. The transmissions are CVT or Constantly Variable Transmissions, where there is really only 1-speed, per say, but the clutches and little parts inside the transmission constantly adjust according to conditions (rider demands, terrain, speed, etc). Thusly, the transmissions don't use Automatic Transmission Fluid; instead, they use 75-90 or 80-90 Hypoid Gear Oil that can be bought from Wal Mart, any auto parts store, etc.

Let me know if I can help you out anymore,
Jonathan

 

ogfalcon, thanks again for your help. Really appreciate it.

Feeling good about these machines. Looks like a bit of set-up before riding (loctite on bolts, change oil & fluids from cheap stuff, and a few carb adjustments and they are good to go).

Do any mods to the airbox & exhaust help the motor on these? If so, what do you suggest?

 

No worries, my friend. Glad to help.

Okay, actual bolt-on mods are few and far between for these quads, but the basics are easy to do.

Get rid of the intake box. Carefully remove it and mic the diameter of the intake side on the carb with a mic (a micrometer...or ruler, if you don't have a mic) to get the diameter. Use this diameter, and contact any Motorcycle dealership or K&N directly, for that matter, and let them know you need a small conical air filter with the diamater you measured. Place this filter on the carb in place of the airbox that used to be on it.

For the exhaust, this can get tricky. We normally pull the entire exhaust off of the ATVs and bikes and look for any type of restriction (ie, anywhere the exhaust may not flow correctly) and drill that section out. Sometimes, you have to cut a little bit off the muffler to get to the restriction, but that's really no big deal, as you can just run it that way, or simply weld the end piece back on, grind it down, and repaint it...just like nothing ever happened. There are some people that have put actual aftermarket exhausts on these beasts, but I'm still experimenting with that, so I can't really comment on it just yet.

A couple things to look out for; make sure when you do these mods, you check to make sure your spark plug is properly gapped (.035, I believe...could be wrong, though) and that you have the proper air/fuel ratio. Sometimes you have to slightly richen the mixture by carb adjustment or moving the needle inside the carb, after opening up the intake/exhaust. Moreover, a quality NGK plug couldn't hurt, either.

Phew; get all that?

Jonathan