what are some brands that make some good 250cc quads. i am not talking about big brands. brands that are good and you can get after market parts.

 

sorry to respond, but if buying a 'good" 250 and access to aftermarket parts, I wouldn't get on anything but a "big" brand, trust me, you want something tough and long lasting and reliable, nothings worse than rebuilding a bike after each ride.

 

Well some of the good brands would be like the Jetmoto and V-Bike. These are the two major players in Chinese ATV bikes. There very reliable and you can find parts from them unlike some other Chinese ATV's. The only problem is adding Aftermarket parts arent really available for them but are hell of fun and affordable. I have been taking my jet 250 for a beating and at the dunes and so far so good. not the best at climbing hills in the dunes but remember 250 but ive been enjoying myself.

Stemcell700
These Chinese ATV's are very reliable and may not be as tough as the Jap bikes but they sure are fun and affordable like i mentioned above. They break down just as would the jab bikes. you need to maintain them and keep an eye out for any loose things just lke you would any other bike. There is no need for negative feedback on here and i understand that opinions are ok but if you have never owned one of these you kind of cant say much. A lot of people say negative things on Chinese bikes cause they here bad stories on here but the jetmoto and the v-bike seem to be on top of there game and quality is there main concern.

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: balanis03





Stemcell700

These Chinese ATV's are very reliable and may not be as tough as the Jap bikes but they sure are fun and affordable like i mentioned above. They break down just as would the jab bikes. you need to maintain them and keep an eye out for any loose things just lke you would any other bike. There is no need for negative feedback on here and i understand that opinions are ok but if you have never owned one of these you kind of cant say much. A lot of people say negative things on Chinese bikes cause they here bad stories on here but the jetmoto and the v-bike seem to be on top of there game and quality is there main concern.</end quote></div>

I disagree. There is a need for feedback, both good and bad. That's what this forum is for. The facts just don't back up your statements above. Yes, the off-brand bikes are getting better and yes, SOME of them are very reliable. But, taken as a whole the off brand ATV scene still has a ways to go. As a group, Chinese bikes don't break down "just as would Japaneese bikes" - they break down more often. Checking for "any loose things" is often the case on a Chinese bike that is new out of the box while it is unheard of for a major brand to need a complete fitting check on the day that you buy it.

A lot of people say negative things about Chinese bikes because there are still a lot of negative points about them. New batteries that will not charge, pot metal frames that can bend easily, oil quality that is so poor that experienced off-brand buyers recommend an oil change before trying to start it for the first time, shocks that will only move if an adult pushes his full weight against the bike and the many clone Chinese brands that still have no customer support or parts availability. Sadly, these are still the facts about off-brand quads. If someone asks about them, these are things that need to be mentioned to give an informed and accurate opinion.

The off-brand quads will continue to get better. Even now, many of the major manufacturers have some "off-brand" quads in their lineup. However, these ATV companies are requiring a higher level of quality control from the second party manufacturer plus they are offering realistic warrantee and parts support. The bottom line continous to be price. If major brand A is marketing a kids quad that sells for $2,200, an off-brand product with the same basic specs that sells for $700 is going to be lacking. The big brands don't just have high prices for labor costs and dealer networks, lots of that sale price is in the design, materials and quality control aspects of building a quad.

And if you ask, no - I have never owned an off brand quad. I have however been around ATV's for about 15 years now. I can read. I can observe and talk to other riders that have off-brand quads. It doesn't take ownership to walk into a PEP Boys, look at their quad selection and realize that most of the lineup is garbage.

That's the facts, like it or not. There is a place for off-brand quads. In many cases it makes sense for a low initial investment to get an idea about what you want in a quad. My opinion has always been that you are much better off to buy a used major brand quad than a new off-brand one, but I realize that a shiny new quad can be just the ticket to get someone started in the sport.

In recap: The off-brands are getting better but there is still so many poor quality problems that it makes sense to get as much information about them as possible before deciding to purchase. Some of that information will not be good.

Jaybee

 

You need to remember that yeah these come straight from a crate and you have to build it. When you buy a name brand all of this is done for you by the dealer so there are no hassles of you doing it yourself. If your handy it can all be done within a couple of hours. At a Dealer they charge anywhere from $500 and up for them to build an adjust carb and all that good stuff. I just bought my Jet in Dec and i went through it very carefully and took the time on building it. and i checked all screws and most of them now are marked during production and all seemed nice and tight when i checked them. i agree on oil and other small things like Spark plugs.

And your wrong on customer support Raceway and V-bike both have very good Tech support and parts supply for all Jets and bikes they sell. John at Raceway was very helpful and parts were sent right away when i needed them. So your definetly wrong on that comment buddy. I did research before i bought and i almost bought a Roketa boy im glad i didnt they have no parts or tech support whats so ever. Warranty from both companies i mentioned have 6 months on Engine and trans. And definetly there getting better cause Jetmoto is coming out with a 350 clone of Raptor 350 with way better quality for almost half the price.

I agree the bikes form Pep Boys are weak and garbage i would not recommend at all. but you do need to look at the higher quality off brand Jetmoto and V-bike. I disagree again with you about all the info you will find is bad. All i can say is do your research on this site and you will find that lately V-bike and Jetmoto are sitting on top. I recommend to ask people who have these bikes and see what response you get mywifesquad is a good resource and know Jets in and out and has worked with Jetmotos and is a veru good source for info

 

We seem to be saying the same thing from different directions. As I said above, some of the off-brands are turning out a good quality product yet many still are not. When people new to ATVing ask about the difference between buying an off-brand vs paying more from a major manufacturer I look at it this way: What percentage of ATV's from major companies will start out their brand new life with problems that need to be corrected or fixed? 2%? 1%? Probably less than that. Ask the same question about the off brands and you'll get a measurable figure. I have no real numbers of course but it sure seems to be the expected thing to have problems out of the box. Even if only 10% require repair immediately or soon after the rfirst use, that is way too high. And I'd expect that a 10% turkey rate is pretty low at this time.

Call it a little quirk of mine but when I purchase something that is brand new I expect it to work. From what i see right now, only a handful of off-brands can be counted on to do this. I do expect this to get better, after all just a couple of years ago there were hardly any off-brands worth anything but until the off-brand market as a whole gets better it's a case of you get what you pay for.

Jaybee

 

I agree with jaybeecon55 that the chinese bikes are not the same quality as the Jap bikes. Some parts are on them and some are not. Are they getting better sure, as he mentioned the early ones had stiff suspension etc.

I disagree about taking a brand name out the box and turn the key and go!

When we bought our 250 honda 3 years ago, we had to pay for a pdi. You could see someone checked over the bolts etc.
Even at that I had some of the bolts that run throught the fender rattle out and had to put loctite on them.

Also they wanted the quad back in 75 hrs to do another check on it at a cost of $350.

 

Remember a lot of parts on brand names are made in foundries in China. I am willing to bet there is no difference in some parts outside of price. I once almost bought a Sears Craftsman table saw for $599.99. I found the same exact table saw at Harbor Freight for $329.99. The difference? Sears sticker!

 

What about Kymco? My research shows they are very well made. It seems that you get a lot for your money with these.

 

glad to see this thread im looking for a 250 myself found a honda 250 ex new advertised price 2499 out the door 3400 even at 200 for tax. still 700 for dealer fees. is this normal? i have owned 2 jap quads still had to repair with parts 10X more than china stuff. has any one owned a honda 250? is it any better? has same 6 month warrenty and drum breaks in the back. im going to look at jet moto at dealer expo