My son is quickly outgrowing his LT50. He has had it for about a year and a half now, but he is now 5, going on 6 and is 85 pounds and 4ft tall. He rides it pinned all day long, it does pretty good, but he is getting ready for more power now. I want to move him up to an 80-90 cc quad, but not sure which one to get.

He likes the green of the kawasaki 80, same as suzuki. I am just not sure what would be the best one to get him. I tend to want to stick to the bigger name brands, and was thinking either the kawi, or the honda.

Any suggestions would be appreciated. I will most likely not purchase until his 6th birthday in April.

Thanks
Bat

 

Both the Kawasaki 80 (along with the original 'Zuki LT80) and the Honda 90 are good, solid kids quads. If your son is already on the large side than it's no contest. Go with the Honda 90. If you've ever seen the two parked side by side it's easy to see the difference - the Honda is just a larger size all around. The LT80 is good for heights up to about 5' tall while the Honda 90 can handle a kid at 5'6" or more. My 5' 6" tall wife sometimes rides the 90. She fits it OK but I wouldn't want to put anyone taller on it.

We started with a LT50 when my son was 6 and moved up to the Honda 90 two years later. From what I've seen the LT80's will be better if you are interested in racing (many more aftermarket stuff available for the 2 stroke). Also, if you need an auto transmission, go with the LT80. The Honda 90 is better for trail riding. Better low end power for technical rides. Plus the 90 can be the first step to teach other quad controls - it's an auto clutch 4-speed with both hand and foot brakes.

Many tests have cited the lack of electric start on the Honda as a minus. Granted it would be nice to have but in reality it rarely takes more than one pull to start the Honda.

Jaybee

 

While not an expert, it's my understanding that, if you want to stick to those two manufacturers, the Honda is the better bet. It's larger than the other and is better suspended.

 

the scrambler 90 pulls me around fine and i'm 140 lbs. mice machien, restrikter plate on the pipe, throttle limiter. safe machien and has plenty of power to pull me around.

 

We are duners also, so if that makes a difference in reccommendations.

I dont necessarily want to stick to those two manufacturers, but I know they build solid well thought out machines for the youngsters. I wish LEM made a little bigger machine, I have heard good things about their 50's.

I really would like something with a fair amount of suspension, that is kind of hard to find in a youth quad.

thanks
Bat

 

Bought a used honda trx 90 off the neighbor, my son is almost 5 and does real well on it. He is almost 4 feet and 50 lbs. Has out grown his battery quad and jeep, has been on a kitty cat for two years. Just leave it in first or second and let him go, don't let them see how to shift it until later. The honda has a good foot brake and he has learned to use it. Also it has a throttle limiter to slow it down in the learning process. It is really cold blooded, have to leave the choke on full for about 15 minutes.The Honda is outdated, actually my 1972 Honda st 90 has the same motor. We use it for is trail riding- open fields, two tracks etc. We are fortunate to live on twenty acres with acess to about 400 more (two farms). We gave it to him at Christmas and have since gone through two tanks of gas. We are always within 10 feet of him and he wears all the protective gear, helmet, boots, gloves, etc. After seeing him ride I don't think I would've bought him a smaller quad. My neice is twelve and she looks way too big for it. I think they need to change the age requirments for the mini quads. Too small a quad for a kid can be just as dangerous as too big. Good supervision and saftey are key. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

The LT80 (kawi-too) is bulletproof! The trx-90 and LT80 are outdated,but thats just because they are so dependable.
The major diff. between them would be the shift factor of the honda.It sounds like your kid will go to the LT80 yery easily.
Good Luck [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

Get the Honda, my son is 8, and has been riding twice now since Christmas, and is doing fine with the shifting, somtimes trouble finding first, but when he is stoped, and it is not in first, it will barely move, so it forcese him to think. It has the throtle set just for this, and if he does it right, he can get it up to 17 MPH in fourth with me following. He keeps asking for more, but not yet.

 

I ride a sportsman 90 And I always beat the honda.I do jumps and lots of mud,
My one problem was the front rack.But I ride hard!![img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-cool.gif[/img]

 

You might not have to worry about it here, but here in Cali, we have this red sticker thing, and that turned me completly away from two strokes and that makes the answer real easy.