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



What do you think? Would these items change any of your mind?



I am still going to have to answer.....No.

I think your idea has some merrit, but I see too many potential issues for me to consider this. My main concerns, in no particular order would be:

1. Hidden damage - Maybe the renter didn't know what they did and maybe you can't even track some damage to a particular renter, but I just see too many chances for expensive repairs that are partially caused by riders who are unfamiliar with the machine.

2. Liability - Waivers are standard issue and would be required in any rental situation. However, if my ATV had a mechanical failure (let's say a broken brake line for example) that caused an injury to the renter, any halfway decent lawyer would have no problem pinning the liability on me for my negligent maintenance. Really, lawyers take cases like this for no up-front fees - there are many people out there who can't resist the thought of some quick money. A waiver is not going to stop that from happening.

3. Usage - I like having my ATV available even though my riding time is sometimes few and far between. I'd hate to miss a day of riding because my bike was gone.

4. Logistics - What do we do - wait around the house for somebody to show up so we can give them the key and go over the controls?

5. Profit - considering the above, I'm just not sure that money-wise that it could ever be worth it.

6. Insurance - Insurance is fine. But if the bike is totaled, be it on the trail or in a wreck while in transport, insurance is only going to pay for the depreciated value of the bike. I ride an ATV that retails for over ten grand, I'd expect that if totaled today that I'd get a check for seven. While I *could* find a used one for that price, I'd have little idea as to the history of it's usage - no way of knowing it's condition compared the the known value of my bike.

7. Transport - Just like there are skilled and unskilled riders, some people have no clue as to how to secure an ATV for transport or how to tow a trailer. This bothers me.

That's about it. As I and others in this thread have said - most of us are reluctant to loan out our ATV's even to people that we know. I just can't see enough profit or safeguards to change how I feel about that.

Jaybee

To put it simply, NO. I would not rent my machines out to anyone.

Let me expand on this, I have little faith in people using my stuff, mostly because I have seen what they do with their own stuff. You refer to the how would you feel about returrning something in less than perfect condition. Not everyone is like me and us, if a person is renting something, they do not care about it. Not everybody has a conscience and is going to worry about giving things back in perfect condition, You seem to think way to highly of people.

My 450 and Wolverine have both been driven by pretty much the same people. Me, my girlfriend, my brother. Other than that, I have let slip a quick test drive around an open field or down the driveway for a few people. I have had my truck for over a year, the only people who have driven it are me, my brother and my girlfriend (for about 2 miles). Even with her, I put it very clearly, "If you drive this truck like you drive your car, you won't find yourself in that seat very often at all."

people aren't accustomed to the vehicle height, power, characteristics. They are going to be harder on the clutch/drivetrain, bottom out the swingarm on rocks, harder on the brakes, etc. In my view, other people would be harder on the machines than I would, and I don't have the funds to replace them, that is why I have a hard time with the whole issue.


wow, that was really long.

Personally I would have to say no also, Hell it makes me nervous when my wife rides my kwad.

It is a great idea, just not for me. If I had a small fleet of bikes and was a great mechanic that might be a possibility. But at the moment I own 2 bikes, mine and my sons, and I like to ride it anytime I want to. Im not going to risk it being tore up just for a few bucks. Even with all the insurance coverage, liablity taken care of, there is still the actual downtime to get it repaired. And that might interfere with my riding time.

But if I did have say 8 bikes, all of which in good shape, I "MIGHT" consider making a couple of them "rentals" cause I would still have a bike to ride if one of those broke down or was wrecked.

Nobody else rides my Grizzly or my KTM dirt bike, ... period. My wife has her own Grizzly, but I don't even let her ride my Grizzly, and I don't let my 17 year old son ride it, or anyone else. If someone ask, I already know the answer, and it is one word long. No.

3TV

jaybeecon55 pretty much covered my response.

While I can definitely see the advantages for the folks doing the renting. Im still not sure what the benefit is for the folks having their toys rented.

if i was rent my toys to some one, i would load with trackers and tracers, lowjack, and a bunch of other tracking devices, even if it means putting a long shoe string on it to follow, in case it was stolen

I think it is a very cool idea, but I don't think it would work, and here's why

I think that many, if not all, of the responses here are from folks who are true ATV enthusiasts...being such, they make the investment into the sport and buy their own machines after investing time and research into choosing just the "right" one for them. There is a personal issue (much like brand loyalty) interwoven into the ownership of a quad...we take pride in our machines, we customize them, etc. and don't want to have them damaged, either by accident or by misuse. That's why there is the consistent use of the terms like "my toys" etc., and references to only letting relatives or close friends ride them

Certainly there are businesses that rent ATVs that can amortize/depreciate ATVs on a schedule and base their rental rates accordingly...and they don't take damage to their machines personally...it's a business expense that they have already factored into the rental rate.

I don't think anyone who has individually purchased an ATV will want to have to factor in the potential of damage to their ATV, even if it's rarely used

I would rent mine out after I got a $10,000 deposit. If they break the quad they can keep it.

most of us dont keep our quads stock, sure you make them sign a waiver saying you arent responsible for anything that happens to them. but you still gonna feel like **** if they get seriously injured on your machine. Most of us arent business people, we work hard and long to obtain our machines. The people that would end up renting them would be more then likely someone with limited to no exposure to atv'in then they start out on our hopped up machines. it just = trouble.

Im not sure what happened to the guy who started this thread. He hasnt posted in a while. It seemed to me like he was trying to start a business with other peoples investment of time and money, in a sport he certainly doesnt understand..