Hey 3TV~
Congrats on adding the new quad to the family! It sounds like the 250ex will be a great quad for your 10 year old son. Your had obvious reasons for choosing it over the Trailblazer. But the magazine testers are not 10 year old boys. They are grown men/women. I have not read the magazine yet, so I am basing this off what Quadfather wrote. When one machine is best at 3/4 of the categories tested, how can it not be the overall winner? I am willing to bet that the magazine made some comment about the Honda and reliability-something that cannot be proven on a 2 month old machine! Sorry, I'm not trying to argue over a magazine article, but it does make me a little angry when a magazine appears to be biased towards where the money flows! To me, it appears that Honda has done their homework on how to attract new buyers. Have many ads in an ATV magazine, which also appears to lead to their machine winning the shootout. Afterall, most people that read the article don't realize it is biased. They take it for what it is, and believe the Honda is the best machine. Having their entry-level sport machine win a shootout will attract newcomers to the sport. Maybe my reasoning is way off, thatt's just how I see it. I guess that's my 2 cents worth, or maybe not even that much if I'm totally wrong!!

 

3TV, Great Posts!!!!!

 

I know he missed the point because he chose his Honda for reasons other than the mag did.

 

I can't count how many shootouts the SP500 has won, must be a conspiracy! Yup thats it, a conspiracy!

 

I heard Oliver Stone is going to make a movie based on how magazines test 4-Wheelers. Finally the world will know the awful truth! LOL

 

I would rather the mags did a simple here is what this quad does well, and here is what this quad does well. If every mag in the world chose 1 quad over another it still doesnt mean that quad would be the 1 for me. I have no problem with D.W. selecting the Honda as long as the article is informing on each of the machines. I will decide the overall winner with my money at the dealership.

 

I think the TrailBlazer is suppose a recretional guad not a full fledged sport quade.The 250cc motor in the TrailBlazer does not have a screeming 250 motor cross engine in it like the 250R did because lots of people do not want to rebuild the engine every few months.The larger size of the TrailBlazer is the cause of the weight but the bike is still as fast as any other quad of it's class(Except for a Mojave).The size is not a bad thing though because if you were off on a all day tour would you want to be cramped up on a Blaster or Recon or streched out on the larger and faster TrailBazer with It's longer plusher suspension.

TraiBlazer for a MX track?NOOOOOOOOOO

Trailblazer for adult size person on a bumpy trail ride all day long?Yessssssssssssss

 

The TB is a full sized quad, I certainly wouldn't turn a "Normal" 10 year old loose on one. The 250ex is probobly abetter choice, being of a more manageable size for a young person.
I do believe however, that the magazine test riders tend to be of "slight stature" ( How politically correct was that?! ) and therefore don't fit the quad very well. Poor reviews are the result.
One other opinion: I think the Honda got the suspension, balance, power, etc. on the 250R on a fluke, that it wasn't designed that way, the engineers stumbled onto it by mistake.
If they built the best quad 15 years ago, how come they haven't built models that were an improvement ? Why doesn't the 400ex out perform the 250R ? Why is no one transplanting other engines into 400ex chassis? Was there a fire at Honda and all of the technology lost in the blaze?
Here's a conspiracy theory for you: Elvis was kidnapped by Aliens, and the ransom was the technology for the improved Honda quad and the magazine writers that weren't movie extras on the "Wizard of Oz".

 

Quadfather-did the trailblazer come in 2nd or 3rd to that fine red ride from honda? The only 250ex i have ridden the handlebars vibrated alot. In the honda forum there have been post stating the 250ex pushes in the corners.He$$ just think how many quads polaris could sell if they won some shootouts.

 

Yes i agree that Honda does make dam reliable machines, but at the same time they somehow get way to much praise for there machines. My brother Believed all the fluffy perfect crap in the mags about the 250 Recon and ran out and bought it. He spent the next year telling all the people he rode with "its a great machine for a 250" over and over again. this was short for underpowered, buckboard suspension, tiny frame, tiny tires that get grabbed by every little rut and throw you into the trees, a lot of work rowing through the gears ringing the snot out of the motor looking for enough power for even the slowest of trail rides. but it was built well. My mom had it for a while after that but it was to bouncy and slow for even her. after that My brother bought a trailblazer for his wife and she was a lot happier with it. The honda got traded in at a polaris dealer and we were happy to see them take it. The 250 Recon is an ok machine but by no means the ride you read about it the mags. Yes, this opinion is after many rides on it. that helped me decide on my Polaris rides now. Thank god i didn,t waste my money on Mag-sellin-bull****. Moral of the story, The Mags to write bull****, experienced first hand. And this is from a family full of about any Make you can think of. Its really funny how the Mags talk about Polaris when the riders and owners know a very different story.