Is it just me or do the rest of you notice the ATV manufacturers following the lead of the 4x4 pick-up manufacturers. Used to be you could buy an honest 4 wheel drive truck with very few creature comforts that the average Joe could work on, troubleshoot and maintain. Now, the pickup has evolved into a computer driven electronics showcase of every concievable type of gadget and toy known to man. I see the high end fourwheelers going in the same direction: electric shift, electric speed sensors, digital displays, CPU's etc., etc. it won;t be too many more years and bikes like the Rubicon and Traxter will be the norm and we will all be left wishing for ATV's we can work on without computer science degrees. Any opinions?

 

I agree, & don't forget that with all this "technology" comes an increase in the price tag or our quads.

Look at the high dollar sport & utility quads they are at the $7K range. Our toys are getting expensive.


I guess that is one reason for purchasing a mid-size instead of the mega-big bertha quad.

 

As soon as fuel injection is introduced and incorporated into Quads, you can kiss after market mods goodbye.
The only thing a guy will be able to do is add a performance chip, and maybe some exhaust work, and thats about it.
I'm wondering if the on-board electronics will be able to withstand the punishment, vibration, water, and other abuse that a Quad can give on a day to day basis.
Just think what it will cost to replace a MAP sensor, O2 sensor, or any other module...

 

If they can get electronics to work for the military, they can get them to work on an ATV.

I have a Computer Science degree and I wouldn't get into the guts of one of these machines. You'll need someone that double-majored in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering. The more complicated they make these things, the more chances something will go wrong.

On the other hand, If we get machines that run better, need less maintenance and last longer becase of all the techonology, is this really a bad thing?

We now have family sedans that can outperform the muscle cars of the 70s and get better fuel mileage doing it! New is not always better, but it's not always worse either.

 

In 1993, I bought 2 PWCs (Tigersharks). I was worried about them because they had ECMs & all this other electronic crap (rev limiters, heat sensors & the like) but after 6 hard (really hard!!) years of abuse & rough riding & overall pounding, they never failed me once. I had one fuse blow (a spare one was in a holder next to the one that blew) & I periodically replaced spark plugs. Other than that they always ran great, started everytime, and were just flat out reliable. I can only hope my new Cat is just as reliable as the PWCs were. I can't imagine it will get anywhere near the beating I gave those Tigersharks.

 

Remember,
"They Dont Make Them Like They Use To"
and all I can say is
"THANK GOD" !