ATVs

Ok so I kinda want an ATV to mess around with and also so my gf has something to trail ride with me once I get my bike finished. What should I look for as far as engine size, etc? I was probably going to buy something in need of a little work.

Yamaha Warriors with a 350CC air cooled engine and reverse are a nice compromise between sport and utility and do a great job for trail riding and general hooning without the finicky nature, cost, and complexity of the all out race quads and the heft and bad trail manners of the 4x4 utility quads.

I always laughed at a friend of mine who had a fully built Banshee for trail riding and bar hopping. Race gas only, loud as hell, tough to start, acres of polished aluminum. Beautiful and ran like a scalded cat, but not real practical for general beating purposes.

Speaking of Banshees, wasn't there a member in Nevada who registered one for the street?

I picked up a Polaris Scrambler 400 and highly recommend it. It is a two-stroke, so a little loud, but it has plenty of power. (They also have a 500cc if you need a little more oomph.) The reason I like it is that is is an automatic, so no shifting or worrying about being in the right gear. You just squeeze the throttle and zoom off. One lever applies front and rear brakes together, so no confusion or flipping over. It has an on-demand AWD system that will get you through heavy muck or up steep hills, but you can shut off if you want to get tail-happy. It is easy and docile enough for a beginner to ride, but can go anywhere an advanced rider wants to go. It is marketed as a "sport/utility" ATV because it has AWD and can go anywhere that a utility quad will go, but it also has the smaller front wheels and top speed of a sport quad. Best of all, they have been in production forever so you can get good running examples from $1000 and up.

Nevada allows licensing ATVs for street use. Dunno if I would want to be doing 80 in Interstate traffic on one, though.

Yamaha built an air cooled entry level ATV called the Blaster for years, it was light/simple/cheap. A buddy bought 2 for his wife and kids, the damn things were indestructible and fun. Big aftermarket, too.

pinchvalve wrote: I picked up a Polaris Scrambler 400 and highly recommend it. It is a two-stroke, so a little loud, but it has plenty of power. (They also have a 500cc if you need a little more oomph.) The reason I like it is that is is an automatic, so no shifting or worrying about being in the right gear. You just squeeze the throttle and zoom off. One lever applies front and rear brakes together, so no confusion or flipping over. It has an on-demand AWD system that will get you through heavy muck or up steep hills, but you can shut off if you want to get tail-happy. It is easy and docile enough for a beginner to ride, but can go anywhere an advanced rider wants to go. It is marketed as a "sport/utility" ATV because it has AWD and can go anywhere that a utility quad will go, but it also has the smaller front wheels and top speed of a sport quad. Best of all, they have been in production forever so you can get good running examples from $1000 and up.

I wasn't thinking 500cc. The main person riding will be around 115lbs.

I had a pair of blasters when I was a kid. They were a ton of fun.

Why can't the GF ride on two wheels? There are some kick ass women racers you know...

44Dwarf wrote: Why can't the GF ride on two wheels? There are some kick ass women racers you know...

She has no real interest to do two wheels. But she said she would like to do trail riding with me.

Personally I like the Polaris 800's

115 lbs is pretty small... what about a honda trx250x it seems to be the workhorse of the rental fleets at the Pismo dunes...

Strangely I just got back from a trip out there this weekend I took my 10 year old daughter out and she had a blast. Here are her feelings on the subject of acquiring an ATV: