Opinions NEEDED

[Spooge]

Here is my conundrem...... I cant spell:biggrin:

Just kidding

But really, right now I have a Honda Recon 250 2 wheel drive, It is a solid ATV and I like the reliability, the power, well its just a great ATV....for what it is

But I have recently been considering lifting, bigger tires, exhaust and truck bedliner on the body.... But then In got thinking, even if I did all that, at the end of the day it would still be a 250 and it would still be two wheel drive.

So Ive been thinking of upgrading, If I sold it now it would be worth about $14-1500 plus I could save up a few hundred. I would be looking for a larger ATV that must have 4 wheel drive and obviously I would buy used.

The brands I would consider would be Yamaha (all around great ATVs) Arctic Cat/Polaris (American quality plus a I could get a good price on a bigger one, I would LOVE to have a 500+cc!!!!) or maybe suzuki...

I dont want a kawasaki, chinese brand and Im not so sure I want another honda (theyre great machines, but there are a lot better with the bigger ones (the 250's are the best tho))

So I ask you this,

1.)Is it worth it???? can I pull this off reasonably and after all the hassle would it be worth it?

2.)What brand/model do you recommend? which can I get a good deal on a larger ATV with 4x4??

all help appreciated, I will consider all your opinions. THANK YOU

[Sparrows]

i bought all my toys off craigslist, usually could hassle the price down, i got my 400ex for 1600. then modded it myself. lol:)

[Spooge]

Sweet! I sold my dirtbike on craigslist and bought this recon there

[Sparrows]

yeah good stuff, you could probably get more out of your 250 on craigslist to be honest. i'd put it on there for like 2200 obo. see what you can really get, some people just buy stuff not even looking at value. and plus you actually have a really nice quad.

[Spooge]

Yeah I bought it for $1450 but the guy was desperate to sell it, e lost his job... pretty sad (and no it wasn't a scam because I didn't get ripped off)

I just checked and found this....

Im really liking it, does anyone know where I can get more pics of this year?

1998 POLARIS SPORTSMAN {4X4} REVERSE-AUTOMATIC <<<<LINK

[Spooge]

WOWI found a couple more pics... the older Polaris' are so much better looking than newer one, not as big a chuck of plastic on the front. Plus that thing is an awesome price, I think I found what I am looking for

Anyone know anything about Polaris'??

[Sparrows]

thats a damn good deal i'd say bro

[Spooge]

I wanna jump right on it but I should probably sell mine first and maybe give it more than 30 minutes of thought LOL

[Sparrows]

test drive it, put your quad up on craigslist, put it in columbus and indys, get a lot of views.

[Spooge]

do you think ATV sales are a seasonal ting? do you think more people would look come spring?

[Sparrows]

I def think, if you put that plow on the deal it would sell no no big deal, my friend made 500 dollars on one block doing snow plowing. thats pretty much amazing, get in the chat btw im bored.

[Spooge]

I'm keeping the plow for whatever I get next, just got it two weeks ago... and I'm never giving it up!

[outlander560]

that older polaris looks ok but look around i been looking for about 1/2 a year b4 i found my cat... i would also be careful about anything being 10 years old u have no idea wat kinda abouse its been through and looks can be disceiveing.... how much r u willing spending to spend?

[Spooge]

I figure I can squeeze anywhere from $15-1700 from my Recon plus a little savings, so... around $1800 +/-

[BuckBilly]

If you get a sportsman 500, make sure it is a 500 HO. Any Honda 4x4 is pretty good to. Forget Suzuki unless you have friends or a dealer close to you who actually like Suzuki.

[Spooge]

What is the H O ? was it available in the '98 Im looking at?

[Sparrows]

High output,call the guy and ask him if it's HO.

[BuckBilly]

HO is a better motor. Its built by Fuji. Hit the Scramblers in 98. Not sure if it hit the sportsman in 98 or 99.

[Spooge]

I think the newer style sportsman would have the HO (2001+) but thats just a guess

how bad is the earlier 500?

[BuckBilly]

I think the newer style sportsman would have the HO (2001+) but thats just a guess

how bad is the earlier 500?

Not too good.02 and later seem to be pretty good. 06 or 07 whenever Polaris quit making jet ski's is when quality improved greatly to.

[Spooge]

Well, I just took out my ATV and cleaned off the road salt, then I noticed a little rust forming on the A-arms so I hit them with some primer....

I really like the look of the A-arms being a different color, So I think Im going to go ahead with my project of painting the body and racks with bedliner and painting the A-arms and springs lime green....

So Im going to hold on to my Recon for a few months then look into getting a bigger one,

but I still need advice now so I can start looking and narrowing down options!

[BuckBilly]

Read mags , read on forums and talk to people about the quads you like.

[outlander560]

wat r u looking for really in a atv do u want ground clearence? bigger engine? sra or independent suspension? wat is ur favorite manufacturer? just look on used vehicle websites thats wat i did just look once in a while until that good deal comes up

[Spooge]

I want a bigger one with 4 wheel drive...

[outlander560]

anything else ur looking for? and how big for cc's? and how old r u willing to go

[outlander560]

Buy and Sell New and Used ATVs, Four Wheelers, All Terrain Vehicles at ATVTraderOnline.com try that for used searches

[Spooge]

anything from 350 (I might consider a 4x4 rancher) to a 500, Im up to even more!

Nothing older than mid 90's

And nothing considered underpowered, low, unreliable or rough condition....

[outlander560]

theirs a lot of ranchers out their and honda has a very good engine in all their bikes reliability is a big thing for honda.... wat kind of riding do u do? and if u want go into chat and we can go through this a lot quicker

[Spooge]

Im not actually a big fan of the rancher, but if I can find a nice enough one for the right price.....

I had a Honda bike and now a Recon, I kind of want to break away from Hondas, Ive heard the bigger Hondas are lower, less powerful, and are lacking in the suspension and drive systems department than other brands.

The kind of riding I do is trail riding, pretty much an even mix of most tings... general dirt riding, I really like water and I like to play in the mud a little Basically woods trail riding. Also, I want something that has a lot of power and will haul AS*. Also, I will use it to plow some snow in the winter.

[BuckBilly]

Im not actually a big fan of the rancher, but if I can find a nice enough one for the right price.....

I had a Honda bike and now a Recon, I kind of want to break away from Hondas, Ive heard the bigger Hondas are lower, less powerful, and are lacking in the suspension and drive systems department than other brands.

The kind of riding I do is trail riding, pretty much an even mix of most tings... general dirt riding, I really like water and I like to play in the mud a little Basically woods trail riding. Also, I want something that has a lot of power and will haul AS*. Also, I will use it to plow some snow in the winter.

I say throw a leg over stuff and try it out. If the dealer or friends let you. Personally I would buy as close to or brand new. But I don't want buy one I don't know the history of.