Richard1234

You are likely correct though it seems to last longer than I would expect from bad valve guides. I doubt there is much to do anyways as if it is valve guides or piston rings or whatever, I will likely have to learn to live with it. I was more curious if this was a common thing with Suzuki quads.

So I bought three older quads for the farm and the two Suzukis (1986 and 1996) both smoke (oil) quite a bit on start-up, while the other (Yamaha) doesn't. It isn't a big deal except that I start them in a garage and it gets a bit smokey and smelly! Is this a common Suzuki thing or did I just get lucky?? If it's a common issue, is there an easy fix? (For the record, they both run good, and both clear up as soon as they get a bit warm).

I haven't had any battery issues plowing with my 350 Big Bear. I try to keep the blade an inch off the ground as I have a rough gravel driveway. My blade seems to tilt a bit when I rotate it to push on an angle. I'm not sure if the quad "rocks" or if the mount moves, but the trailing side seems lower regardless if I push left or right. Any ideas?

It's a bit nasty pushing snow when the temperature drops for sure. The high today was -9F (-23C) (low at -22F) and with a fair bit of time mucking around trying to get the old girl started (I ended up removing the plug and heating it up) it got a bit miserable on the hands and feet. We've enough snow now that the original advice of pushing a wider path than you need has really come into effect!

I sorted out my neutral issue. It's up clicks to get to neutral, not down like the later Quadrunners. Lol. I also had trouble getting it to rev up, but putting a bit of an air restriction seems to work. (It has no air filter element currently). So, I will have to sort out a fabbed up air filter for the box.

I didn't actually. I just drained oil until it got back in the sight glass. It was barely run with the oil as it would only run on full choke. Is there a reason to drop the new oil?

Well, I seem to have picked up the Quadrunner bug. I bought a second one, a much older and physically smaller 230. 2WD, semi-auto, pull button reverse. The fellow got it to run, but certainly the carb is blocked up as it only ran on full choke. Controls are much different, and I'll have to look into the clutch/transmission as I can't seem to get it in neutral, though the previous owner was able to while loading??? I may be missing something. Does anybody know if the early Quadrunners were still "5 gears up" with neutral at the bottom? I should be able to knock it into neutral without the motor running, correct? Expect lots of questions, as this one needs a ton of work, lol.

Long shot, but did you get the oil level right in the sight glass? I just bought a quadrunner and the owner had filled it up til he could see oil in the fill tube! I'm guessing being that full might cause some smoke!

I assume it's like a car or truck differential which needs to be vented to allow for expansion of the fluid with heat. Thus the water gets in the top vent and can't get out. It means the quad got good and wet, as in sunk in water for a bit. Same thing can happen to your truck when you back a boat down a launch, but more expensive, lol.

Ya, I think that should work. I'll take a look for one or even just use nylon line and a couple hooks to make one up. I think 3 passes would be enough. Much more and I won't have enough distance from winch blade to lift it up and out of the way. Thanks!

Is there an accepted way to stop slow leaks in these low pressure tires? I have one that leaks down after a few days. Is that sealant spray that goes in through the valve stem a good idea on quads, or should the tire come off the rim and re-seat it? Tires are new (according to previous owner), and I don't see any damage on it.

Ah, I should have signed in before I went! It wasn't near as deep as here in the city, so I should be able to expand the narrow lane I cut. I did end up angling the blade and made 4 passes up/down the lane. I was surprised how easy it pushed. The Big Bear had no issues with tires spinning nor motor loading up even as the blade overflowed heavy wet snow. With the long straight driveway, and room on each side, clearing the snow doesn't seem as daunting as it did before! My only issue is that the winch isn't sensitive enough to adjust the blade an inch or two at a time. I will need to modify how I'm grabbing it so that I can position the blade more accurately. But over-all, seems an excellent (and kinda fun) way to clear snow!

Any advice regarding clearing snow with a Big Bear 350? I've a long straight driveway to clear at a new hobby acreage and we got lots of fresh snow! Is it any better to angle the plow and run the length, or push the snow side to side into the ditches? I've never plowed snow before and have a steep learning curve as to what will prove more efficient! Any advice from the experienced would be appreciated!

Hi all. First time atv owner (at 56 years old!) and I picked up a pair of them for a homestead (4 acres) that I bought. I got a Yamaha Big Bear 350 for working, hauling and clearing snow, and a Suzuki Quadrunner 250 for zipping around on or for my nephew when he visits. Both are mid 90's so will be needing some maintenance to stay running!

Rode it around this weekend and the problem was gone. Maybe it just needed some gas processed through it. Fingers crossed.