06 Polaris Predator Review

[Pappy]

With being involved with racing mini quads, from time to time it is good to step away from a full race oriented atv and get some seat time on a stock quad. The majority of the mini atv's are bought by first time riders and racing is the furthest thing from the buyers mind. However, we could not settle for the average ride around the yard!

Enlisting the help of Youth GNCC rider Cody Hill, I aimed him at the shiney new Polaris 90. One of the first courses of action was to remove the 2 safety devices found on this model. Polaris refers to one as a "Speed Limiter" and it is merely a small breaker plate on the CDI. The loosening of 2 small screws and removing the plate deactivates it. The second is the all familiar throttle limiter screw. With these two means of speed control removed, it was time to shred the Polaris and see what she could do!

After a few laps to aquiant himself with the quad and its controls, our test rider began to step up the pace and see what it was capable of.

[Pappy]

After a 45 minute test ride, our rider had a few things to say about the Polaris.

I thought the quad was a little small when I first rode it, but found it to be very comfortable. The power was very good and smooth. The automatic clutch allowed me to concentrate on the trail ahead instead of shifting.


The 3/4 mile test loop had a mix of cross country terrain and a few small motorcross jumps. Switching from a mini quad that shifts to one that is automatic took a bit of getting used to.

The Polaris feels narrow and i would prefer it wider. It responded well to me shifting my weight, and it never felt like i would roll over. In the air it is very managable and easy to correct.

Cody aired out the stock quad over his 35 foot table to fully test the stock suspension. Polaris claims 5 inches of travel in the stock suspension.

The bigger jumps actually felt better then I would have thought. The stock shocks work excellent and provided smooth landings. Rough terrain was not a problem. the Polaris sailed right over it.

[Pappy]

The layout of the controls are very user friendly and were within easy reach. The thumb throttle is very light and is slightly oversize for better thumb placement. Steering was easy and did not seem to jerk the rider around when ruts were encountered.

Starting the quad is easy, and it also comes equipped with a kick start back up. Neutral,reverse and low oil lights are mounted on the bars and are easily seen by both rider and parent. A factory tether kill switch is a nice feature.

The only draw backs I noticed was the fenders seem like they could be attached more securely. There were also a few loose bolts that needed attending to before the ride was able to take place.

A nice thick seat will be very beneficial to riders both new and expierenced. Our rider commented several times how comfortable the seat was.

Reverse works and is RPM limited as most quads are. A simple hand operated shift lever located on the right side of the atv is used to shift into forward, neutral or reverse.

With a MSRP of $2399, and a 6 month warranty the Polaris Predator 90 looks to continue as a great starter quad. We even put the throttle stop back in place and allowed a younger rider to ride it.


When asked, our rider rated this quad a 10 out of 10 for being a stock quad. I myself might not be as forgiving and would say honestly it is a 7 out of 10. Long term riding will follow and we will report back our findings along with the build up of this quad.

[Pappy]

The clutch in my opinion operates sluggish and will be one of the first areas addressed. After racing against the predators, I can now tell who has work done, and who is running a truly stock quad.

[Pappy]

One of the biggest issues we have noticed over the years is that mini quads just did not fit younger but able riders. Kasea was close, and the kasea offers a foot brake which the Polaris among others does not.

A normal size 7 year old can reach the controls on the Predator.

[Pappy]

Our expierenced 7 year old did very well on this quad, infact it actually seemed he could ride it better then his usual 50cc quad!

[Pappy]

I would not think twice about buying the 90 over the 50 for a child over 7 years old. the 50cc is nice, but the 90 is tame enough to be a "one step" quad for a young rider starting out.

[Pappy]

The second test ride for our older rider netted the same positives and negatives as the first. the power is better then alot of the 4 stroke mini's, but there is not enough snap to keep an older rider happy. Within 20 minutes of the second ride he was complaining it was feeling slow. Top speed is rated at 30mph, and if the clutch was more positive I think this mini would rate higher with me.

[Pappy]

More testing and ride time will level wether this mini can withstand the abuse of 2 very active riders. We plan on putting the Polaris to the test!

Please feel free to ask any questions, and if you have information or your own thoughts please feel free to include them.

[250xdude]

Originally posted by Pappy
I would not think twice about buying the 90 over the 50 for a child over 7 years old. the 50cc is nice, but the 90 is tame enough to be a "one step" quad for a young rider starting out.

I agree, if I could convince people about one thing on a starter quad is go straight to the 90, don't waste your time or money on a 50.


Great review Pappy, better check your frame for cracks with Cody jumping like that.
My biggest pet peave about the pred 90 is they need to gusset the frame out of the factory.

And how did he pop wheelies in stock form like that? My kid couldn't do that till I modified his.

[Pappy]

Originally posted by 250xdude


And how did he pop wheelies in stock form like that? My kid couldn't do that till I modified his.


He cheated by using a small roll in the field to help get the front end light.:D


We did 30 minutes full practice before dark on his practice course, all woods, no mx. His times were very close to what he does on his race 90. And I noticed he was very smooth and not as wore out after the 30 minutes. I can attribute that to not having to shift or work the quad so hard to use the power the 4 stroke 90 offered. the 2 stroke was faster out of corners and appeared more easy to maintain a smooth but accelerated pace.

He wont be jumping this one, that was merely for the pictures. Now I have to decided what mods are needed to get this 90 up to race readiness!

[Pappy]

And he was having a blast riding wheelies up some of the hills on his track!:eek:

[300exOH]

Cool mini pics pappy. My son and daughter have been riding on a scrambler 90x(same as pred 90 minus reverse) for a couple years now and the quad always amazes me. They were able to take to it very quickly and I even have a hard time getting around my boy when we're on tight trails. The only issue we've had with it so far has been the battery/charging system and chain. I would recommend a battery tender and a chain tensioner for it. We have had a couple issues with the chain jumping off when the suspension compresses alot(especially with my 200# butt on it lol). I agree with you on the clutch setup. Our's wheelies pretty easily when you want it too. Can't wait to see what you have in store for the little beast.:scary:

[Spike99]

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Great review on the '06 Pred-90. We have an '03 Pred-90 that's used strickly for trail riding. To me, this mini lacks many basic safety features that trail riding minis must have. Especially for deep trails in the woods with other trail riders. For list of the features I added to our '03 Pred-90, see below:

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I can't tell you why others upgrade their minis but I can tell you the reasons why we upgraded certain parts of '03 Pred-90. Each of our upgrades are based on Mechanical, Safety &/or more bottom end POWER improvements. Ideas that could be applied to your current mini and/or a new one.

Here's a list...

- Spring Loaded Chain Tensioner. I'm lazy. Hated adjusted our chain after every 3rd trail ride. Today, we tighten its chain in the spring and in the fall. And that's it. No fuss / no muss. Besides that, a chain under firm "spring" tensionion reduces the risk of it coming off and reduces chain / sprocket wear. Funny thing is, the '04 and up Pred-90's now comes with a factory chain tensioner. Surf:

http://community.webshots.com/album/108721500mjHKZk


- Installed a rear push bar. This rear bar allows me to pull our Pred-90 in / out of the mud and snow. And, makes it much easier to load on our trailer as well. Much better then its factory 6" rear steel frame loop. Surf:

http://community.webshots.com/album/284404321yqauIv


- Fitted Custom size sprockets. It lowered its tops end speed (from 30 down to 24 mph) but gave our Pred-90 much better "momentim" power on our technical trials. Especially for the ups / downs little hills that have a stream crossing in their valley. Surf:

http://community.webshots.com/album/284402100NAfkOS

Note: Many thanks to Billy Holt at WRH Racing for helping me with this upgrade.


- Designed / Installed Skid Plate. To me, a definate must on our technical trails. With a skid plate, the mini's low profile rolls over logs / rocks instead of its belly digging in. Surf:

http://community.webshots.com/album/284493780TASOxK


- Removed its Oil Injection. This reduced approx. 50% tension on the thumb control. Today, both my kids concentrate on driving instead of looking at their thumb, and trying to re-postion an over sore hand. Surf:

http://community.webshots.com/album/130997005nxNiAA

Note: Many thanks to Billy Holt at WRH Racing for helping me with this upgrade.


- Installed DRLs (Daytime Running Lights). To me, they are a must on all minis. I see the '06 Pred-90s have DRLs. Finally, someone is realizing the increased safety with DRLs and combo tail light. Surf:

http://community.webshots.com/album/283371980xEWfck


- Installed Left side Driving Mirror. With a universal bracket and inexpensive plastic mirror, my son can see who may be sneeking up behind him - on our trails. Instead of turning his head around every minute (or so), he simply looks in his mirror. If someone is behind him, he turns his head to comfirm, he slows and pulls off to the side of the trail. The person goes by and he double checks for followers, then we continue on our way. This mirror dramatically reduces others sneeking up behind us. To me, this should be mandatory on all trail minis.

- Upgraded to 53mm Cylinder / piston with 150 PSI compression (kept stock pipe, air box, carb and CDI). Installed this "internal engine" performance upgrade to obtain more "bottom end" punch for our mud, snow and sand conditions. Due to POWER sprockets and factory CDI, our mini only goes MAX 24 mph. But its bottom end has much more Power. Great for those "help - my rubber boot is stuck" type of mud trails.

Note: Many thanks to Billy Holt at WRH Racing for helping me with this upgrade.


- Installed Foot retainer bars on the running boards. A few times, my son's feet slipped off the Pred-90's running boards. To stop his feet from sliding off, I installed safety bars. I've also seen racers install simular running board lips as well. To me, this "higher lip on the running board" should be mandatory on all minis - that come factory with running boards. Surf:

http://community.webshots.com/album/284377392himalK
http://community.webshots.com/photo/242848150/290216069eeexWK


- Installed 1.5" wheel spacers. If we had the extra dollars, I would have installed 2" A-Arms instead. A-Arms make the mini less tippy and doesn't put more stress on its bushings. Less tipping means less "roller overs" when doing donuts & fish tails. Our son hasn't tipped his mini since installing 1.5" wheel spacers on the front. 2" A-Arms would be much more better. Surf:

http://community.webshots.com/album/209852103mosGcm


- Designed, created and installed Custom foot brake. To me, all minis must come with dual control brakes. Some kids adapt to foot brakes and others to hand levers. From before and after comparisons, both my kids are definate "foot brake" riders. They control its new foot brake much faster & better then its factory hand levers. Perhaps one day, minis will be mandatory with dual control brakes. To me, they should be. Surf:

http://community.webshots.com/album/242848150eXxxII


As noted above.... Our many mods were applied to make our mini SAFER and to create more POWER without making it go faster. Actually, our Pred-90 is now SLOWER then factory. On our trails, we rarely go above 20 mph. Our average down the straights is 12-15 mph. Most of the time, we're in the 5 - 10 mph range.


Sure wish the mini-quad factories would apply these safety items at their factories. Sure would reduce accidents and thus, create better accident stats to our sport.


Hope this helps others....

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[Spike99]

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Another fix I had to apply to our Pred-90....

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During the years, I read 2 reports of young riders driving their Polaris xx minis and without warning, their rear brake suddently stopped working. I remember reading about one kid who was driving down a hill, lost his rear brakes and rolled it at the bottom. Luckily, not too much damage. But the kid could have gotten seriously hurt.

Unknown to many, the left steel bracket on the rear plastic hub guard is designed with a 45 degree angle. This guard bracket can stop the brake arm from being pulled tighter. To verify this design on your mini, remove the plastic guard, get your young rider to squeeze the rear brake lever and watch how the rear parts move. For worn or improperly set brakes, the rear parts will hit this steel 45 degree support bracket.

To eliminate this blockage, remove the 45 degree steel bracket and replace (via welding) with a 90 degree support bracket. For an end result picture, surf:

http://community.webshots.com/photo/284408738/284411901bpVanb

Other pictures within: http://community.webshots.com/album/284408738FRgcEq


Hope this proactively helps other Polaris xx riders....

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[Spike99]

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Another improvement I had to apply to our Pred-90...

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Most minis don't come with a grease fitting in their main Swing Arm bar. They are loaded up with internal grease at factory then "good to go" for a few years . If your mini does lots of water riding or extreme racing, this grease is most often pushed or washed out in very little time. Thus, the bushings within the Swing Arm wear. Dramatic wear on its bushings and thus, inconsistant Chain Alignment and poor handling on sharp corners.

To allow you to add more grease, simply install a grease zerk within the Swing Arm's main bar. For best results, its wise to remove the swing arm, drill the hole, wipe off the drill bit shavings, install the grease zerk, reinstall the swing arm, then pump in the grease - until it comes out one of the ends of the Swing Arm. For me, I crawled under our mini and drilled the hole upwards. I'm sure 99% of the shavings fell on my face. Note: Wear safety glasses for this job. Either self tapping or Push-In grease zerk type will work. If you want more threads on the grease zerk, drill a larger hole, then weld on a concave grounded Nut. A Nut with the same thread size of the grease zerk. What ever works best for you....

For pictures, surf: http://community.webshots.com/album/284538349PdZJcL

Finished result: http://community.webshots.com/photo/284538349/284541087LaRFko

Note: Not too sure if I'd install another grease zerk in the rear hub area again. Lots of work for such little gain - for this specific location. But, I would install another grease zerk in the Swing Arm's main bar again. That one was well worth it. To me, they should all come factory with a grease zerk in this location.

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Before removing the Swing Arm (for best results), clean the main swing arm bar, place a 1" long masking tape in the center and hold the end of your grease gun to this location. Then, mark the tape with a marker. This is done to find the "most comfortable position" when greasing the future grease zerk. Also ensure the grease zerk is in a protected area. I installed my Pred-90's grease zerk pointing downward. From a white board perspective, great location. But... What a pain in "my tail" to reach it with my little grease gun. If the grease zerk was on an upward 45 degree angle, it would have been much better. re: less pain my "my tail" and better protected from our trail junk.


Hope this helps others...

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[Ty1on]

I thought I would share this interesting info with you about the quality of the Polaris Predator 90. I purchased a 05 Predator 90 for my 8 year old son that only weighs 70 lbs and has no riding experience. In the 8 months that he has been riding the 90 he has had the transmission gears and fork selector replaced under warranty in the first 3 months and the replacement parts were on back order for 5 weeks. So in reality this machine has only been ridden for under 100 hours due to the climate where we live and a injury that prevented him from ridding for 6 additional weeks. Last Sunday my son and I were trail riding and he came off a jump and split his main frame in 2 places right under the seat about 2" toward the front of the quad from where the rear shock cross member is welded into the main frame. The frame was broke clean in half on both sides. Luckily I had purchased the quad when Polaris was running a special 6 month extended warranty program and I am still waiting to hear back from the dealer that Polaris will cover this. I should know something by today I was told. If it was up to me Polaris can have this junk quad back and I would look to purchase a more reliable and stronger built quad that can handle a 8 year old first timer that only weighs 70lbs. With my experience and past history with Polaris I am telling you if you own one of theses 05 Predators get rid of it as they are Junk!.

[Pappy]

all of the mini's can stand severe uprading, but they wont because of the increased cost. the frames on almost all the overseas (tiawan and china) are almost identical. we are sure we will break our frame, but we know going in that our kids riding level can do severe damage to any mini quad we place him on.

other predator 90 riders we have talked with have had all the usual mini quad issues and these quads are raced so i would have to assume you have a true defect on your hands.

keep us posted on how well you are treated by Polaris.

[Ty1on]

Out of curiosity while I was waiting on my dealer to call this repair into Polaris for approval I contacted Polaris inquiring about the availability of a new frame since my sons is still under warranty and was told it is on backorder until October 28. This will break my sons heart when I tell him he will need to wait this long for a repair once again. They can take this quad and shove it. I am contacting Polaris Corporate and letting them know this is un-acceptable.

[fastmini]

Sweet quad pappy! Those preditors are good looking bikes.