ATV for 15 year old girl

[_42]

I'm new to ATVs and just bought myself a 400ex. When i told my sister about it she said her daughter was wanting a 4-wheeler and they might get her one for her birthday. They asked my opinion, but I didn't know what to recommend. She will be 15 this year she's about 5'7" tall, but very skinny. What would be a good ATV for her? I don't know what kind of riding she would be doing, she probably doesn't know what kind of riding she wants to do. If she goes with me she'll be trail riding. Any suggestions?

[ridered92]

has she had rode a quad before? i would recomend a 250ex just because it dosent have a manual clutch.

o and welcome to the site

[tar]

300ex!!perfect quad to learn on and it's indestructible.

[RideRed84]

I would go with the 250 over the 300. It's plenty of power and less maintenance. I bought one for my girlfriend and I even take it out sometimes. Great little quad.

[r-exrider0003]

if she's never rode any quad at all, id say 250ex. but if she knows somewhat how to ride, teach her how to drive a clutch and get her a 300ex.

[elmer91]

i agree with everyone else. go for a 250ex if she has never rode. It would be even better if it was a newer one, with the way the clutch it, where it teaches you to use it. if she knows somewhat on how to ride, 300ex. if you dont want a honda, get the yamaha warrior, or the raptor 350. but honda would be the better choice.

[klutch]

300EX! Its perfect bulletproof. My younger sister is 14. Her first ATV is her 300EX she learned how to ride clutch in a few hours. She is around 5"4 and very skinny too.

[Hondamaster5505]

250EX for my vote.

If shes just getting into ATV's, the 300 isn't a good choice. I notice many new riders, mostly girls, have a lot of trouble riding a full clutch for the first time.

As long as she gets a newer 250ex, she could learn to use the clutch as she gets better because of the sport clutch.

Just my $.02

[pro-rider46]

300ex imo, i started on a 450r when i was 13, and i havent killed myself yet...

[Bradracer18]

We have three girls in our "group" that have just started riding, and all of them started out on a 250ex. Its a great start up quad, and easy to maintain for the parents!

[BlaineKaiser450]

300ex. I started with a 250x (same thing) and the clutch took me 10 minutes,.... and in 2 years i was riding a full mx track clearin 50 foot tables with it while it was still stock. Definatly get her the 300. Perfect quad IMO

[400exrider989]

Banshee, or LT500R both great starters, i got my banshee when i was 13, LOL but for a girl 250ex or 300ex depends on how brave she is

[my88r]

300ex is a good choice.

[Regular_Joe]

I vote 250ex. Its going to be plenty fast for her.

[Johnny Minehan]

Blaster!;)

[quad2xtreme]

I would look at the new Yamaha 250 too. It is very lightweight compared to the 300ex.

[klutch]

If she really wants to get into riding... she will be bored with the 250EX FAST. My 14 year old sister loves her 300EX. She learned how to ride clutch with in a few minutes on a Z400. Then rode trails a few days later on her 300EX for the first time.

[Regular_Joe]

Who gets bored of a 250ex ..... its so much fun on the trails. Its an overall great quad. No need to worry about the clutch, better ground clearance, no chain maintenance, and wheelies like mad. I have a 4x4, a Banshee, a 400ex, and a 250ex. Out of those the 250ex and the 4x4 are ridden the most by far. The Banshee and 400ex are fun to rip on in the fields for a while, but for average riding, the 250ex is where its at.

[Hondamaster5505]

Originally posted by Foxracing1762
Blaster!;)

Actually, I change my vote and agree.

Blaster is a great learner bike, yet still pretty damn quick for when she gets better. For her weight and size, it'd be great!

[bwamos]

I'm leaning toward the Raptor250. Being 14. 5'-7" and probably about 110lbs she's most likley at her peak height (as opposed to guys) and wont be growing much more. The raptor250 is very lightweight and nimble (lighter than the blaster). Should be a rock solid motor. And, has a fairly smooth powercurve.

[quad2xtreme]

Originally posted by bwamos
I'm leaning toward the Raptor250. Being 14. 5'-7" and probably about 110lbs she's most likley at her peak height (as opposed to guys) and wont be growing much more. The raptor250 is very lightweight and nimble (lighter than the blaster). Should be a rock solid motor. And, has a fairly smooth powercurve.

Hit Pappy up with a PM. He can give you the low-down on the Raptor 250. He got one for Cody. Given her weight, I would definitely feel better about her riding a lighter weight machine. Just think, if she grows 4 more inches and lost 15 lbs, she could be a runway model. lol :eek:

[reptikes]

Originally posted by klutch
If she really wants to get into riding... she will be bored with the 250EX FAST. My 14 year old sister loves her 300EX. She learned how to ride clutch with in a few minutes on a Z400. Then rode trails a few days later on her 300EX for the first time.

Agree completely. Plus, the newer 250ex teaches you nothing at all about a clutch because you don't even have to use it on the 250ex.

[WB450r]

Originally posted by pro-rider46
300ex imo, i started on a 450r when i was 13, and i havent killed myself yet...

same here..started on a 450r when i was 15..no experience at all..after 2 years of riding and getting to no my 450..im now racing...some people learn faster than others..i would say get the 300ex..learn to use to clutch and great power for a beginner...

[krt400ex]

i started on a 300ex when i was fourteen. i would definately recommend one of those to start with. they are nearly impossible to stall for beginners because first is so low, so it is easy to learn a clutch. my sister learned how to ride it when she was 12 and she had never had any experience on a quad before. they are super reliable...i always maintained the quad until i sold it to my parents. it now hasnt had an oil change for a yr and a half(not a good thing IMO), but it hasnt burned any oil and still runs like a top. it has the original engine in there with over 600 hrs on it, and it runs like new. the only probnlem i see with them is that the reverse is not easy to actuate, but oncve you get the hang of it, it is a no brainer.

[ZSNOW]

blaster, great for a learner. and they were around so long as soon as she wants more power she can upgrade it pretty much to anything she wants

[Ruby Soho]

id say 250ex or 300ex. if shes serious about it 300ex, but if she doesnt seem like she's going to get into the sport seriously then get the 250ex

[ZSNOW]

ruby just wants to bash on yamis:devil: hahaha jk dude

[HondaRancherES]

Why not a utility? I've been on a 350 Rancher ES since I was 15

[trx400exxracer]

250ex


or 300ex with rekluse auto clutch so that way she could grow into it without having to sell the 250 later on!

[krt400ex]

why is everyone saying that it is best to learn with an auto clutch? at some point in time you will have to learn if you want a better machine. IMO a clutch is the best.

here is why i would shy away from the 250ex...when she gets better and wants more power or wants to modify a little...the 250 is very limited in the aftermarket, and it is shaft driven which means that the only way to change the gearing is through tires...and it already come with 22's. to up the gearing you would have to go with bigger tires which is completely unreasonable.

there are tons of mods for the 300ex and it is wider stock so it is more stable. it is chain driven, so when you modify you can adjust the gearing as well if you would like to get a little more top speed out of it. you can put smaller 20 inch tires on it for more stability and still retain plenty of ground clearance for trails...but you would need to adjust the gearing for that too. with a 250ex, you would never be able to do that. with 20in rears the thing would only run about 42mph top speed. on the 300, it does about 52 stock, with 20's on the back it would do about 47, but you can easily fix it with a gearing change.

[06YFZ450SE]

My first clutch quad was a 350 Warrior back in 99 I was 16 years old and it was a fun quad till 06 I got this YFZ450 and the warrior is parked and dont get riding. For a girl being 15 this summer I would pick a 250 Raptor or the 350 warrior/Raptor. I would stay away from 2 stroke to much mantance. But Iam a Yamaha/4stroke guy.

[krt400ex]

Originally posted by 06YFZ450SE
My first clutch quad was a 350 Warrior back in 99 I was 16 years old and it was a fun quad till 06 I got this YFZ450 and the warrior is parked and dont get riding. For a girl being 15 this summer I would pick a 250 Raptor or the 350 warrior/Raptor. I would stay away from 2 stroke to much mantance. But Iam a Yamaha/4stroke guy.


2 strokes are much MUCH less maintenance than 4 strokes. i dont know where you got the idea that they werent from

[06YFZ450SE]

Originally posted by krt400ex
2 strokes are much MUCH less maintenance than 4 strokes. i dont know where you got the idea that they werent from

I had a cousins with a blaster and he rebuilt his motor like 3 times in one year he would lock it up and my warrior is alomost 10 years old and havent had to rebuild it once. I had a cousin with a RM250 Dirt bike and it locked up on him too. They where all 2 strokes . Ive had my YFZ450 for almost 2 years and it runs like a top and I dog the **** out of it.

[Hondamaster5505]

Originally posted by 06YFZ450SE
I had a cousins with a blaster and he rebuilt his motor like 3 times in one year he would lock it up and my warrior is alomost 10 years old and havent had to rebuild it once. I had a cousin with a RM250 Dirt bike and it locked up on him too. They where all 2 strokes . Ive had my YFZ450 for almost 2 years and it runs like a top and I dog the **** out of it.

He must of had one crappy blaster then:huh

I had my blaster for 3 years and never did any big maintainence to it, except fill the oil tank up.

Not ONE single problem the whole three years. Never hinted anything!

I hate when people have one friend who had something cruddy and assumed all the other ones are also.

[06YFZ450SE]

Originally posted by Hondamaster5505
He must of had one crappy blaster then:huh

I had my blaster for 3 years and never did any big maintainence to it, except fill the oil tank up.

Not ONE single problem the whole three years. Never hinted anything!

I hate when people have one friend who had something cruddy and assumed all the other ones are also.

Hes not the only one I know that had problems with a 2 stroke. Ive had a cousin with a banshee and another one with a blaster did the same thing happened to it. They all with blasters took the oil tank off and mixed there gas and oil together. Now there on all 4 stroke quads and happy.

[Hondamaster5505]

Originally posted by 06YFZ450SE
Hes not the only one I know that had problems with a 2 stroke. Ive had a cousin with a banshee and another one with a blaster did the same thing happened to it. They all with blasters took the oil tank off and mixed there gas and oil together. Now there on all 4 stroke quads and happy.

The kid on the blaster must have mixed the gas wrong and didnt put enough oil in. I left the injection on and it was problem-free for 3 years.

As far as the banshee, if they're are done and tuned right, they last a decent while.

Also, all 2-strokes don't last as long as older 4-strokes. But, 2-strokes are much simpler and cheaper to rebuild.

[06YFZ450SE]

yup thats what I told him that he must have had the mixture wrong. I have never rebuilt a 2 stroke or 4 stroke so I dont know how much it costs...

Back on subject 300EX,Raptor 350 If you like a 2 stroke then Blaster.