What quad should I buy

[Pavoneson1205]

Alright, I NEED a project for this summer. I'm kind of tired of my friends warrior being faster then my 250x. So what would be a good quad to buy for a project. I'm looking to spend around 800 for the project quad and like 200-300 on repairs. Something thats faster then a warrior. (not a 400ex, i had one and it was a bomb my mom wont let me get another one lol)
thanks for your help!

[HondaPohl]

What was wrong with your 400? Ive never meet anyone who did not like there 400ex. One of the best all around quads ever built. Now to beat your friends warrior, your gonna have to go 400cc or bigger or 2 stroke. You could most likely find a beat up suzuki lt250r or something for that price. Dont expect to find anything decent for that price.

[Pavoneson1205]

every time i took the thing out it broke...the battery would fall out and rip the wires and the axel bearing locked up 10 miles into trails..i HATED that quad

[HondaPohl]

maintenance helps. Not saying that you didnt take care of it but that **** happens when there not maintained.

[TheLane]

My buddy got a 2004 400 ex for 900 that all it had wrong was a dirty carb and the head gasket was leaking. 2 hours of work and he had an awesome ex. The guy just went to a dealer and they quoted him some rediculous price to fix it so he sold it for cheap. so there are deals like that out there!


and you can blame bearings failing on the quad lol! :P thats just what happens to bearings man.

and your battery falling out sounds like a fluke to me, but things like that can be avoided by doing a once over on your quad every time you ride to check all your bolts and screws and parts to make sure everythings in order.

[Pavoneson1205]

i know man but i mean i got tired of fixing it and i dont want to buy one again...so lt250r?

[HondaPohl]

I had one. It was fast. If you want to go 2-Stroke, your big 3 are the Honda 250r which was the best all around. Was not the fastest but def ahead of its time. The Kawasaki Tecate 4 was the fasted 250 2 stroke but handled like ****. I had one. The suzuki 250r was good. Handled better than the tecate but not as good as the honda. They made them up untill 93 i think. I see them all the time for cheap. Ones that need work.

[CJM]

honda 450r

your moms an idiot if she wont let you get another 400ex, you bought a bum one it happens there are plenty of good ones.

Plus if your buying it how can she dictate what you can get?

But for 800 and project thats what you get-a busted quad. spend 500 more and you will find better quality ones.

[Pavoneson1205]

well its not like she definitely wont let get one me but i wasted so much money on the 400 that she thinks its a bad idea

[CJM]

I see.

But like I said, for the price oyu pay your taking a gamble b/c not everyone had a clue or is honest about what they sell. Friend of mine has replaced so much its insane, the previous owner destroyed every single bolt in the topend, the bearings went, timing chain issues, etc. Now its decided its gonna smoke like all heck and we just got the topend sorted out good.

[400thacker]

IMO

spend the 800 on the 250x then burn his ***.
for $800 you could make a fire breathing 250X that should beat the warrior with no problem. You already have a good platform to start with and you are familar with the quad.

are you trying to beat him in the woods or on the drag strip thats another question.

$1000 should get you a higher compression piston, carb jets, exhaust, have bigger valves put in the head and possibly a stroker crank. then you could go with 400ex a arms and shocks which are cheap just to make her handle better.

everytime i buy a real cheap quad like that as a project, it usually turns into more money than I thought to begin with.

[400thacker]

did I mention a 350x swap? those things run GOOD if you can find one

[backwoods 400ex]

in my opinion 400ex.. bearings go out over time thats just the way life goes and with your batery falling out was the battery straps on? i have a 400ex and i love it hardly any problems at all knock on wood lol but i think you just got a bad 400ex i think a 400ex will get you everytrhing you want youll be able to beat the warrior and they handle great thats just my opion defidently stick with a Honda though but i also agree with just building up the quad you have now

[Pavoneson1205]

yeah the jerk off who sold it to me barley got it running to sell it..but i found a 1997 scramber 400 4x4 2 stroke for 1200 that im gonna go look at soon

[CJM]

^ theres a reason those things is cheap, beware they arent very good quads.

[Pavoneson1205]

hows that?

[CJM]

Originally posted by Pavoneson1205
hows that?

Just arent built very well imho. The belts tend to wear out every few months, the gear range is odd (like you can never find the right one it seems), hard to find parts for (for me at least there isnt a polaris dealer for MILES), annoying to work on, etc.

2 strokes cool, but not that one. remember you gotta care for and rebuild them more unlike a 4 stroke.


Course, I am biased. But like I said the there is a reason the same year comparable 400ex will sell for much more than a scrambler will. Ive seen them floating around craigslist for eons, they never seem to sell.

[Pavoneson1205]

**** i would have to rebuild it alot? like how often?

[CJM]

Originally posted by Pavoneson1205
**** i would have to rebuild it alot? like how often?

Depends on how much you ride it. Friend of mine rebuilds his banshee and blaster at least 1x a year if not more depending on how much use they get. A 2 strokes piston regularly revs out to much higher RPMS than a 4 stroke ever will, just the nature of the best.

You do also realize your gonna want to mix the gas and not trust the oil injection (if that polaris even has one) too.

Dont get me wrong, a 2 stroke can be reliable-just needs more work more often to make sure its in tip top shape.

[Pavoneson1205]

they are oil injection, but im not sure if i want to keep rebuilding the engine

[CJM]

Just a fact of life with a 2 stroke man. You always have to rebuild any atv or bike oyu buy, but a 4 stroke you can run for a much longer time in between rebuilds.

Its not hard tearing down a 2 stroke either, just takes some time and elbow grease.

Good luck with whatever you get :)

[TheLane]

not only that if your looking to beat a warrior lol....a scrambler is not going to do that very well. it sounds to me like you enjoy wrenching and are too competetive to own a 4x4 pos.

[beastlywarrior]

your only good options seem to get a cheap 400ex, a warrior or do some motor work to your 250x

[CJM]

Could spring for a kfx400 or z-400, they are actually pretty good quads and sometimes the kawi can be had cheaper.

[ds19]

If i were you I would save like 500 more$ Buy a z400 or kfx400. You could get a decent one for 1500. If you spend like 2,000 you might get lucky and find a 450r and really smoke a warrior.

[waahehe94]

The Scrambler isn't a bad ATV, but the chasis design of it is geared more towards a sport/utility quad rather than a sport quad like the 250X or a racing quad like the 450 class quads.Compared to your 250X the Scrambler is going to sit higher, weigh around 120 lbs more, not brake as well and not handle as well as your 250X.In stock form the Scrambler isn't going to compare very well to a 4-stoke sport quad of similar engine size in anything other than a dragrace.

The good things about the Scrambler is that it's motor has much more potential for modding than the 250X does and you can also set the Scrambler's primary and secondary clutches up in the automatic transmission to peform really well with just a spring change.You can also make the Scrambler handle better by making it wider and switching to more aggressive tires, but it's always going to sit higher than a sport quad and not handle nearly as well as one.

Here's some pictures of my 1999 Polaris Sport 400 that I race at my local ATV Rodeo's, flattrack races, dirt drag's and IHRA Dragstrip.It has a race ported cylinder, 12-1 compression dome in a Hot Seat Performance head, 42mm TMX carb, V Force reedcage, K&N filter, HPD race pipe, roller secondary clutch, different primary spring, different gearing, a Nitrous Oxide Systems wet kit, some suspension work and too much more to list.Once you reach the point where I'm at with mods you tend to forget about Warrior's and focus more on Banshee's.

http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o191/waahehe94/P1000998-1.jpg
http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o191/waahehe94/P1000991.jpg
http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o191/waahehe94/vlcsnap-2011-02-09-11h38m14s129.png
http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o191/waahehe94/vlcsnap-2010-11-25-15h28m44s6.png

[Pavoneson1205]

Update! I dont want to deal wih the hassel of chain drive scramblers but i did find a 2003 banshee for 1100! It needs a little work like bearings and brake pades etc. but the guy jut rebuild the engine!

[CJM]

Cant beat that so long as it runs well.

Remember ditch the oil injection on those 2 strokes and mix it yourself and go a bit heavy on the oil. More oil is better than less in those things.

[Pavoneson1205]

Thanks for the info..and the banshee will beat the ***** out of the warrior!

[Duf6]

^^thats an understatment