OZ ATV :: The Australian ATV Forum

[rooster1843]

Guys & Gals, was wondering your thoughts on the current crop of Quads coming out of China. I know I know, your saying dont touch em, that being said, I need a quad that will probably get about 30 to 40 hrs use a year. Iam a fair bit older than most of you but due to injuries over the years i can no longer ride my 2 wheeler hunting so will have to revert to quad, not that iam worried they look like a hell of a lot of fun. I have been looking at a 250cc, must be air cooled as I dont think the water cooled machines would go much on just poking around the scrub, I think they would over heat. From looking on the net, all your Named brands are just out of my $ range. are members able to recommend or not one make over another and why?????
regards Rooster
_________________
Info most things to do with speed either participating or watching, enjoy keeping our 'ferrel' population in check and chasing that infernal little white ball

[skidplate]

Rooster, the Chinese quads are a bit like all of the Chinese manufacturing.
They seem to look the same, but the quality isn't there.
My friend once bought a container of Chinese motorised scooters.
He had to refund every single customer, 100%.
Suggest secondhand Japanese stuff.

[Dino]

I can only say that mine has been a great ride. But the REAL manufacturer has credentials that many don't.
i.e. it has been a major component manufacturer for the big name "Japanese" and the odd "American" brands for over 20 years.
That said, one of our kids bought a bargain, brand new 250 MX stlyle quad.
No parts, no "dealer back-up", no ride real lot.
He can get neither swingarm nor components so no joy for him.
And that is typical of the many varied and short term importers/imposters.
And mine has carried us , legal 2-up, through a few Qld summers now, water cooled and all, with very little to complain about.
Beats the 2 wheelers for hunting BIG time, and the BIG names are simply not 5,6 or 7 grand better......
Buy what you want, sensibly treated, most quads will do the job.
_________________
Remember. We elect politicians, but we have to deal with bureaucracy.
Notice that crazy in the bureaucrats.

[howler]

do a search on google and reveiw each make is the best way ,some have clutches and some are semi auto so keep an eye on that as well,i think a semi auto would be better in the scrub ,,cheers jas
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allways in the "profanity removed",its just the depth that varies

[rooster1843]

skidplate wrote:

Rooster, the Chinese quads are a bit like all of the Chinese manufacturing. They seem to look the same, but the quality isn't there. My friend once bought a container of Chinese motorised scooters. He had to refund every single customer, 100%. Suggest secondhand Japanese stuff.

Skidplate, I agree, BUT, I could purchase 2 brand new Chinese for the cost of a secondhand Jap make. What iam trying to establish is of the Chinese brands, has anyone had any dealings with or know someone who has had dealings with something that is of reasonable quality/parts back up. I just cant justify to the 'treasurer' spending upwards of 4 - 5 g's on a quad that I will forseeably only use 4 to 5 times a year. If you get my drift
regards Rooster
_________________
Info most things to do with speed either participating or watching, enjoy keeping our 'ferrel' population in check and chasing that infernal little white ball

[wa5]

If you are patient, you will pick up a half decent Jap agi quad for less than $2500.
Sure, it will probably be around ten years old, But It will still be a better bike than a new Chinese bike.

[Mart 300r]

wa5 wrote:

If you are patient, you will pick up a half decent Jap agi quad for less than $2500. Sure, it will probably be around ten years old, But It will still be a better bike than a new Chinese bike.

Totally agree on that.
_________________
1984 ATC 300R, 1986 TRX 500R,1984 ATC 200X, ATC 70 WITH CUSTOM LAYDOWN 250R ENGINE, 125CC CUSTOM THUMPSTER TRIKE

[sideways]

I've a 250cc Chinese dirt bike for a few years now, apart for adjusting the chain (which seems to be made of this special elastic steel! ) I haven't had to replace any parts or do any maintenance. I'l get around to changing th oil one of these years .

Mine's an 2007 Atomik Kuda 250, basically a generic 250cc bike under a Chinese brand name. The engine (which believe it or not, was designed by the Chinese and has push rods!) has the flattest power curve of any bike I have ever ridden, tons of torque, it'l chug through anything at idle in first gear. Does about 120 flat out and is still pulling but runs out of revs, most Chinese bikes are geared really high, mines not too bad though. 1st gear is a crawler gear, does about walking pace at full revs, on quads with that engine, 1st gear is replaced with a reverse gear.

It's quick enough to KILL the TRX500FM farm bike we have in a drag race! No contest there at all!

The suspension is quite good, quads tend to be a bit stiff though, the brakes are AWESOME! You can pull endos all day with those!

Bad stuff, the seat appears to be made from this special foam that is harder than steel! The air filter is absolutely useless, its just a thin bit of foam, you can see through it no worries, it just stops the big bits, dirt goes right through it. The standard battery is pretty bad, you can always kick start the bike though, or you could if the kick starter wasn't so badly designed, you can get about 1/6th or a kick out of it. The plastics could be better, they aren't exactly horrible though, they don't bend as much a "brand name" ones do. Oh, and there's the chain that stretches so much I swear it's made from some kind of elastic steel!

The gearbox in mine is a bit iffy, I've done plenty of full throttle clutch dumping though, it's near impossible to get it to go into neutral, it's one of those gearboxes where neutral is between 1st and 2nd and the change is just too stiff. It never used to be so bad.

Based on my experiences I would recommend one, you can get one cheaper than a dead 1980s 250cc "brand name" farm bike. Seems like pretty good buying to me.

Thanks

Hayden

[triple"A"]

buying any chinese product requires that you do your homework

the issues are not limited to being made in china either, many times you will be dissapointed by a minor problem that cant or wont be resolved, by a dodgy australian importer or distributor.

look for a supplier of iso accredited product. most reputable resellers will be completely honest in telling you what factory the product is made in.

scour the internet for credentials on the factory, in many cases you will find that the factory has a website, and a representative you can contact via email.

choose a brand or reseller that has a good reputation in chinese products. in the case of quads and dirt bikes, victorian motorcycle imports in melbourne, and zuma products in wollongong, have been dealing with chinese gear successfully for the best part of 10 years. there are others too but i'm not confident i'll quote they're trading name accurately. one in slacks creek queensland i reckon.

seek out testimonies from happy and perhaps not so happy owners. but make sure you talk to people who actually owned the product, not people just repeating something they heard in the pub. after all, i have heard stories about people not liking their toyota landcruiser, for whatever reason, but that doesnt stop millions of them being in service throughout the world.

good luck

[rooster1843]

Hayden & Tripple A, thanks for that, ive actually been leaning towards the Atomik since deciding to buy, its just difficult to actually correspond with anyone that has actually owned one, I too bought a chinese 250 2 wheeler about 3 years ago 'a Goldbull' it too has an elastic chain or I should say it use to. it has not given any problems whatsoever its just with my knees the way they are now standing up over rough terrain plays hell with em to the point where an afternoon in the Mt Mee state forrest has me regretting it for 3 to 4 days besides which 30kg of Staghound x Bull arab is a little bit hard to juggle
Thanks guys
regards Rooster
_________________
Info most things to do with speed either participating or watching, enjoy keeping our 'ferrel' population in check and chasing that infernal little white ball

[wa5]

triple"A" wrote:

buying any chinese product requires that you do your homework the issues are not limited to being made in china either, many times you will be dissapointed by a minor problem that cant or wont be resolved, by a dodgy australian importer or distributor. look for a supplier of iso accredited product. most reputable resellers will be completely honest in telling you what factory the product is made in. scour the internet for credentials on the factory, in many cases you will find that the factory has a website, and a representative you can contact via email. choose a brand or reseller that has a good reputation in chinese products. in the case of quads and dirt bikes, victorian motorcycle imports in melbourne, and zuma products in wollongong, have been dealing with chinese gear successfully for the best part of 10 years. there are others too but i'm not confident i'll quote they're trading name accurately. one in slacks creek queensland i reckon. seek out testimonies from happy and perhaps not so happy owners. but make sure you talk to people who actually owned the product, not people just repeating something they heard in the pub. after all, i have heard stories about people not liking their toyota landcruiser, for whatever reason, but that doesnt stop millions of them being in service throughout the world. good luck

Or just buy a Honda.

[sideways]

rooster1843 wrote:

Hayden & Tripple A, thanks for that, ive actually been leaning towards the Atomik since deciding to buy, its just difficult to actually correspond with anyone that has actually owned one, I too bought a chinese 250 2 wheeler about 3 years ago 'a Goldbull' it too has an elastic chain or I should say it use to. it has not given any problems whatsoever its just with my knees the way they are now standing up over rough terrain plays hell with em to the point where an afternoon in the Mt Mee state forrest has me regretting it for 3 to 4 days besides which 30kg of Staghound x Bull arab is a little bit hard to juggle Thanks guys regards Rooster

An Atomik would be good, apparently they have good parts back up, they're usually cheaper too.

A slight twist on the theme, once I get a MIG welder (soon, hopefulley) I'm going to convert my Atomik dirt bike into a quad. Weld some mounts for a bearing carrier to the original swing arm, I'l make my own front part of the frame and my own A arms, use the hubs and front brake off another quad ect ect. Should be awesome!

Thanks

Hayden

[Dino]

"Hoody", on the forum here, had a Atomic 4wd for a while. His 1st quad I think.
I rode it briefly, and checked it out. certainly OK for the money.
It would probably do what you want Rooster.
Front and rear racks with Hi/Low CVT, "farm" style quad.
CVT being a lot easier to handle than a manual, and for what you've described you'd like to do, it would certainly do the job.
_________________
Remember. We elect politicians, but we have to deal with bureaucracy.
Notice that crazy in the bureaucrats.

Last edited by Dino on Sat Jan 08, 2011 1:22 am; edited 1 time in total

[mickey_079]

I've been there and I've done that. In all honesty stay away from them.

Yes, they are cheap but like anythng, what you pay is what you get, every ride something will fall off and break, and parts surprisingly are NOT cheap for these bikes. If you get them rec. registered you will find if a claim comes around your insurance won't pay out, why? Because even though Jap quads don't pass compliance they still pass Aust. Standards which chinese bikes don't. Do yourself the favour buy 2nd hand!

Parts for 2nd hand bikes can be picked up next to nothing from ebay and Australia has HEAPS of quad wreckers now!

I bought a chinese bike for my ex and here is the list of problem I experienced in the first 2 weeks:

* engine mounts came loose, even with loctite applied
* chain stretched
* foul smell from tyres and grips
* throttle cable snapped
* engine leaked oil from all gaskets
* rear suspension bent
* electrics stopped working when they got wet
* no kick starter for back up
* no stator
* constantly found metal shavings in the oil
* two tyres went down all the time
* steering system bent on 4th ride, it was going to cost more the replace the parts then purchase a new bike

Honestly the list just keeps going. If you are going to buy chinese stay away from ASONLINE!!!! Very important, their bikes are rubbish and go faster in reverse.

I saw a chinese bike on the dunes just before christmas and couldn't help but laugh to myself, it struggled to get up hills and slowly putted along on the flat stuff!

[jono10]

I bought a import quad for my 9 year old son off ebay, under 500 dollars landed in my driveway. He has given it a good riding over the last 12 months and all good.

[ozquad44]

Very hit and miss with chinese Quads. Some are pure evil, some seem half reasonable. I think its a case of buyer beware. I'f I was running around a hobby farm. Sure a chinese quad may fit the bill. But If I was going off the beaten track there is no way I would trust one just yet.

Just out of interest. I would love to see a comparison of the 250cc sport quads that are out there ATM, there is a few about and it would be nice see what they'e like compared to the Jap 250's.

I'm guessing some of them would be quite quick, probably quicker than the Jap 250's. But I'm also assuming the suspension would suck big time, the ergonomics would be wrong, the steering heavy, and they would handle like crappoa. But I might be wrong?
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State governments give us REC rego + area to ride ATVs legaly! State Status: VIC-No (Nazi's) QLD-Yes(no place to ride tho) NT-? NSW-Yes, Stockton. TAS-Yes, Areas for ATVs + ATV rego, Go Tazzie . WA-Yes, 2 top places within 1hr of Perth. ACT-? SA-No

[triple"A"]

ozquad44 wrote:

Very hit and miss with chinese Quads. Some are pure evil, some seem half reasonable. I think its a case of buyer beware. I'f I was running around a hobby farm. Sure a chinese quad may fit the bill. But If I was going off the beaten track there is no way I would trust one just yet. Just out of interest. I would love to see a comparison of the 250cc sport quads that are out there ATM, there is a few about and it would be nice see what they'e like compared to the Jap 250's. I'm guessing some of them would be quite quick, probably quicker than the Jap 250's. But I'm also assuming the suspension would suck big time, the ergonomics would be wrong, the steering heavy, and they would handle like crappoa. But I might be wrong?

that's pretty much the way it is

[phrozin]

there's a fair bit of crap posted here about the Chinese quads they all have problems we are the same we did the Chinese thing at first we brought the so called quality 1s @ 3k a piece and I got to tell you there down right dangerous and so unreliable its not funny

I have had a fair bit to do with them none of them can keep a chain on for love or money, they don't run swing arm bearings they run rubber bushes which flex under power and last about 10 min's throwing the chain every time the swing are moves,

none of them will hit 120ks for love or money thats just plain bull shine cricky our 450's are hard pressed to hit that its more like 80's only way a Chinese quad will beat a jap quad is if my granny was riding the jap, the frames are made of the worse steel I have ever seen, my lads 250 bent the rear shock mount like butter, he and my self have torn off a rear wheel off them and thats a thrill in a flat out bend i can tell you

can you get a good 1? yes but it will cost as much as a second hand jap and the jap will still be better and more reliable, the cheaper 1's expect to drop at least 2k on top of the purchase price to get it half reliable and safe or able to go anywhere near a drop of water. they need swing arm bearings or nylon bushes to keep the chain on, chain slider fitted, decent new alloy wheels, decent brakes about 20 starter solenoids and need to swap out just about every bolt on them as there the softest mild steel wheel nuts need swapping out as well as the threads just pull out of the nuts

bottom line there is a reason there cheap there made of rubbish plain and simple if they were made with quality gear they would cost as much as a jap quad some ppls are under the impression the Chinese quad sales guys are doing them a favour and give you the old "jap quads are over priced" line there not there just trying to make a quick buck once you hand over the cash your on your own. Been there done that


save your money and grab a branded quad youll be glad you did leve the junk at the junk yard