School me on ATVs

[Buff]

EPS (Electric Power Steering) is great for taking away bump steer and reduces rider fatigue, especially for women and younger kids.

[Bailey Guns]

EPS (Electric Power Steering) is great for taking away bump steer and reduces rider fatigue, especially for women and younger kids.

I don't know anything about ATVs. But you're right about EPS. I'm on my third Mule and it has EPS. Steering is far and away better than the other 2. I'll never go without EPS again on this type of vehicle.

[chuckchili]

My advice would be patient and wait for good deals to come along. The winter may be the best time to buy. If I was in the market to buy another, would absolutely insist on fuel injection and would look very hard at models with power steering. If I were to need a trailer for two four wheelers, I would look at a used Echo two-place. They seem well made, light and have good resale value. You can find them pretty regularly on CL for less than a grand.

[sniper7]

Will agree with the echo trailers, I’ve had 3 and really like them. Move around by hand, good clearance, good strength, plenty of tie downs. Would get a little better tires than stock but that goes for about all trailers. For the 2 up models, look for the extra wide style so you can side load them.
Steel decks so no wood to warp or rot. Integrated ramps hold 2k pounds no problem.

[brutal]

My advice would be patient and wait for good deals to come along. The winter may be the best time to buy. If I was in the market to buy another, would absolutely insist on fuel injection and would look very hard at models with power steering. If I were to need a trailer for two four wheelers, I would look at a used Echo two-place. They seem well made, light and have good resale value. You can find them pretty regularly on CL for less than a grand.

Waiting is wise right now. With C19 everyone is out doing stuff and the prices are high on all toys.

Twice I've tried to buy a used echo trailer but the idiots on FB marketplace put in a cell contact only the FB blocked and wouldn't respond to any messages. Grrr.

In the end, I think I'm just going to get a 14' 3-place for not much more money. I can then load 2 rear ramp load if needed.

[Erni]

Thanks for all the info. Did not even know Chinese ATVs were an option, but staying away from them. What I see on CL is about $4500 for used ones. I think they are the older ones without FI. The offerings look sparse and I guess everyone is Covid riding out there.

[brutal]

Thanks for all the info. Did not even know Chinese ATVs were an option, but staying away from them. What I see on CL is about $4500 for used ones. I think they are the older ones without FI. The offerings look sparse and I guess everyone is Covid riding out there.

For small bore machines, you can do a new one for $1k more. Not sure you'll get EPS for that.

[ray1970]

Since you?re looking for opinions I?ll toss more your way and disagree with most of the other guys here.

You don?t need to spend $4K on a machine. You don?t need electronic steering. You don?t need fuel injection either. You also don?t really some 700cc behemoth of a machine.

I suppose those things are nice and if it?s what you want and it?s in your budget I definitely wouldn?t talk you out of it.

I?ve ridden hundreds and hundreds of miles of mountain trails on a carbureted, 300cc machine with a solid rear axle and no electronic steering and not only is it perfectly doable but it?s perfectly fun.

I don?t ride too many trails where a guy would want to go fifty miles an hour on a large, heavy machine. 95% of my riding is slow, technical stuff and my ATV is perfectly fine. The other 5% is typically on some sort of decent fire road getting to and from the trails and I?m perfectly happy to tool along at 30-35 mph on those trails. Even without the fuel injection I?ve ridden up over 12,000 feet with no problems and in temperatures from about 15 to 95 degrees and the thing always starts right up and runs and idles just fine.

Like I said, the fancy stuff and bells and whistles are fine and I?m sure some of that stuff is nice but if I had a dollar for every time I?ve towed one of those things back to camp with my little dinosaur I could probably buy a vente chai latte from Starbucks.

[buffalobo]

Since you?re looking for opinions I?ll toss more your way and disagree with most of the other guys here.

You don?t need to spend $4K on a machine. You don?t need electronic steering. You don?t need fuel injection either. You also don?t really some 700cc behemoth of a machine.

I suppose those things are nice and if it?s what you want and it?s in your budget I definitely wouldn?t talk you out of it.

I?ve ridden hundreds and hundreds of miles of mountain trails on a carbureted, 300cc machine with a solid rear axle and no electronic steering and not only is it perfectly doable but it?s perfectly fun.

I don?t ride too many trails where a guy would want to go fifty miles an hour on a large, heavy machine. 95% of my riding is slow, technical stuff and my ATV is perfectly fine. The other 5% is typically on some sort of decent fire road getting to and from the trails and I?m perfectly happy to tool along at 30-35 mph on those trails. Even without the fuel injection I?ve ridden up over 12,000 feet with no problems and in temperatures from about 15 to 95 degrees and the thing always starts right up and runs and idles just fine.

Like I said, the fancy stuff and bells and whistles are fine and I?m sure some of that stuff is nice but if I had a dollar for every time I?ve towed one of those things back to camp with my little dinosaur I could probably buy a vente chai latte from Starbucks.

+1. We went with the mid size and smaller because the minions and wives want to ride their own and while we like to ride the forest trails most of our riding is out here on the prairie on home made motocross tracks and mud holes.

[BushMasterBoy]

You can get the Kawasaki mule in a diesel. That's all I know.