Youth UTVs

[WarrenG]

We were at Riverside a couple days ago getting my son some new riding gear and he saw the Rzr 170 kids SxS. My wife is convinced that with seat belts and a roll cage this is a much safer option than his quad so I've started looking into kids UTV options. They wanted like $6300 otd for these which seems crazy expensive compared to the Eton 90cc quad he's had for a couple years that we picked up for $700 and has given us no problems. He will be 9 this year and I'm fine with getting him into a SxS but not at this cost.
Has anyone bought any of the Chinese knock off youth UTVs and can share their experiences? I found some good threads on the Rzr forums and it seems really hit or miss on what you're going to get from these units.

 

[rzrgade]

Look at an ace 325 ....

 

[WarrenG]

I don't want to spend the $6k on the Rzr 170 I don't think spending $10k on an adult sized machine is the answer. The ace weighs over 800lbs and has way more power than I want him to have. That's a machine I'd be more willing to get him in his teens with a lot more driving experience. I also like the fact that the kids units have speed limiters so I can control the power he has access to depending on where we are riding.

 

[tiger666]

I researched the rzr 170 and the chinese versions,these units are pretty much for riding on grass only.If you trail ride with your boy you'll find them useless,people on the forums dump tons of cash in them and they are still very limited to what they can do.I've decided to keep the boy on a quad untill he's big enough to ride an ace and then thats unit i'll be getting him.(Our summer is random camping and trail riding so grass riding in a field rarely happens)

 

[rzrgade]

You can buy a nice ace for under 5 grand for a 325 .... The 170 rzr is a joke ....
the Ace is very safe with a cage and seat belt...
but it's your decision ....
good luck !

 

[S.W.A.T.]

We faced the same decision. Went with a raptor 110 and when they out grow that they can use my old 350 i had when I was a kid. I will make a case for spending the extra cash and going name brand. I am in my 30s and now my kids are using the same gear that I used when I was their age. I actually looking forward to the day when I can teach my grand kids to ride a 3 wheeler and show them about carborated motors lol.

 

[mb1]

I thought those 170's were $4800!!

I think of it a little bit differently. I have my son on a little dirt bike. The SECOND he loses control, he falls. You can get away with a lot of stuff on a quad or sxs before you get in trouble. The bike doesn't let him get ahead of himself. He did start on an LT50 quad, but after seeing him come out of turns consistently on 2 wheels, I was worried that he might really get hurt if/when it flipped over.

 

[WarrenG]

Thanks for the feedback everyone. We are definitely going to stay away from these machines as they just aren't worth the $ for what you're getting in the Rzr and the Chinese versions are too risky on the reliability side of things. I also don't want to have to dump more time and $ into trying to make them capable of riding trails. My boy loves his quad and can continue gaining experience with it until he can handle the 325 ace. We have offered him dirt bikes before but he's never been interested. We still like this option though so maybe he'll come around.

 

[kabcan]

I think it's important to teach them safe riding. Quads are great! Good for them to learn how to properly handle the machine to keep themselves safe and others around them. They respect the sport and most importantly have lots of fun doing it! Agree with previous post about getting a trusted brand and quality lasts.