What is the smallest 4x4 out there?

[BreathlessPerformance]

I am looking for the smallest 4x4 out there for my kid. I saw the hawkeye polaris 300 and was not to sure of the quality.

Ernie

[535banshee]

HONDA WAS GOOD UNTIL THEY WENT TO THE PUSH ROD MOTOR. I HAVE HAD TWO POLARIS 500'S AND THEY WERE GREAT NEVER HAD A PROBLEM. I THINK 300 IS THE SMALLEST. I WOULD NOT GO SMALLER BECAUSE OF LACK OF POWER FOR A 4X4

[shortcut]

I think yamaha still makes a 250cc 4x4.

[Cory1020]

I used to have a yamaha timberwolf 250 4x4. They don't make those anymore, they have bear trackers(like old twolfs) but they are just 2wd. I'm pretty sure arctic cat has a 4x4 250. but for new just the polaris and arctic cat. They have honda 300 4x4 but they don't make them anymore. I have a honda rancher, has almost 9000 miles on it only problems were bearings and brakes

[MadMudder]

Acutally the polaris is the smallest 4x4. There used to be the king quad300, twolf250, 300fourtrax that was produced forever, and the AC250. None of the above are currently being produced. So the polaris is the smallest but I read the last post you had on this and your best bet would probably be a 350 or possibly a 400. But your son probably isnt old enough for a 400 yet. Anyway the polairs really doesnt have enough ass to really be good. So i would say a rancher or something bigger that a 300.

[cheropride]

Just a note, I have a Kawaski 360, and even though smaller smaller engine, my son sat on it and could not reach his feet to the foot boards, but reaches his dad's Honda 400 just fine.  The Kawi 360 has a lot higher seat and the ground clearance is a little higher, so bike sits pretty high.  So sometimes it is not so much the size, but how the kid sits on the bike.  We let him ride his dad's from time to time and he does fine, but don't know if want him to go that big just yet.  But he controls and rides it great.  Just letting you know, in case you where ever considering the Kawi.
My son loves Polaris, and he is outgrowing is 90.  We too are thinking of bumping him up to a bigger bike, and since he likes the Polaris, looking into that.  For 2006 Polaris has a 300 hawkeye 4x4, so we may look into that, not to bad price either.  But Polaris is strange, some people love them and some hate them.  We have a hard time w/his 90 so don't know. 

[MadMudder]

Polaris makes great quads. Its just that they are too heavy. So the smaller you go the heavier they are. The 400 sportsman weighs like 100 pounds more than the BRP 800 and atleast 200 pounds more than anything from Japan. So the bigger you go typically the better they are.

[Southern4x4]

well i have 2 honda 300 4x4`s and they rock,my friend has a hawkeye and its pretty ok,im just not into the hole hand stick shift thing though

[cheropride]

Are the hawkeye's manual shift, it so that stinks, I was thinking might of been a good upgrade for my son's Polaris 90.  But I'm w/you not into that.... Thanks for sharing info...

[Southern4x4]

I mean they are like hand lever shift as in automatic,which is like put it in neutral,then shift into forward and not shift into any other gear at all catch my drift,as to most bikes thats are semi auto with foot shift,to where you can actually go 1st 2nd and so on.Im not quiet sure if all hawkeyes are hand lever shift,maybe they ,make a foot shift version

[cheropride]

Oh i get it, thanks again.....

[MachineDog]

I mean they are like hand lever shift as in automatic,which is like put it in neutral,then shift into forward and not shift into any other gear at all catch my drift,as to most bikes thats are semi auto with foot shift,to where you can actually go 1st 2nd and so on.Im not quiet sure if all hawkeyes are hand lever shift,maybe they ,make a foot shift version

Nah, it's an Auto CVT. You clunk the little lever into F/N/R and the computer controls the tranny for you. No low-gear though so it doesn't like hard inclines too much. And it is designed for 23" tires so you won't be putting monster tires on it. Would be ok for a 10-11 year old I think. For the money though I'd spring for a Kawi 360 or a new Bruin 350 with IRS. If you got the Bruin 350 he'd be able to grow into it, he'll need to be atleast 11 though, and man they're sweet right now. Comes with a locker and IRS, and you can put a set of mud boggers on it. Plus the IRS will make for a comfy ride. I just don't like the Polaris 300 for it being okay on features and stuff but for the price, you could get a more powerful bigger bike. I can't stand how in the comparisons they put it against 250s instead of putting it against 350s like it should be. If he's around 8-10 though I'd go with a reliable 250 like the Honda Recon ES (thumb-shift which is cool if he can't stretch his feet good enough quite yet, plus it's alot easier than normal shifting, not a 4x4 though). My bro rides the Recon just fine and he's 8. Now if only I could write as much information in my school essays off the top of my head.

[cheropride]

I do agree about the Kawi 360 4x4 - I have one and it is a great bike and it has a lot of saftey features on it as well.  Also nice ground clearance.  They only problem, is you need to check the kid on the bike before you buy it.  The seat sits higher than most bikes.  My son can ride his dad's Honda 400 Rancher just fine, but feet barely reach the foot plates on my Kawi 360. 

Going thru same thing, cause he is out growing his Polaris 90, time to upgrade.  But he is only 7 - going to be 8.  So I weighing the whole thing carefully.  We do a lot of trail riding and there are just some places he can't go with the Polaris, so within the next year of so, we will be upgrading.

Thanks for the input, even though I did not start this thread, I am in the same position.

so thanks again 

[MachineDog]

Honda's have always been the kind of bike where almost any rider can feel comfortable, besides 250lb+ riders. That's why they have arctic cat and popo, ofcourse us smaller riders don't fit too well on either. :\

[94Hardbody4x4]

The Bruin 350's are good little wheelers. The one I rode was SA in the rear but did good offroad. I believe it had 25"s on it and it pushed them fine. I had to give it a little extra gas when it buried down or to fishtail but it was an Auto so I'm sure it was getting robbed of power.

I'd reccomend that as a first bike(depending on how old and big your kid is). It is something he could grow into and have fun with and even keep up with the bigger atv's.