Used ATV Buyer's Guide

Body
Depending upon which six or eight wheeler you are looking at the body may be made out of HDPE, ABS, or Fiberglass. HDPE (aka poly or polyethylene) is usually the most forgiving material followed by ABS and then Fiberglass. Regardless of the material you will want to look for any signs of cracks or holes in the body. It is particularly important on the lower tub even if you do not plan to use the six wheeler in water because the lower tub is your first defense to preventing mud, dirt, and debris from entering your ATV.

If there is a hole or crack in the tub or on the upper body that is not the end of the world. Depending upon the size and place it may be easily repaired. Just know what you are getting yourself into before you buy. Search the site for info on body repair based on the material you are working with.

Wheels
Wheels are pretty straightforward. If you are looking at an old ATV that still has balloon tires just realize that they are no longer produced and if you choose to upgrade in the future or even just replace worn tires that you will have to purchase new wheels. Outside of that there are really three different wheels that you will most likely find on ATVs.

Standard wheels will be something similar to those found on garden tractors and other non-skid-steer vehicles. These wheels weren't designed for our uses and usually require that you run a higher pressure in your tires to keep the bead seated. At lower pressure when you skid steer it is easy to bump a tire on a rock, limb, etc and knock the tire off the bead.

Bead-lock wheels offer an advantage over standard wheels as they offer a bead (usually outer only) physically rolled into the wheel from the factory. This bead sandwiches the tire's bead between it and the outer lip of the wheel. The advantage of a bead-lock wheel is the ability to run lower pressure in your tires ( <5psi ) for a better ride and more grip without having to worry about losing a bead out on the trail. You will find these wheels on newer Argos.

Aggressive bead-lock wheels such as the K-Lock wheels found on Max ATVs since somewhere around 1998 and Matt O's wheels offer a deeper bead-lock which just about completely prevents losing a bead on a tire even at 0 psi. These wheels allow you to run the lowest pressure possible providing the best ride, most grip, and most of all they prevent you from losing a bead on the trail.

Here is a picture of a K-Lock wheel:



So, how do you tell which wheels your ATV has? On all of the bead-lock wheels you simply reach down and physically feel the bead that has been rolled in the wheel with your finger during inspection. It will be a small groove near the outer lip. Differentiating between bead-locks and K-locks is a little more challenging. On a Max IV regular bead-locks have square centers on the wheel and K-locks are a solid center with no holes. All other wheels are more difficult to distinguish unless you have two different ones side-by-side. For max II's if you know that it is a '98 or newer then you most likely will have K-locks.

Tires
Usually when looking at an ATV there is only one question that comes to mind when looking at the tires. Do they hold air? While that is of course an important question you will want to inspect the tires a little more closely. Look first for dry-rot. While a little dry-rot is typical especially on some of the harder compound tires, a lot will eventually lead to premature failure and you will be chasing down leaks and replacing tires. If the tires do not have any dry rot make sure that they also do not have any tubes in them. Tubes will not work on AATVs. Over time the tire will spin on the rim and rip the stem out of the tube leaving you with a flat. While inspecting the tire closely also look for patches or repairs. It's not uncommon to have plugs in our tires as we typically travel through some unforgiving terrain but ensure that the repairs are done properly and will last over time. If you find a 1" hole in the tire with 12 plugs in it you should plan on replacing it.

On top of that you should look at the type of tread on the tires. Since we utilize the tread to propel our ATVs through the water, a tread that doesn't swim well will leave you stranded. Even if you don't plan on going in the water at all, if you ever end up in a mud hole that is deep enough to cause you to float you will have little to no control once you achieve buoyancy.

If the tire on the ATV is a stock tire with V-shaped tread then you should be fine. If the tires are knobby tires or any other non-V pattern there is less of a chance that they will move you through the water. If you are unsure at all then you should search the site to find the brand of tire you are looking at and see if they will swim.

Frame
When looking at any used 6x6 or 8x8 pull out all of the floorboards, remove all engine covers, and closely inspect the frame. The frame is the heart of your ATV and any misalignments regardless of how small can dramatically affect the handling and safety of your machine. It can also be attributed to premature wear on parts and if severe enough, mechanical failure.

Check the frame carefully to see if it looks bent in any place. See if the frame rails line up properly, are at right angles to each other, etc. It's not a bad idea to carry a small square with you too. Aside from the straightness of the frame look carefully for any cracks particularly around the perimeter of the frame from collisions with obstacles outside the tub. The last thing to check would be the condition of the metal. Is the frame rusted badly from salt water, is it pitted, etc. A badly rusted frame will eventually require some major surgery to replace the bad places and if it is drastic enough may need to be replaced all together.

A little surface rust on the other hand is nothing to worry about and can be easily sanded / wire-brushed and then painted.

Axles
When inspecting axles you are looking at several things. Are the axles hollow or solid? How do the sprockets attach to the axles? Are they straight or bent? What size are they? Do the hubs have any play in them? The ultimate goal is to ensure you have the best axles available and to make sure that the axles themselves are in great working condition.

To start with you can sometimes manually inspect whether the axles are solid or hollow by simply placing your finger on the inside end of the axles. Hollow axles are less desirable as they are the weakest axle you will find. Solid axles are more desirable of course because they are stronger.

Standard round solid or hollow axles usually utilize sprocket tubes that slide over the axles. The most common method for attaching sprocket tubes to the axles utilizes a hole through the axle and sprocket tube that can accommodate a bolt and nut. (The sprocket section below will elaborate on things to look for if you have bolted sprocket tubes)

Splined axles take the solid axle approach one step further by giving sprockets something to engage against. The splined axles have parallel grooves on which a sprocket can slide onto and engage. All of the force of the chain is transferred directly from the sprocket onto the splines of the axle instead of through a bolt like a non-splined axle. Usually sprockets are held in place by a simple set screw which allows for easy adjustment of individual sprockets. While you are inspecting the axles also look at the hubs. Make sure they are all attached in the same manner and that they appear to be sound. You may need to take a wheel off to get a good look.

Probably the most important thing to look for regarding the axles is whether or not they are straight. It is recommended that you jack the six wheeler in the air one side at a time if you have to and rotate the tires. Watch them carefully to see if they wobble at all. If everything appears to run straight and true, have someone take the six wheeler down the road while you ride along leaning over the side watching each tire. At full speed if you have zero or little wobble then most likely the axles are straight.

Bearings
With the machine up off the ground, try to wiggle each axle. If there is any up and down or side to side play you probably have a bad bearing. There are normally 2 bearings per axle, an inner and an outer bearing. The outer bearings also have to seal water out so if that one has any play in it, the six wheeler will more than likely leak. Have a helper wiggle the axle while you feel for the play. Then spin each axle/tire and listen for any "gritty" or "bumping" sounds coming from the bearings.

It Should be easy to tell which bearing is bad. Bearings are relatively simple to replace on most models but if the machine needs 12 new bearings, it can get costly.