Started in 73 on the 90, then a 110 in 80, a 250R in 82, 200X in 84 and a 250R in 85! ALL were a blast. Living in the middle of the Desert I rode for hours a day, 7 days a week year round and never was seriously injured. Many kids in Town had them and we went everywhere on them for pennies in fuel! Lawyers and money ruin everything good given time.......
boy you said it....and I'll add to your list of lawyers & money, also communist liberals. Look at what they've been trying to do to football & the NFL. They even wanna take meat away form us and replace it with synthetic man-made crap!
I'm in my early 50's now and one thing I'm thankful for is all the time I've had on ATVs. I rode a little 70 in a fair event as a child but had a bunch of 185-350 4Ts and several 250Rs as an adult. They're a different kind of fun than a 4-wheeler, maybe a little bit sketchier but definitely an adrenaline rush in the dunes. 3wheelers are valuable these days for good reason.
im 23 and live in CA ive owned one ATV in my life and im on my fith three wheeler. currently own a 86 350X, 84 250r and a 84 200M. id never sell the 350 or 250R but the ones i do sell i make sure are in far better condition than what i found them in. if i see an old broken down threewheeler for $100-$300 i buy it and fix it the best i can and ill sell it or trade it. this is what keeps them alive for future generation and it makes me feel good that im doing my part to preserve truly misunderstood historical motocross vehicles.
I gave away a 1985 250ES Big Red a few years ago that ran great. I gave it to a guy in his mid 70s that lives off the road. He is mostly self sufficient growing food , hunting and fishing. He even make’s raspberry wine. We have a place near his and have a 900 Ranger to get there. We ride our snowmachines there in the winter. My wife and I are 70.
@@sonicpower687 I have ridden the 85250r and owned the 350x with about a 6-to-8-year span between the two. How do you compare the two between each other? i.e speed, quickness, handling, trusting it's ability. I love all things and brands who make fun things with motors, so they are all winners to me, I am just curious about my biases in owning the 350x and having so much more seat time, because my memories led me to believe that the 350 was just a little more capable in those parameters that I listed, except maybe quickness, but 2 strokes kind of have that feel towards them. If you find the time to respond that would be appreciated, if not, I will still think your cool because of your choice in toys.
I've been riding snowmobiles, 4-wheelers and smaller dirt bikes since I was 9, and I can tell you, one is not really harder than the other to use, it really is just a matter of knowing how each type of machine behaves.
I had several of these machines. Started with a 90 then moved up to the 110 then to a 185S, a 200 then a 250R. I never hurt myself bad through the countless hours spent on these things. Banning the 3 wheeler is just another case of blaming an inanimated object for the actions of stupid people.
I had one and it took practice to ride it safely. It was not meant for stunts and wild driving.. If you got hurt it was your own fault and lack of plain common sense
My family and friends lived the ATC life for about 10 years. We started on non suspention bikes and graduated to fully suspended and fast atc's. All of us were hurt riding them but mainly on the non suspended versions. I spent 3 weeks in a hospital with my first and only major accident, it didnt deter me or anyone else in our group. Eventually everyone moved on to side by sides or stopped riding altogether. Im 65 now, but i still reminder the fun i had on these. I even had a personalized license plated on my truck, ATCLUVR. Thanks for reminding me what great fun i had on these machines.
It actually is legal to manufacture 3 wheelers again, the ban was temporary and actually expired in 1998 but the major manufacturers have continued to choose not to make them. Smaller manufacturers have begun making conversion kits for various models though. 3 wheelers are actually some of the most fun bikes I own and are having a resurgence thanks to gen X’ers and older millennials. The smaller utility models are still pretty affordable but the sport models have become VERY expensive. 3 wheelers are also still kings of the dunes, it’s not rare to see 250r’s, 350x’s and fully modded atc70’s at glamis and dumont.
Sadly this is not the case anymore, if you try to contact any of the kit makers they are no longer able to produce and sell them. This is from a consent degree in 2008 that has recently been enforced removing bvc and dt Motorsports from the modern trike market, which is quite sad since my dt conversion is an amazing product
@@Tri-ZF450 when did that happen?!? I’m pretty sure BVC had just come out with the crf110 conversion this year? Looks like DT has definitely stopped offering kits but BVC still has some according to their websites. I wonder what consent decree in 2008 they are using to enforce this since the original 3 wheeler consent decree has long since expired. Either way that’s sucks and is weird.
@@Tri-ZF450 yeah, no, BVC still makes both kits and complete conversions for trikes and Big Wheels (like the old Yamaha BW Big Wheels, not the kids pedal trike lol), they recently featured one of their "ATC500R" trikes powered by a CR500R engine, CRF450R frame, and TRX450R rear fenders with custom decals even seat and everything which is literally like Honda built a brand new 2023 ATC500R, it's gorgeous....but they also made and offer a "true" ATC500R built with a CR500R frame and TRX250R fenders all done up in red with the blue classic seat and everything, and they offer complete kits and conversions for a bunch of popular bikes and will build you one (trike or BW) from literally almost any bike if you bring it to them and pay.... I definitely want both their new ATC500R's (new and old) and would definitely take an XR650R BW 😅
absolutely! i find my trikes more fun then any bike or quad. they go everywhere and do everything. they just ride a bit rougher lol. but once you have a year or more of riding experience you dont really end up wrecking.
An early thing you learn as an ATC rider is to keep your feet on the pegs- even if you're going to crash. Done it myself several times until muscle memory taught the course.
I never did.... But damn I rode over a girlfriends leg pretty good on a hill climb out near Palm Springs CA back in the early 90s. I still feel bad about that.
This brought back memories of the 80s...My best friend had the Honda 250R and he could ride the thing...I was into dirt bikes had a brand new Yamaha IT 175...Riding the trails in north west Va ..nothing but rocks and trees I would always let my friend lead the way....The things that 2 stroke Honda would throw out the back was something to see...large rocks...tree limbs ect...coming at you at warp speed.....Good times. Thanks Bart....Ps...... he never got hurt on it.
YES, my friend had a Honda 250. I loved that 3 wheeler. He could go anywhere we went with our dirt bike 2 strokes. 😊 wanted one so bad. My other friend talked me into a ( Husqvarna) 2 stroke very much a pro rider bike. I regret buying the bike instead of the 3 wheeler. I could never handle the high reving dirt bike. The 3 wheeler was super easy STARTING compared to the Husky. I once had the Husky do a runaway engine throttle sticking. When we had snow that Honda would take it no problem 😊 I still kick myself for not getting one. The only issue I ever had on any dangers with riding her. If my feet came off pedal, I would have it get touched by the back wheel. I never saw my friend have any accidents with his. He bought it because he couldn't control himself on a dirt bike. I would p still have one if I had bought one in the early 1980s. That Husky was so glad to get rid of 😊 I just was not a good enough dirt bike rider to handle a 2 wheel motorcycle.
My dad bought me a 110 atc when I was 9 yrs old and it was an awesome experience for me and my family and friends . We never had an accident or flipped it or nothing. They where more fun that a quad which I later owned.
I have four of them all Hondas , 1985 ATC 70. ATC 250sx ATC 200x ATC 350x , I love three wheelers and I wish they would make them again. I grew up on them and have many many memories of riding.
Wow. Xmas Day of 1985. I worked an accident where a 5-year old boy was killed on his gifted Honda 3-wheeler, as his dad looked on. It was pretty tough. The kid was wearing a full-coverage helmet & was riding on some rarely used oilfield gravel roads. In TX there are lots of these and there are 'cattleguards' made of pipe, that keep the cows from roaming over to other pastures. (The grass being greener over there and all.)😊 Anyhoo, the kid was having a blast, powerslidubg around on the roads, until he tried to keep it sideways over the cattleguard. He caught traction, squared it up and shot straight off of the side of the guard & into a barbwire fence. Not too bad, except the end of a strand of the wire was protruding out and it went inside the helmet and straight through the roof of his mouth & up into his brain. This was in no way anyone's fault nor was the ATV to blame. Just some horrid fate that day. I wasn't a parent yet then, but I never forgot that day and the dad and his boy. Some Christmas. Somethings just stay with ya.😢
Where I live almost everyone had a trike. It had the comfort of a quad but speed and instability of a bike, bad combo for people who weren't taught how to ride.
my son still has the last 1985 Big Red I bought new it is still in use and yes this 70 year old guy still gets on it to many good memorys to list one of the best additions to the farm at the time.
Wow. This brings back memories. When I was a little kid in the 90’s everyone had one of these, even tho by then everyone knew they were dangerous. Back in the 70’s there were a few other 3 wheelers like the Montgomery ward trail master and the Tri-sport. They were a lot different from the atc. Those had a longer and wider wheelbase and a low center of gravity, making them very stable and easy to ride. When the atc came out it basically killed that style of three wheelers since it was about the same price but with the Honda branding
For sure and I think it was manco who built a legit atc looking like honda not trisport more gocartish but had a 8 hp I think briggs through a cvt? I rode one but never owned. I to this day would love to get the honda us90, atc90 atc110 and they made a horizontal same style atc125 but also a vertical engine atc125 I would not want. I cant remember but one of the 125 versions had reverse. But anything us90 engine based awesome and if the us90 based going to 125 with a reverse would be the cats meow. just for reverse.
I still have my 1985 Honda ATC350X in very good condition. Bought it new. Still runs great. The most fun of all the toys I've ever owned. I've been a motorcyclist for over 50 years.
I still have and very much still use my 1983 atc 200e Big Red with the hi/low gear case. Sure i broke my collar bone in 3 places on it as a kid but i would never trade it for anything else. Its honestly so handy for hauling wood , been chirped a few times for riding a "museum peice" but thoughts change when they get stuck in their 900lb 4x4 anchors, i either float on by or i just pick it up and turn it around.
That was my take on the difference between the 3 and4 wheelers too, a lot of extra weight. Very rare could a 4wheeler go somewhere a 3 wheeler couldn’t
Thank you so much for producing this amazing video that brought back so many memories. I feel so blessed to have grown up during the glory days of the Honda ATCs. Each member of my family owned one. My youngest brother - ATC 70, my sister - ATC 110, my other brother - ATC 200X, my parents - ATC 185, and I had the ATC 250R. We spent our long weekends in Glamis, CA and all survived. We weren’t freaks of nature, we just learned to ride.
I still have an 81 250R, it has a 300 kit on it with a bigger carb, It's fast! I'm 64 and still love riding it. Growing up I had a 110 and spent Thanksgiving at the dunes in Yuma AZ allot. It was too small for that but it still went, just a bit slower.
Yea I had a 110 Honda when I was about 12 years old. After reading these comments I guess a 110 is small, but it seemed plenty fast for me as well as my stepdad and his friends.
I had a fresh rebuilt one, missing 2nd gear,bout 10yrs ago on a trade... thing was straight piped, lol. It was scary fast. It was a monster...thing was downright scary. 😂but boy was she bad on snow and mud..
My dad was actually the first guy in Canada to race 4 wheelers professionally against 3 wheelers in the early 80s. I remember him saying the 3 wheeler racers biggest complaint about the quads was that they were unstable lol.
I was in my twenties in the mid 80's when I was introduced to ATCs, where me and my buddies rode them in the dunes of SoCal. I picked up a used Honda 250R, and then I was the king of the dunes!
Had a LOT of fun on my old 185S! Everything from the Oregon Dunes to thrashing mud on mountain trails in the Washington Cascades. To this day (despite my advanced age!), I'd still love to have a 350X.
Had a kawasaki 185 as a try the 3 wheel thing. tossed myself off wfo one day as it tried to pass me and run me over on the way by . I had had enough fun with that experiment. Purchased a 350x the next week and OMG what a machine I loved it and wished I never grew up and sold it in a fit of responsibility. Never had a CR250R based one as I know myself too well and that thing was a beast. The 350 was so fun suspension 6 speed lights disk brakes nice torque 350 4 stroke wheelie machine all day long was not bad in the snow too. great memories for sure thanks for mentioning
I started with a kawasaki 110 at age 11, then went to a 185, then to a tecate 250. I also had a quad sport, warrior, blaster, 185 bayou ect. I have road about every 3 and 4 wheel from the 70's to the 2000's. The 4 wheelers handle nothing like the 3 wheels. The 3 wheeler is so much more nimble and can do circles around a 4 wheeler. You just have to learn to lean the opposite way on a 3 wheeler. And they slide sideways like nothing else. Thanks for bringing back the good old times.
My brother bought me a used 1984 Honda ATC 250R. I had no idea what a clutch or shifter was. I learned quick. But I also mastered not rolling it over. I could get into places the early quads couldn't. The 80s were a wild fun time!
This was how I learned , as a young man , what government overreach was. It’s has continued to become more intrusive since….good video as usual. I honestly think they should bring these back.
They're dangerous. People get killed on ATVs. I can think of three personal acquaintances who met their end on four-wheelers. Also, a family member of mine had to have surgery after wrecking his Honda three-wheeler back in the seventies. I had too many close calls, myself.
@@ericgries2398 I agree. Everyone I know who have broken their wrists or rollovers bc their riding decisions were flawed. Machine made no bad decisions.
I loved my Honda 200 ATC! I had so much fun on that 3-wheeler with my HS friends and on our farm. I could load 6 bales of straw (lighter than hay for city folk) on the back and take them 1/4 mile back to the hogs we had on pasture. My German Shepherd rode on the back. Yeah, I freak'in LOVED that 3-wheeler! Years down the road my younger brother's friend blew the engine and my brother never made good on the promise to fix it. My Dad sold it a few years ago, some 35 years down the road. It's a shame lawyers and the Nanny States took over our lives.
Fantastic video! I picked up an '84 200es as a non runner a few years back. Got it running great and have used it often ever since. Just as you described, I understand the machine and know how to respect it. The only time it's flipped was early in my time with it, I went diagonally down an extremely steep hill at just the wrong angle where it flipped. That was the first time I had encountered terrain like that and it was very slick. Lesson learned and I never had another issue with it. One of the most interesting things I've noticed letting others ride it, is that if a person has a lot of experience on a motorcycle, then they tend to put their feet down when they panic. That's the worst thing to do on a 3 wheeler and I have to be very careful with riders who are used to motorcycles. People with no experience at all seem to be able to understand the ATC's quirks much more easily. No conflicting habits to unlearn.
They were awesome back in the day for making trails that were easy to ride with a dirt bike. Now all the trails in my area kinda suck for dirt bikes because so many people ride quads on them, which turn the trails into two small ruts, so you either have to ride in a rut or the tiny mound between the ruts.
I remember seeing the TV ads for this thing as a kid - everyone in my rural area was talking about the "Big Red" and I tried to convince my dad to get me one. He wisely decided to get a small two wheeled Honda for me (age 5) so this must have been around the time when people started to realise that the three-wheelers weren't inherently safer. I vaguely remember there was also an element where bikers like my dad looked down on three-wheelers as things that would engender bad habits and somehow delay the adoption of "real" motorcycles. The adverts were captivating for children though - the idea of mum, dad, and children on an off-road adventure where we were all in control... very compelling.
I rode some of northern NJ's last trails and pits on a 250R in '87. Snow covered roads were the fastest. Lucky to live to tell the tales of escaping angry homeowners cutting through subdivisions between trails. I figured the 250R was the safest ATC because it always had power to spin the rear wheels to turn. That was some great footage, well done.
Same here. I lived in H-town in the 70s. Many weekends spent at that areas moto mecca (at that time). The Stanhope sands pits. We rode every trail,old mining Rd. or power line cut we could find off the rairoad tracks from Netcong to lil Washinton. Swept the foot under the rear wheels à few times but thankfully no broken bones or severe injuries just a few stiches here and there. Good times! Thanks Wonder Bread!
@@Ryzynsun01 Hackettsburg to Stanhope pits was a long ride! We used to ride bikes from Parsippany and Randolph, which was fun and challenging! My first ride was on a rented Yamaha DT125 at Moto Mecca, went to see a race or two there too. Fun!
@@jbbbda Seems to me Parsipanny to Stanhope would be a pretty long ride too. Thinkin back it sure didnt seem to take very long maybe 30+- mins ridin along side the railroad trax. Plenty of overgrown old mining roads and pit remnants with some powerline cuts along the way to explore also. Mostly around the Saxton Falls area which is situated between H-town and Stanhope along the tracks. Those were... good times... damn good times! Cheers!
Amazing video and history. My brother and his friend both had mid 80's Honda 3 wheelers with pull starts in the mid 2010's. He told me they tip and thank you for elaborating on that. They rode them alot up North. I think like with alot of things today, people are trying to legeslate away their personal responsibility and common sense.
I also had a three-wheeler as a kid in the 1980s. Loved it and rode it for years and years with no serious injuries. We also would use ours to make trails how you described and they were also fantastic when hunting to both get out to a site and to bring a deer out of a site if you got one. Great video and all your videos are consistently great. Thanks for the hard work!
Really enjoyed watching! I grew up on a honda 50 mini trail. In the late seventies I had a opportunity to ride a ATC,and I remember how u had to shift weight in order to steer correctly. Later got into snowmobiling and fell in love,became real good and would go out in packs to scout and jump cornices, and rock outcroppings. I guess u could call it the predecessor of extreme sport riding. This video left me feeling very nostalgic. Thank u.
Another great vid, I had a 70 for fun and a 250R that was a full blown MX trike I raced here in Australia during the 80's, as you say, one has to understand the trikes and how they behave, turn etc they don't have diffs, so you have to lean to slightly break loose the inner wheel to turn, that's how I remember them, quirky but sooo much fun
Great video. My dad bought me a new Honda 3 Wheeler 110 in 1985 when I was 9. I had a lot of fun on it all the way through high school. I would love to get one again.
My childhood revolved around baseball and Honda 3 wheelers. Dad and I nearly everyday rode our 110’s for up to an hour after he got out of work. My brother and rode them on the weekends. I can’t imagine the 1980’s without those Honda 110 ATC’s. My mom even rode them occasionally. Respect and knowledge of their capabilities kept my brother and safe. I broke my arm due lack of respect at the speed I was going on the terrain I was traveling over when I was 9. I also got lucky a number of times. But the fun out weighed the danger and pain. My dad loved the machines as much as I did. Way more teens at the time got really hurt or killed on snowmobiles at least around where I lived then. ATV classes with the extremely small riding portion of the class provided only boredom for teens after they became law and I am sure it hasn’t changed. Watching and teaching your own children how to properly ride 3 or 4 wheelers is the only way to do it.
Had a Honda 185, rode that thing like crazy, no helmet. Surprised I'm still alive with all the wrecks I had on it. Including flipping it over on top of me, and pulling an inner tube behind it in the snow and being blasted off of it from a pile of snow. It was a blast!😊
Bounced a 200s down a hill so many times. Bent axle. Just got out of the Marines 1984. Buddy and I had them and destroyed them in 1 summer. We took crazy chances.
The old Big reds are some of my favorite off-road rides ever! My grandparents had one when I was little and it was huge on me so I drove it carefully and loved every second. We finally got our own atc 200 big red and I cannot believe i waited this long to get one. What a blast!!!
Im originally from Michigan, i lived 10 miles from Bloomfield Hills. My neighbor raced these things semi professionally for his family Honda business. I had no idea the concept started there.
To say I lived on an ATC 250-r in 1983 would be an understatement. When I finally saved up the money to get the 87,...it was pulled out from under me by the dealership. So, I found an 86 and crammed a CR-500 into the frame and lived happily ever after. Never dying, or even chipping a tooth. Still have that 83 and the 86, still ride, still alive.
Wherever you are, I’d make the trip just to say hi, throw a leg over the seat and take that trip in my head back to that time. Bro, the drinks and food are on me. Damn, the stories we could share!!
Thanks for a great video brings back many memories. I owned a Honda 90! 110 three wheelers. They were fun and I rode a friend of mine 250 R. Was like riding a tornado down the creek bed at 70 miles an hour.😊😊
Hi. My first arc was a Honda 185s. I owned many over the years, I would mostly ride dirt bikes but in fall,winter and spring I’d ride them. So much fun…. Very fond memories. I still own a Yamaha 200. I’m alway looking out for them in good condition. I would like to see them come back. Thanks for the video
I was under 10 years old and had a Honda 110 and my two older brothers had two 185S models. For Christmas each of us boys got a craftsman metric tool set to work on them because all our tools were standard back then. It’s been about 50 years and my parents are long since deceased but I still have that metric tool set.
just took my atc 250sx out and tipped it 40 minutes ago trying to hop a log was alotta fun luckly in my 10 years of owning it ive never injured myself excepts for scrapes and bruises
I rode a 1985 200x and loved it! It was a time when you had to get creative at things to do. No cell phones and computers to create the problems we have now days. But like usual it only takes one judge to rule and change the corse of time. Everyone is so worried about people’s safety. BS! They are only concerned about lawsuits. MONEY always seems to rule the ways of our life. But it was fun while it lasted. 4 wheelers just aren’t the same. Anyone who has ridden a three wheeler knows.
I remember riding 2up on a friend's 250R in the late 1980's. I remember it being shockingly quick in a straight line, but I also remember just how much we had to slow down to negotiate tight corners, even with both of us pitching our full body weight off the bike. It was like a dragster for the dirt. Around the same time, I started riding 4-wheelers, and at least as reasonable speeds, I did find them to be much more manageable in corners. In particular, making turns on a downhill grade was much safer and easier with that 4th wheel. Now I only ride off road on two wheels, which ironically feels a lot safer to me.
Great video! I recently found an ‘81 ATC200 which was left in a barn in California for 30+ years. I finally got it fired up and can’t wait to ride it once I finish restoring it. The tires look like massive balloons. 😂
I absolutely love my 87 BigRed & 86 250sx.... still have em to this day. And, still occasionally ride them. I have a few ATVs as well but still favor the old ATCs......
My cousins had Hondas and we had a Yamaha 225. Awesome memories. Took a couple of nasty spills, but thankfully was always in a helmet during those stunts.
I loved my 185s that we got when I was 10 and enjoyed it for 9 years before going into the Navy. I raced a little motocross, but the 185 was still fun. I love your comparison to electric bikes. I can’t believe the government hasn’t outlawed those yet! It was never expected that I could ride my ATC on the streets.
Done a jump on an atc185 and flipped it over backwards and landed underneath it. It was the most winded I had ever been in my life. No helmet. Fun times.
Honda 70c 3 wheeler when I was 12 in like 1986, I think my dad got it used for $less than $300. Holy crap I ripped off parts of the fenders in a month hitting stuff and god forbid if you jack knifed the the front wheel you were in for a bad time
Great video! I grew up on Honda 3 wheelers. First a 70 and then a 200s. All of my friends had them and sure everyone had wrecks now and then, but I never knew anyone who got seriously hurt. As I have aged, I’ve known of way more serious accidents and deaths from people riding 4 wheelers.
Hi Bart. First of all, thanks for your videos, they are very informative and I have watched at least 80 % of all your uploads.- I have a special request: It would be very nice to see a video about the Honda Z50M. I believe this is the predecessor of the monkey and was a very nice little mini bike.- If you search in UA-cam you will notice that there is almost no relevant material available about this little wonder! Have a nice day...
Somewhere in the 80's, I'm about 15 years old, me and my friends went to a place that rented these ATV... i am a city boy, no experience whatsoever... nobody told me you had to transfer weight and lean... I was stiff as a wood planck... rolled over the entire day. Very lucky not getting injured.
There's sort of a modern version of this where parents buy their kids electric dirt bikes and think they're safer for some reason cause they're electric. I've seen so many videos of young people jumping them and going crazy and crashing while wearing 0 safety gear.
I loved these things as a kid... I never got one, but I had plenty of friends who did & let me ride theirs... I might get one if I found it at the right price, but at my age & my back, I'm good with my 4 wheeler suspension these days... Lol!
I had one of these. It was great. Mine was in the water a lot. It was great in the snow. Never had an issue as far as controlling it. You kind of learned early on what you needed to do in a turn. Pretty common sense, really. I don't recall what CC mine was, but it didn't have a lot of power, but it did well in most circumstances. We had a 100-foot hill that mine just couldn't top. Broke a few parts off on that hill. Myself, a friend and my brother, had all the same ones and we played demolition derby with them. Needless to say, mine lost its lights and part of a fender. As I mentioned earlier, I rode in water quite a bit. It was a submarine. All in all, a great time all around.
Yep, it's that initial over confidence that did them in. With ANY two-wheeler, and I don't care if it's only a slow minibike and you know how to ride a bicycle, there's always something announced on that first moto ride that tells you things are different. Apparently that was masked with 3-wheelers, and I do agree it's the same with 4-wheels to large degree. Around here in my rural area, every year some teen gets hurt on a 4-wheeler.
I loved mine growing up, 31 now so I also grew up not knowing what I was riding at time had been illegal for years before I even existed, truly learned so much on that thing as a kid, even contemplated buying one, so fun, made great memories with it
If someone decides to market a new three wheeler, they should use the kids Big Wheel tricycle as a guide. Widen the rear track and get the CG as low as possible. The first generation atc's we're self-balancing only at a standstill, as was stated in the video. Once in motion, they're completely unstable.
Very well put together video and I couldnt agree more. Ive owned three wheelers, four wheelers and bikes since the early 1990s. You have to know the differences between the different types of machines and how to ride them as well as know your own capabilities and ride within them. I still own several three wheelers, from the small hard tails to 3rd Gen 250Rs and ill never give them up. The arguement against three wheelers and ATVs in general is as flawed as the gun control arguement. Laying blame on the object for the irresponsible/unlawful actions of the user resulting in the punishement of the whole of society. Interesting to note that after the so called "ban" on three wheelers, ATV accidents and deaths actually continued to rise throughout the 1990s. Proof positive that no matter what the configuration of the machine, irresponsible actions of the user IS the root cause of accidents...period
I would love to see them bring back modern versions of the 1985-1987 Honda ATC250SX and ATC250ES Big Red. Make it a law that no one under 16 can ride one and require a training course. I started off on a ATC110 back in the day and currently own a 250SX. The SX is a LOT more stable than the 110 due to being wider and having full suspension.
The Banning of the three wheeler, has killed more people since on four wheelers! Because most people believe that a four wheeler is safer and because of this they ride them in more dangerous situations. I started my career as a Motorcycle Engineer and Mechanic in 1981 and ended up leaving the motorcycle industry in 2012, I enjoyed my time selling and riding the ATC’s and even ended up restoring one of the very first ATC 90’s imported into New Zealand, it was brilliant, light, wood float on water crossings, and just go anywhere. But I could see the writing on the wall when Customer started using their ATC 200’s to pull out a stuck 10+ Ton 4x4 spreader truck on farms. And cannot believe that then now over 700 cc and extremely heavy compared to the first models, it defeats the purpose of them.
My uncle has two, loves that they are easy to ride and cheap to buy and fix. However he noticed that you need to treat them "differently" when it comes to handling and they become much safer to ride. Like a Squat and lean. A mix of ATV and Motorcycle handling. They also roll back easily so lean forward as there is less weight up front. They do require experience from ANY motorsports background or sport biking really. Coupled with a lack of basic survival instinct from some humans, LOL it's not a good mix.
Hey Bart, I normally wouldn't do this, but I feel it's important. First, the Kawi, KXT250, aka- Tecatè, is pronounced tah-kah-tāe or tah-kah-tee, depending on ones accent😊. But 'e' at the end is not silent. Okay now for my more important info. I read an article online, 10 to 12 years ago, that stated at the end of the 10-year ATC ban, the Japanese Big four lobby to have a bill introduced that would ban 3 wheelers indefinitely. The reason being was at that time Chinese manufacturers had started to build ATVs and ship them around the world selling them at very low cost. Rather than face a reintroduction of the ATC from various Chinese manufacturers that already had the tooling to make the machines, a lot of time and money had been spent with the marketing of four-wheeled ATVs and rather than face off vs ATCs at an extremely lower cost point, it was easier to be proactive with an easy to pass bill. I'm drawing off of memory for this so some of it may be flawed but you get the gist of what I'm trying to say. I'll see if I can hunt down the article and post a link on this comment. Thanks bart, always a good time with your content!
Wow that's fascinating, I've never heard of that but I believe you. And yes after I recorded I realized how its pronounced, essentially like Ducati. Thanks for watching!
@@bartmotorcycle WOW!! I never saw a notification from your response. Bummer, but I caught it now LOL. I had to watch this again, likely my 3rd or 4th round. LOVE your vids- and thank you for sharing in our passion and love of all things 'motorcycles'. Hope the channels success continues to grow and flourish for the years to come, peace and keep ridin'!
I started out on a 1980 honda atc 110 and later got a 1985 honda atc 200X . I don't agree with the govt banning these machines but that's what happens when ALOT of people are irresponsible .
My dad got me a Honda 110 ATC in 84. It was a blast to ride. I still have it to this day. It runs like a champ, and the awesome thing is my 3 kids have grown up riding it as well. 🤘🤘🤘
The ban is stupid bc its a tool, not transportation. How about a gun? who is to blame when a kid kills himself with a gun? The gun manufacturer or the parent and child? Stop the nonsense. Life is a choice. Make good ones.
@@morri03the ATC 250R was a competition machine never intended for children. But all three wheeled ATV’s were banned. Not just the little seventies and fifties. But your point is valid.
I’m guessing you are American? Because in almost every other country, there a strict gun laws, in part to prevent stupid shit like kids shooting themselves. Now I wouldn’t blame the manufacturer exactly, but from an actionable standpoint, I wouldn’t blame the parent or child either. Kids will do stupid shit, they are kids, and some parents will be negligent. And some parents are just stupid, and will be unless you require a written test to have a child. So you can sit there and assign fault to the parents and child all you want, but if you actually want to reduce child gun deaths, you need to actually DO something. Strict gun laws are that thing. Pistols are almost impossible to get in the UK, which is actually really effective for this particular problem because small children are too short to easily blow their brains out with a shotgun because they can’t reach the trigger and cover the muzzle simultaneously, but that’s not a problem with a pistol. “Life is a choice, make good ones”, yeah, it’s a choice for me to to read every ingredients list and cross reference it with a memorised list of poisons to assess if my food is safe, but it would be a lot easier if I didn’t need to make this choice because the government just outlawed selling poison as food.
My first one was a atc 90 paid $669 for it new. Used it on my farm/ ranch hauling pulling trailer moving cattle and just having fun. Still have it along with a 185. I say bring them back. And thank you for the great video!
Blizzard of 78 , the kids up the street tied a 100 ft rope onto a truck inner- tube. The ice in the fields was so thick that the ATV and everything rode on top of the ice. I was 8 years old and it was like flying in mid air .
I have owned three trikes. My first one was the legendary 1986 Honda 250 R. I loved having these as a kid and an adult. Just like any other motorcycle, you have to respect the machine. I would absolutely love if they came out with another version of these with some extra safety features. Just to get them back out on the market.
its a real shame that people want to sue a company like honda when a tragedy occurs. at the end of the day, life is full of danger and its up to parents to decide what level they are comfortable with exposing their kids to. cant blame a manufacturer.
Great Video, I'm glad I watched it. I'm 47 years old and owned nothing but several Honda 3wheelers, I loved every one of them .I did have countless dirt bikes but Always had a ATC on hand, never got to ride a 250r wow what a bike that must be..I did have the Honda 70 trike ,1982 185s with a yamaha 175 IT 2stroke engine I built ,that thing flew lol. Lots of Big reds ,I Recently had my first quad a 2000 Hondas 250 fourtrax I enjoyed it but it's not as easy too steer and handle long term riding as to any of many three wheelers I once owned . In my opinion three wheelers were just misunderstood on how to handle them. I feel that common sense goes along way when operating the three wheeler and unfortunately some people just don't have common sense.. Something else I feel that made riding a three wheeler confusing and dangerous was that what I call that upside down annoying shift pattern ughhhhh.. How many times you would go hill climbing and up shift when trying to down shift or your toe bouncing of the lever and unexpectedly throwing the wrong gear..If youve ridden these bikes you know what im talking about.. Thankfully not all the bikes shifted this way. BTW if you didn't know why I wrote (bikes) and not three wheeler this is because the ATC is a (all terrain cycle )making it a bike lol not the ATV all terrain vehicle the qaud 4 wheeler... Wait does it matter?? Probably not 😅 just something all us Riders would always say... Thanks for reading this have a wonderful holidays everyone..
I remember taking an atv riding course at a Honda dealership in Indiana during the 80's when I was around 8 or so. On a brand new 110 Honda ATC. They taught you how to get up, and down steep hills, and how to turn without rolling it. Then we got to go on a trail ride. "It was fantastic" 🐸 I do remember it didn't have nerf bars though. My first attempt at going up a hill. My foot slipped off, and went under the back tire. Some how I managed to pull my foot back without falling off, but the back of my leg was scratched up nice.
I had an atc110 And I thought the handling was more predictable than the average four wheeler. Side note my parents thought it was dangerous, so I sold it and replaced it with a RM125 😂
Started in 73 on the 90, then a 110 in 80, a 250R in 82, 200X in 84 and a 250R in 85! ALL were a blast. Living in the middle of the Desert I rode for hours a day, 7 days a week year round and never was seriously injured. Many kids in Town had them and we went everywhere on them for pennies in fuel! Lawyers and money ruin everything good given time.......
boy you said it....and I'll add to your list of lawyers & money, also communist liberals. Look at what they've been trying to do to football & the NFL. They even wanna take meat away form us and replace it with synthetic man-made crap!
That was a serious performance bump you had there between 80 and 82!
Yes I had the same progression as you.
7 days a week huh😅
Sounds exactly like "i walked to school every day, uphill and snowing"😅
@@420funny6 Trust Me, when you live at the Salton Sea there is nothing else to do but RIDE!
I'm in my early 50's now and one thing I'm thankful for is all the time I've had on ATVs. I rode a little 70 in a fair event as a child but had a bunch of 185-350 4Ts and several 250Rs as an adult. They're a different kind of fun than a 4-wheeler, maybe a little bit sketchier but definitely an adrenaline rush in the dunes. 3wheelers are valuable these days for good reason.
im 23 and live in CA ive owned one ATV in my life and im on my fith three wheeler. currently own a 86 350X, 84 250r and a 84 200M. id never sell the 350 or 250R but the ones i do sell i make sure are in far better condition than what i found them in. if i see an old broken down threewheeler for $100-$300 i buy it and fix it the best i can and ill sell it or trade it. this is what keeps them alive for future generation and it makes me feel good that im doing my part to preserve truly misunderstood historical motocross vehicles.
@@sonicpower687that's so cool! I haven't even seen a 3 wheeler since probably the mid 90s didn't know they were still around.
I gave away a 1985 250ES Big Red a few years ago that ran great. I gave it to a guy in his mid 70s that lives off the road. He is mostly self sufficient growing food , hunting and fishing. He even make’s raspberry wine. We have a place near his and have a 900 Ranger to get there. We ride our snowmachines there in the winter. My wife and I are 70.
@@sonicpower687
I have ridden the 85250r and owned the 350x with about a 6-to-8-year span between the two.
How do you compare the two between each other?
i.e speed, quickness, handling, trusting it's ability.
I love all things and brands who make fun things with motors, so they are all winners to me,
I am just curious about my biases in owning the 350x and having so much more seat time, because my
memories led me to believe that the 350 was just a little more capable in those parameters that I listed,
except maybe quickness, but 2 strokes kind of have that feel towards them.
If you find the time to respond that would be appreciated, if not, I will still think your cool because of your
choice in toys.
I've been riding snowmobiles, 4-wheelers and smaller dirt bikes since I was 9, and I can tell you, one is not really harder than the other to use, it really is just a matter of knowing how each type of machine behaves.
oh my gosh, its quebec gamer
I had several of these machines. Started with a 90 then moved up to the 110 then to a 185S, a 200 then a 250R. I never hurt myself bad through the countless hours spent on these things. Banning the 3 wheeler is just another case of blaming an inanimated object for the actions of stupid people.
#Nonsense-they were dangerous...
There are so many challenged folks it made sense to ban
@@bobcuster8930 So is riding the New York subway.
I had one and it took practice to ride it safely. It was not meant for stunts and wild driving.. If you got hurt it was your own fault and lack of plain common sense
Karen's were just looking for someone to blame after failing to train and supervise their children.
My family and friends lived the ATC life for about 10 years. We started on non suspention bikes and graduated to fully suspended and fast atc's. All of us were hurt riding them but mainly on the non suspended versions. I spent 3 weeks in a hospital with my first and only major accident, it didnt deter me or anyone else in our group. Eventually everyone moved on to side by sides or stopped riding altogether. Im 65 now, but i still reminder the fun i had on these. I even had a personalized license plated on my truck, ATCLUVR. Thanks for reminding me what great fun i had on these machines.
It actually is legal to manufacture 3 wheelers again, the ban was temporary and actually expired in 1998 but the major manufacturers have continued to choose not to make them. Smaller manufacturers have begun making conversion kits for various models though. 3 wheelers are actually some of the most fun bikes I own and are having a resurgence thanks to gen X’ers and older millennials. The smaller utility models are still pretty affordable but the sport models have become VERY expensive. 3 wheelers are also still kings of the dunes, it’s not rare to see 250r’s, 350x’s and fully modded atc70’s at glamis and dumont.
Sadly this is not the case anymore, if you try to contact any of the kit makers they are no longer able to produce and sell them. This is from a consent degree in 2008 that has recently been enforced removing bvc and dt Motorsports from the modern trike market, which is quite sad since my dt conversion is an amazing product
@@Tri-ZF450 when did that happen?!? I’m pretty sure BVC had just come out with the crf110 conversion this year? Looks like DT has definitely stopped offering kits but BVC still has some according to their websites. I wonder what consent decree in 2008 they are using to enforce this since the original 3 wheeler consent decree has long since expired. Either way that’s sucks and is weird.
@@Tri-ZF450 yeah, no, BVC still makes both kits and complete conversions for trikes and Big Wheels (like the old Yamaha BW Big Wheels, not the kids pedal trike lol), they recently featured one of their "ATC500R" trikes powered by a CR500R engine, CRF450R frame, and TRX450R rear fenders with custom decals even seat and everything which is literally like Honda built a brand new 2023 ATC500R, it's gorgeous....but they also made and offer a "true" ATC500R built with a CR500R frame and TRX250R fenders all done up in red with the blue classic seat and everything, and they offer complete kits and conversions for a bunch of popular bikes and will build you one (trike or BW) from literally almost any bike if you bring it to them and pay.... I definitely want both their new ATC500R's (new and old) and would definitely take an XR650R BW 😅
absolutely! i find my trikes more fun then any bike or quad. they go everywhere and do everything. they just ride a bit rougher lol. but once you have a year or more of riding experience you dont really end up wrecking.
I'm 17 and we just sold our 350x because money was tight 😭
Ever run over the back of your leg on one of these beasts?
Ah, the good old days lol
Loving the video
An early thing you learn as an ATC rider is to keep your feet on the pegs- even if you're going to crash. Done it myself several times until muscle memory taught the course.
Only once...😄
@@A-Cat-in-Dogtown
A quick study
I never did.... But damn I rode over a girlfriends leg pretty good on a hill climb out near Palm Springs CA back in the early 90s. I still feel bad about that.
It only takes a time or two to realize never put out a foot unless you are darn near perpindictular...
One of the best researched and produced videos on three wheelers out there. Brings back so many great memories on my 1984 125m.
This brought back memories of the 80s...My best friend had the Honda 250R and he could ride the thing...I was into dirt bikes had a brand new Yamaha IT 175...Riding the trails in north west Va ..nothing but rocks and trees I would always let my friend lead the way....The things that 2 stroke Honda would throw out the back was something to see...large rocks...tree limbs ect...coming at you at warp speed.....Good times. Thanks Bart....Ps...... he never got hurt on it.
I would ride out front on my 250r, blazed trails great!
YES, my friend had a Honda 250. I loved that 3 wheeler. He could go anywhere we went with our dirt bike 2 strokes. 😊 wanted one so bad. My other friend talked me into a ( Husqvarna) 2 stroke very much a pro rider bike. I regret buying the bike instead of the 3 wheeler. I could never handle the high reving dirt bike. The 3 wheeler was super easy STARTING compared to the Husky. I once had the Husky do a runaway engine throttle sticking. When we had snow that Honda would take it no problem 😊 I still kick myself for not getting one. The only issue I ever had on any dangers with riding her. If my feet came off pedal, I would have it get touched by the back wheel. I never saw my friend have any accidents with his. He bought it because he couldn't control himself on a dirt bike. I would p still have one if I had bought one in the early 1980s. That Husky was so glad to get rid of 😊 I just was not a good enough dirt bike rider to handle a 2 wheel motorcycle.
My dad bought me a 110 atc when I was 9 yrs old and it was an awesome experience for me and my family and friends . We never had an accident or flipped it or nothing. They where more fun that a quad which I later owned.
I have four of them all Hondas , 1985 ATC 70. ATC 250sx ATC 200x ATC 350x , I love three wheelers and I wish they would make them again. I grew up on them and have many many memories of riding.
I just bought one....... best decision of my life. The 3 wheeler is just so much fun
You needed to ride one of the 250r, crazy fun!
Yes, ATC, not atv.
Christmas 1985 I was 6 and my parents got me & my brother a Yamaha 175 Tri-Moto. Loved that thing and later on I got lucky and got a Tri-Z 250.
Hope you held on to that tri z. They bring big bucks. I don't think they made a lot of them.
Wow. Xmas Day of 1985. I worked an accident where a 5-year old boy was killed on his gifted Honda 3-wheeler, as his dad looked on.
It was pretty tough. The kid was wearing a full-coverage helmet & was riding on some rarely used oilfield gravel roads. In TX there are lots of these and there are 'cattleguards' made of pipe, that keep the cows from roaming over to other pastures. (The grass being greener over there and all.)😊
Anyhoo, the kid was having a blast, powerslidubg around on the roads, until he tried to keep it sideways over the cattleguard. He caught traction, squared it up and shot straight off of the side of the guard & into a barbwire fence. Not too bad, except the end of a strand of the wire was protruding out and it went inside the helmet and straight through the roof of his mouth & up into his brain.
This was in no way anyone's fault nor was the ATV to blame. Just some horrid fate that day. I wasn't a parent yet then, but I never forgot that day and the dad and his boy. Some Christmas. Somethings just stay with ya.😢
Where I live almost everyone had a trike. It had the comfort of a quad but speed and instability of a bike, bad combo for people who weren't taught how to ride.
my son still has the last 1985 Big Red I bought new it is still in use and yes this 70 year old guy still gets on it to many good memorys to list one of the best additions to the farm at the time.
I live out in Trona CA and there is at least one big red out here cruising then desert, great machine!
Wow. This brings back memories. When I was a little kid in the 90’s everyone had one of these, even tho by then everyone knew they were dangerous. Back in the 70’s there were a few other 3 wheelers like the Montgomery ward trail master and the Tri-sport. They were a lot different from the atc. Those had a longer and wider wheelbase and a low center of gravity, making them very stable and easy to ride.
When the atc came out it basically killed that style of three wheelers since it was about the same price but with the Honda branding
For sure and I think it was manco who built a legit atc looking like honda not trisport more gocartish but had a 8 hp I think briggs through a cvt? I rode one but never owned. I to this day would love to get the honda us90, atc90 atc110 and they made a horizontal same style atc125 but also a vertical engine atc125 I would not want. I cant remember but one of the 125 versions had reverse. But anything us90 engine based awesome and if the us90 based going to 125 with a reverse would be the cats meow. just for reverse.
We a had Tri-sport, fun, but not very trail friendly
@@rabbithomesteading3797 All the atc/trx 125s had reverse. You're correct, the vertical atc/trx 125 (1986+) should be avoided, imho.
I still have my 1985 Honda ATC350X in very good condition. Bought it new. Still runs great. The most fun of all the toys I've ever owned. I've been a motorcyclist for over 50 years.
Those are hell to kick start or at least the one that I had was
They're probably the reason they were banned lol
@ I’d have to call a friend over to help start it. If you slipped the kickstart would slap back and break your damn shin 😂
I still have and very much still use my 1983 atc 200e Big Red with the hi/low gear case. Sure i broke my collar bone in 3 places on it as a kid but i would never trade it for anything else. Its honestly so handy for hauling wood , been chirped a few times for riding a "museum peice" but thoughts change when they get stuck in their 900lb 4x4 anchors, i either float on by or i just pick it up and turn it around.
That was my take on the difference between the 3 and4 wheelers too, a lot of extra weight. Very rare could a 4wheeler go somewhere a 3 wheeler couldn’t
Thank you so much for producing this amazing video that brought back so many memories. I feel so blessed to have grown up during the glory days of the Honda ATCs. Each member of my family owned one. My youngest brother - ATC 70, my sister - ATC 110, my other brother - ATC 200X, my parents - ATC 185, and I had the ATC 250R. We spent our long weekends in Glamis, CA and all survived. We weren’t freaks of nature, we just learned to ride.
I still have an 81 250R, it has a 300 kit on it with a bigger carb, It's fast! I'm 64 and still love riding it. Growing up I had a 110 and spent Thanksgiving at the dunes in Yuma AZ allot. It was too small for that but it still went, just a bit slower.
Yea I had a 110 Honda when I was about 12 years old. After reading these comments I guess a 110 is small, but it seemed plenty fast for me as well as my stepdad and his friends.
Great video! Spent my whole childhood on a Honda 185S.
Best times ever!
My friend's 350x was a beast. What an engine!
I had a fresh rebuilt one, missing 2nd gear,bout 10yrs ago on a trade... thing was straight piped, lol. It was scary fast. It was a monster...thing was downright scary. 😂but boy was she bad on snow and mud..
My dad was actually the first guy in Canada to race 4 wheelers professionally against 3 wheelers in the early 80s.
I remember him saying the 3 wheeler racers biggest complaint about the quads was that they were unstable lol.
I would agree! I had a Honda 200, then 250r and never had anything but a blast. The first 4-wheeler I was on- I rolled!
@@allandoyle9108 four wheelers are technically more dangerous because they weigh much more! so once they roll its pretty bad
I always wanted an ATC soooo badly when I was growing up in the 80’s. Now that I’m an adult, I may need to try and find one 🤔
I was in my twenties in the mid 80's when I was introduced to ATCs, where me and my buddies rode them in the dunes of SoCal. I picked up a used Honda 250R, and then I was the king of the dunes!
Had a LOT of fun on my old 185S! Everything from the Oregon Dunes to thrashing mud on mountain trails in the Washington Cascades. To this day (despite my advanced age!), I'd still love to have a 350X.
Had a kawasaki 185 as a try the 3 wheel thing. tossed myself off wfo one day as it tried to pass me and run me over on the way by . I had had enough fun with that experiment. Purchased a 350x the next week and OMG what a machine I loved it and wished I never grew up and sold it in a fit of responsibility. Never had a CR250R based one as I know myself too well and that thing was a beast. The 350 was so fun suspension 6 speed lights disk brakes nice torque 350 4 stroke wheelie machine all day long was not bad in the snow too. great memories for sure thanks for mentioning
I started with a kawasaki 110 at age 11, then went to a 185, then to a tecate 250. I also had a quad sport, warrior, blaster, 185 bayou ect. I have road about every 3 and 4 wheel from the 70's to the 2000's. The 4 wheelers handle nothing like the 3 wheels. The 3 wheeler is so much more nimble and can do circles around a 4 wheeler. You just have to learn to lean the opposite way on a 3 wheeler. And they slide sideways like nothing else. Thanks for bringing back the good old times.
My brother bought me a used 1984 Honda ATC 250R. I had no idea what a clutch or shifter was. I learned quick. But I also mastered not rolling it over. I could get into places the early quads couldn't. The 80s were a wild fun time!
This was how I learned , as a young man , what government overreach was. It’s has continued to become more intrusive since….good video as usual. I honestly think they should bring these back.
They're dangerous. People get killed on ATVs. I can think of three personal acquaintances who met their end on four-wheelers. Also, a family member of mine had to have surgery after wrecking his Honda three-wheeler back in the seventies. I had too many close calls, myself.
@@azores15 Don't blame the machine. Blame the operator. If you think they're too dangerous, then don't ride them. It's that simple.
@@ericgries2398 I agree. Everyone I know who have broken their wrists or rollovers bc their riding decisions were flawed. Machine made no bad decisions.
I loved my Honda 200 ATC!
I had so much fun on that 3-wheeler with my HS friends and on our farm. I could load 6 bales of straw (lighter than hay for city folk) on the back and take them 1/4 mile back to the hogs we had on pasture. My German Shepherd rode on the back. Yeah, I freak'in LOVED that 3-wheeler!
Years down the road my younger brother's friend blew the engine and my brother never made good on the promise to fix it. My Dad sold it a few years ago, some 35 years down the road.
It's a shame lawyers and the Nanny States took over our lives.
Excellent video me and my wife bought a 110 and 185 around 1984 we loved them. But we again rode carefully. I really miss those machines.
I still own two Honda three wheelers. A Big Red and a 200s. They still run great too!
Fantastic video! I picked up an '84 200es as a non runner a few years back. Got it running great and have used it often ever since. Just as you described, I understand the machine and know how to respect it. The only time it's flipped was early in my time with it, I went diagonally down an extremely steep hill at just the wrong angle where it flipped. That was the first time I had encountered terrain like that and it was very slick. Lesson learned and I never had another issue with it. One of the most interesting things I've noticed letting others ride it, is that if a person has a lot of experience on a motorcycle, then they tend to put their feet down when they panic. That's the worst thing to do on a 3 wheeler and I have to be very careful with riders who are used to motorcycles. People with no experience at all seem to be able to understand the ATC's quirks much more easily. No conflicting habits to unlearn.
They were awesome back in the day for making trails that were easy to ride with a dirt bike. Now all the trails in my area kinda suck for dirt bikes because so many people ride quads on them, which turn the trails into two small ruts, so you either have to ride in a rut or the tiny mound between the ruts.
I remember seeing the TV ads for this thing as a kid - everyone in my rural area was talking about the "Big Red" and I tried to convince my dad to get me one. He wisely decided to get a small two wheeled Honda for me (age 5) so this must have been around the time when people started to realise that the three-wheelers weren't inherently safer.
I vaguely remember there was also an element where bikers like my dad looked down on three-wheelers as things that would engender bad habits and somehow delay the adoption of "real" motorcycles.
The adverts were captivating for children though - the idea of mum, dad, and children on an off-road adventure where we were all in control... very compelling.
I rode some of northern NJ's last trails and pits on a 250R in '87. Snow covered roads were the fastest. Lucky to live to tell the tales of escaping angry homeowners cutting through subdivisions between trails. I figured the 250R was the safest ATC because it always had power to spin the rear wheels to turn. That was some great footage, well done.
Only way to ride three wheelers is slow and steady or balls to the wall
Same here. I lived in H-town in the 70s. Many weekends spent at that areas moto mecca (at that time). The Stanhope sands pits. We rode every trail,old mining Rd. or power line cut we could find off the rairoad tracks from Netcong to lil Washinton. Swept the foot under the rear wheels à few times but thankfully no broken bones or severe injuries just a few stiches here and there. Good times!
Thanks Wonder Bread!
@@Ryzynsun01 Hackettsburg to Stanhope pits was a long ride! We used to ride bikes from Parsippany and Randolph, which was fun and challenging! My first ride was on a rented Yamaha DT125 at Moto Mecca, went to see a race or two there too. Fun!
@@jbbbda Seems to me Parsipanny to Stanhope would be a pretty long ride too. Thinkin back it sure didnt seem to take very long maybe 30+- mins ridin along side the railroad trax. Plenty of overgrown old mining roads and pit remnants with some powerline cuts along the way to explore also. Mostly around the Saxton Falls area which is situated between H-town and Stanhope along the tracks. Those were... good times... damn good times! Cheers!
Sweet Ford 8n in the beginning. Did you learn to drive on that as well? Great videos man. Keep it up.
Amazing video and history. My brother and his friend both had mid 80's Honda 3 wheelers with pull starts in the mid 2010's. He told me they tip and thank you for elaborating on that. They rode them alot up North.
I think like with alot of things today, people are trying to legeslate away their personal responsibility and common sense.
I also had a three-wheeler as a kid in the 1980s. Loved it and rode it for years and years with no serious injuries. We also would use ours to make trails how you described and they were also fantastic when hunting to both get out to a site and to bring a deer out of a site if you got one. Great video and all your videos are consistently great. Thanks for the hard work!
Really enjoyed watching! I grew up on a honda 50 mini trail. In the late seventies I had a opportunity to ride a ATC,and I remember how u had to shift weight in order to steer correctly. Later got into snowmobiling and fell in love,became real good and would go out in packs to scout and jump cornices, and rock outcroppings. I guess u could call it the predecessor of extreme sport riding. This video left me feeling very nostalgic. Thank u.
Many a fine afternoon at our small rough acreage I spent buzzing around on a Honda 3 wheeler. Great memories.
Another great vid, I had a 70 for fun and a 250R that was a full blown MX trike I raced here in Australia during the 80's, as you say, one has to understand the trikes and how they behave, turn etc they don't have diffs, so you have to lean to slightly break loose the inner wheel to turn, that's how I remember them, quirky but sooo much fun
I have a street legal 350X, so much fun.
Great video. My dad bought me a new Honda 3 Wheeler 110 in 1985 when I was 9. I had a lot of fun on it all the way through high school. I would love to get one again.
I had a Honda Big Red 200. It was a fun beast to ride.
My childhood revolved around baseball and Honda 3 wheelers. Dad and I nearly everyday rode our 110’s for up to an hour after he got out of work. My brother and rode them on the weekends.
I can’t imagine the 1980’s without those Honda 110 ATC’s. My mom even rode them occasionally.
Respect and knowledge of their capabilities kept my brother and safe. I broke my arm due lack of respect at the speed I was going on the terrain I was traveling over when I was 9. I also got lucky a number of times. But the fun out weighed the danger and pain. My dad loved the machines as much as I did.
Way more teens at the time got really hurt or killed on snowmobiles at least around where I lived then. ATV classes with the extremely small riding portion of the class provided only boredom for teens after they became law and I am sure it hasn’t changed. Watching and teaching your own children how to properly ride 3 or 4 wheelers is the only way to do it.
Had a Honda 185, rode that thing like crazy, no helmet. Surprised I'm still alive with all the wrecks I had on it. Including flipping it over on top of me, and pulling an inner tube behind it in the snow and being blasted off of it from a pile of snow. It was a blast!😊
Bounced a 200s down a hill so many times. Bent axle. Just got out of the Marines 1984. Buddy and I had them and destroyed them in 1 summer.
We took crazy chances.
The old Big reds are some of my favorite off-road rides ever! My grandparents had one when I was little and it was huge on me so I drove it carefully and loved every second.
We finally got our own atc 200 big red and I cannot believe i waited this long to get one. What a blast!!!
Had an 85 big red 300. Light simple and reliable
You left out the Honda 350x. My brother and I still have ours. Its a beast we rode a lot. Never got hurt its all about respect for the machine.
The 350X, double headlight was the OG of awesome 4 Stroke fun!! What a stud of a machine!!
Im originally from Michigan, i lived 10 miles from Bloomfield Hills. My neighbor raced these things semi professionally for his family Honda business. I had no idea the concept started there.
To say I lived on an ATC 250-r in 1983 would be an understatement. When I finally saved up the money to get the 87,...it was pulled out from under me by the dealership. So, I found an 86 and crammed a CR-500 into the frame and lived happily ever after. Never dying, or even chipping a tooth. Still have that 83 and the 86, still ride, still alive.
Wherever you are, I’d make the trip just to say hi, throw a leg over the seat and take that trip in my head back to that time. Bro, the drinks and food are on me. Damn, the stories we could share!!
Congratulations to your channel and videos. I don’t like ATV, trikes but you made the right way to tell the history of this machines. Thank you
I would love to see the 3-wheeler make a return. With Today's Tech it would be amazing.
Thanks for a great video brings back many memories. I owned a Honda 90! 110 three wheelers. They were fun and I rode a friend of mine 250 R. Was like riding a tornado down the creek bed at 70 miles an hour.😊😊
Amen! I have my battle scars from my 350X. Loved every minute of it
I loved mine
Hi. My first arc was a Honda 185s. I owned many over the years, I would mostly ride dirt bikes but in fall,winter and spring I’d ride them. So much fun…. Very fond memories.
I still own a Yamaha 200. I’m alway looking out for them in good condition. I would like to see them come back. Thanks for the video
My uncle was just telling me stories of his ATC experiences and now I’m looking for one on Craigslist 😂
I was under 10 years old and had a Honda 110 and my two older brothers had two 185S models. For Christmas each of us boys got a craftsman metric tool set to work on them because all our tools were standard back then. It’s been about 50 years and my parents are long since deceased but I still have that metric tool set.
Theyre making a huge comback. Check the price of restored 250Rs, Tecates and such. Im restoring a few sport 3 wheelers now. Theyre wicked fun!
just took my atc 250sx out and tipped it 40 minutes ago trying to hop a log was alotta fun luckly in my 10 years of owning it ive never injured myself excepts for scrapes and bruises
I had the 185s, the 200x and the ATC250R. I raced the R on various surfaces including ice and it was a total blast and insanely fast. Sorry I sold it.
I rode a 1985 200x and loved it! It was a time when you had to get creative at things to do. No cell phones and computers to create the problems we have now days. But like usual it only takes one judge to rule and change the corse of time. Everyone is so worried about people’s safety. BS! They are only concerned about lawsuits. MONEY always seems to rule the ways of our life. But it was fun while it lasted.
4 wheelers just aren’t the same. Anyone who has ridden a three wheeler knows.
I remember riding 2up on a friend's 250R in the late 1980's. I remember it being shockingly quick in a straight line, but I also remember just how much we had to slow down to negotiate tight corners, even with both of us pitching our full body weight off the bike. It was like a dragster for the dirt.
Around the same time, I started riding 4-wheelers, and at least as reasonable speeds, I did find them to be much more manageable in corners. In particular, making turns on a downhill grade was much safer and easier with that 4th wheel.
Now I only ride off road on two wheels, which ironically feels a lot safer to me.
Great video! I recently found an ‘81 ATC200 which was left in a barn in California for 30+ years. I finally got it fired up and can’t wait to ride it once I finish restoring it. The tires look like massive balloons. 😂
I absolutely love my 87 BigRed & 86 250sx.... still have em to this day. And, still occasionally ride them. I have a few ATVs as well but still favor the old ATCs......
My cousins had Hondas and we had a Yamaha 225. Awesome memories. Took a couple of nasty spills, but thankfully was always in a helmet during those stunts.
My neighbor has a 250r he just rebuilt. That thing rips.
I loved my 185s that we got when I was 10 and enjoyed it for 9 years before going into the Navy. I raced a little motocross, but the 185 was still fun. I love your comparison to electric bikes. I can’t believe the government hasn’t outlawed those yet! It was never expected that I could ride my ATC on the streets.
Done a jump on an atc185 and flipped it over backwards and landed underneath it. It was the most winded I had ever been in my life. No helmet. Fun times.
Honda 70c 3 wheeler when I was 12 in like 1986, I think my dad got it used for $less than $300. Holy crap I ripped off parts of the fenders in a month hitting stuff and god forbid if you jack knifed the the front wheel you were in for a bad time
Great video! I grew up on Honda 3 wheelers. First a 70 and then a 200s. All of my friends had them and sure everyone had wrecks now and then, but I never knew anyone who got seriously hurt. As I have aged, I’ve known of way more serious accidents and deaths from people riding 4 wheelers.
I had so much fun on 3 wheelers growing up. I had a 200X, 350X and a 250R. My favorite was the 350X. It was great in the snow
I would get one if they came back
Hi Bart. First of all, thanks for your videos, they are very informative and I have watched at least 80 % of all your uploads.- I have a special request: It would be very nice to see a video about the Honda Z50M. I believe this is the predecessor of the monkey and was a very nice little mini bike.- If you search in UA-cam you will notice that there is almost no relevant material available about this little wonder! Have a nice day...
Somewhere in the 80's, I'm about 15 years old, me and my friends went to a place that rented these ATV... i am a city boy, no experience whatsoever... nobody told me you had to transfer weight and lean... I was stiff as a wood planck... rolled over the entire day. Very lucky not getting injured.
Just bought a running 200c for $150, needs some restoration of course, but how sweet it will be..
Started on the 200s, then the 350x and finally the quadzilla. And man, we had the most fun ever.
There's sort of a modern version of this where parents buy their kids electric dirt bikes and think they're safer for some reason cause they're electric. I've seen so many videos of young people jumping them and going crazy and crashing while wearing 0 safety gear.
Thats natures way of thinning the heard. Pay no attention because its necessary.
Still have a running 1985 Honda ATC 250SX at the cottage!
I loved these things as a kid... I never got one, but I had plenty of friends who did & let me ride theirs... I might get one if I found it at the right price, but at my age & my back, I'm good with my 4 wheeler suspension these days... Lol!
I had one of these. It was great. Mine was in the water a lot. It was great in the snow. Never had an issue as far as controlling it. You kind of learned early on what you needed to do in a turn. Pretty common sense, really. I don't recall what CC mine was, but it didn't have a lot of power, but it did well in most circumstances. We had a 100-foot hill that mine just couldn't top. Broke a few parts off on that hill. Myself, a friend and my brother, had all the same ones and we played demolition derby with them. Needless to say, mine lost its lights and part of a fender. As I mentioned earlier, I rode in water quite a bit. It was a submarine. All in all, a great time all around.
Yep, it's that initial over confidence that did them in. With ANY two-wheeler, and I don't care if it's only a slow minibike and you know how to ride a bicycle, there's always something announced on that first moto ride that tells you things are different. Apparently that was masked with 3-wheelers, and I do agree it's the same with 4-wheels to large degree. Around here in my rural area, every year some teen gets hurt on a 4-wheeler.
I had a Big Red in my early teens. That little machine was amazing. It was great for chores, hunting, moving trailers and running around the county.
I remember watching the Banana Splits driving 6 wheelers on saturday mornings .
I loved mine growing up, 31 now so I also grew up not knowing what I was riding at time had been illegal for years before I even existed, truly learned so much on that thing as a kid, even contemplated buying one, so fun, made great memories with it
If someone decides to market a new three wheeler, they should use the kids Big Wheel tricycle as a guide.
Widen the rear track and get the CG as low as possible. The first generation atc's we're self-balancing only at a standstill, as was stated in the video. Once in motion, they're completely unstable.
Very well put together video and I couldnt agree more.
Ive owned three wheelers, four wheelers and bikes since the early 1990s. You have to know the differences between the different types of machines and how to ride them as well as know your own capabilities and ride within them.
I still own several three wheelers, from the small hard tails to 3rd Gen 250Rs and ill never give them up.
The arguement against three wheelers and ATVs in general is as flawed as the gun control arguement. Laying blame on the object for the irresponsible/unlawful actions of the user resulting in the punishement of the whole of society.
Interesting to note that after the so called "ban" on three wheelers, ATV accidents and deaths actually continued to rise throughout the 1990s. Proof positive that no matter what the configuration of the machine, irresponsible actions of the user IS the root cause of accidents...period
I would love to see them bring back modern versions of the 1985-1987 Honda ATC250SX and ATC250ES Big Red. Make it a law that no one under 16 can ride one and require a training course. I started off on a ATC110 back in the day and currently own a 250SX. The SX is a LOT more stable than the 110 due to being wider and having full suspension.
The law didn’t fix anything the first time around.
The Banning of the three wheeler, has killed more people since on four wheelers!
Because most people believe that a four wheeler is safer and because of this they ride them in more dangerous situations.
I started my career as a Motorcycle Engineer and Mechanic in 1981 and ended up leaving the motorcycle industry in 2012, I enjoyed my time selling and riding the ATC’s and even ended up restoring one of the very first ATC 90’s imported into New Zealand, it was brilliant, light, wood float on water crossings, and just go anywhere.
But I could see the writing on the wall when Customer started using their ATC 200’s to pull out a stuck 10+ Ton 4x4 spreader truck on farms.
And cannot believe that then now over 700 cc and extremely heavy compared to the first models, it defeats the purpose of them.
My uncle has two, loves that they are easy to ride and cheap to buy and fix. However he noticed that you need to treat them "differently" when it comes to handling and they become much safer to ride. Like a Squat and lean. A mix of ATV and Motorcycle handling. They also roll back easily so lean forward as there is less weight up front. They do require experience from ANY motorsports background or sport biking really. Coupled with a lack of basic survival instinct from some humans, LOL it's not a good mix.
Hey Bart, I normally wouldn't do this, but I feel it's important. First, the Kawi, KXT250, aka- Tecatè, is pronounced tah-kah-tāe or tah-kah-tee, depending on ones accent😊. But 'e' at the end is not silent. Okay now for my more important info. I read an article online, 10 to 12 years ago, that stated at the end of the 10-year ATC ban, the Japanese Big four lobby to have a bill introduced that would ban 3 wheelers indefinitely. The reason being was at that time Chinese manufacturers had started to build ATVs and ship them around the world selling them at very low cost. Rather than face a reintroduction of the ATC from various Chinese manufacturers that already had the tooling to make the machines, a lot of time and money had been spent with the marketing of four-wheeled ATVs and rather than face off vs ATCs at an extremely lower cost point, it was easier to be proactive with an easy to pass bill. I'm drawing off of memory for this so some of it may be flawed but you get the gist of what I'm trying to say. I'll see if I can hunt down the article and post a link on this comment. Thanks bart, always a good time with your content!
Wow that's fascinating, I've never heard of that but I believe you. And yes after I recorded I realized how its pronounced, essentially like Ducati. Thanks for watching!
@@bartmotorcycle WOW!! I never saw a notification from your response. Bummer, but I caught it now LOL. I had to watch this again, likely my 3rd or 4th round. LOVE your vids- and thank you for sharing in our passion and love of all things 'motorcycles'. Hope the channels success continues to grow and flourish for the years to come, peace and keep ridin'!
I started out on a 1980 honda atc 110 and later got a 1985 honda atc 200X . I don't agree with the govt banning these machines but that's what happens when ALOT of people are irresponsible .
My dad got me a Honda 110 ATC in 84. It was a blast to ride. I still have it to this day. It runs like a champ, and the awesome thing is my 3 kids have grown up riding it as well. 🤘🤘🤘
The ban is stupid bc its a tool, not transportation. How about a gun? who is to blame when a kid kills himself with a gun? The gun manufacturer or the parent and child? Stop the nonsense. Life is a choice. Make good ones.
Your analogy is a poor one. The suits were about the marketing of 3 wheelers to children. Gun makers don’t do that
@@morri03the ATC 250R was a competition machine never intended for children. But all three wheeled ATV’s were banned. Not just the little seventies and fifties. But your point is valid.
The ban is stupid, yes. But these things are very poor tools.😆
I’m guessing you are American? Because in almost every other country, there a strict gun laws, in part to prevent stupid shit like kids shooting themselves.
Now I wouldn’t blame the manufacturer exactly, but from an actionable standpoint, I wouldn’t blame the parent or child either. Kids will do stupid shit, they are kids, and some parents will be negligent. And some parents are just stupid, and will be unless you require a written test to have a child.
So you can sit there and assign fault to the parents and child all you want, but if you actually want to reduce child gun deaths, you need to actually DO something. Strict gun laws are that thing. Pistols are almost impossible to get in the UK, which is actually really effective for this particular problem because small children are too short to easily blow their brains out with a shotgun because they can’t reach the trigger and cover the muzzle simultaneously, but that’s not a problem with a pistol.
“Life is a choice, make good ones”, yeah, it’s a choice for me to to read every ingredients list and cross reference it with a memorised list of poisons to assess if my food is safe, but it would be a lot easier if I didn’t need to make this choice because the government just outlawed selling poison as food.
@@phillipbatho3213 Poor tools that people wanted to buy? Don't be stupid.
My first one was a atc 90 paid $669 for it new. Used it on my farm/ ranch hauling pulling trailer moving cattle and just having fun. Still have it along with a 185. I say bring them back. And thank you for the great video!
Blizzard of 78 , the kids up the street tied a 100 ft rope onto a truck inner- tube. The ice in the fields was so thick that the ATV and everything rode on top of the ice. I was 8 years old and it was like flying in mid air .
I pulled kids on a car hood in that blizzard! With a Honda SL 350 that I could barely ride at 14 years old.
I have owned three trikes. My first one was the legendary 1986 Honda 250 R. I loved having these as a kid and an adult. Just like any other motorcycle, you have to respect the machine. I would absolutely love if they came out with another version of these with some extra safety features. Just to get them back out on the market.
its a real shame that people want to sue a company like honda when a tragedy occurs. at the end of the day, life is full of danger and its up to parents to decide what level they are comfortable with exposing their kids to. cant blame a manufacturer.
Great Video, I'm glad I watched it. I'm 47 years old and owned nothing but several Honda 3wheelers, I loved every one of them .I did have countless dirt bikes but Always had a ATC on hand, never got to ride a 250r wow what a bike that must be..I did have the Honda 70 trike ,1982 185s with a yamaha 175 IT 2stroke engine I built ,that thing flew lol. Lots of Big reds ,I Recently had my first quad a 2000 Hondas 250 fourtrax I enjoyed it but it's not as easy too steer and handle long term riding as to any of many three wheelers I once owned . In my opinion three wheelers were just misunderstood on how to handle them. I feel that common sense goes along way when operating the three wheeler and unfortunately some people just don't have common sense.. Something else I feel that made riding a three wheeler confusing and dangerous was that what I call that upside down annoying shift pattern ughhhhh.. How many times you would go hill climbing and up shift when trying to down shift or your toe bouncing of the lever and unexpectedly throwing the wrong gear..If youve ridden these bikes you know what im talking about.. Thankfully not all the bikes shifted this way. BTW if you didn't know why I wrote (bikes) and not three wheeler this is because the ATC is a (all terrain cycle )making it a bike lol not the ATV all terrain vehicle the qaud 4 wheeler... Wait does it matter?? Probably not 😅 just something all us Riders would always say... Thanks for reading this have a wonderful holidays everyone..
People killed the 3 wheeler because they rode it like stupid.
Life is hard, it’s harder when you’re dumb. We got plenty of dummies out there. More than 50% of the population.
I remember taking an atv riding course at a Honda dealership in Indiana during the 80's
when I was around
8 or so.
On a brand new 110 Honda ATC.
They taught you how to get up, and down steep hills, and how to turn without rolling it.
Then we got to go on a trail ride.
"It was fantastic" 🐸
I do remember it didn't have nerf bars though.
My first attempt at going up a hill.
My foot slipped off, and went under the back tire.
Some how I managed to pull my foot back without falling off,
but the back of my leg was scratched
up nice.
I had an atc110 And I thought the handling was more predictable than the average four wheeler. Side note my parents thought it was dangerous, so I sold it and replaced it with a RM125 😂