There will come a time in your ATV ownership life that you will really want to take a look at something under the hood, or rather under the machine. It may be because something is leaking or you went on a run on a particularly dirty run and need to make sure that your machine is still ready to run. When this happens it is best to take a look with the comfort of a little more height than at the floor level. When this is you, know that you have a few choices when it comes to jacking up an ATV.
How do you jack up or lift an ATV? The best and safest way to lift or jack up an ATV is to use a car jack with an additional jack or stand, or by using an ATV jack or using a a lift table. Each of these have their own advantages and disadvantages, but all should provide a safe and secure way to work on your ATV.
As I was scouring the internet and talking with fellow riders for all the best possible solutions for jacking up an ATV, I realized one thing: there are a lot of really bad ideas out there. If you are looking for the best way to get underneath your ATV, please remember that you are trying to get under a machine that weighs hundreds of pounds and could do serious damage if something were to go wrong. Safety is the number one thing you want to consider anytime you talk about putting your ATV or yourself in a precarious situation. There are a few ways to make sure that you are protecting yourself and your machine.
Firstly, recognize how much security you will need for the job you are doing. If you are looking at the tires or want a little extra clearance to check the body of the vehicle you may not need to have the ATV as secure as you will need to have an ATV that you are planning to get under to install a skid pad. It is important to keep in mind that even if you are just inspecting the tires, you will still want to secure your machine safely because it can still slip and fall on you.
Secondly, regardless of your motivations, do not rest your entire ATV on a single point.
If you are jacking up your ATV, you want to make sure that it is secured with more than one place. This may mean putting cinder blocks underneath the tires or using more than one jack on the frame, even though both of those do not guarantee that you will be safe because ATV’s can slip from cinder blocks and two jacks can fail. Check the security of your ATV by giving it a little shake. If the ATV is super wobbly, it is probably best to think of another way to secure it before doing any additional work.
When jacking up your ATV, there are a lot of ways to get the job done, but these ways are what we recommend as the safest.
Using a Basic Car JackMost people have a car jack on hand, whether or not they realize it. This makes it a really easy way to lift your ATV up to 18 inches off the ground and get a better look. If you decide to use a car jack you will want to place it on either the front or rear part of the frame.
Making sure it is lined up with the frame will help prevent any damage to the undercarriage of your ATV. When it is all lined up, you can manually begin to jack up the ATV.
The biggest con of using an car jack is that these are one of the least secure ways to get your ATV off the ground. Using a car jack only provides a single point of security for your entire ATV. This increases the potential of it failing substantially. If you are working on a tire that may need some pushing or pulling to coax into coming off, you can easily put too much pressure on the jack one way or another, which can topple the ATV on top of you or cause damage to the machine. This is when using a second jack on the same frame or possibly putting the tires on cinder blocks can add a little extra security and help you feel better about how safe you and your ATV are.
Using an ATV JackIf you find yourself wanting to get into the nitty gritty of your ATV more and more, then it may be a good time to consider purchasing an ATV jack.
There are several different types of ATV jacks that are specifically designed to safely and securely lift an ATV (this is our favorite). These jacks are usually designed to work for multiple types of vehicles and will serve a dual purpose as an atv/motorcycle, ATV/watercraft, or ATV/Lawnmower jack. It will really depend on what type of lift you are hoping to achieve for you to really know which jack you will want to invest in.
The two most common jacks are the ATV/motorcycle and the ATV/lawn mower. The big difference is where the ATV is lifted from and where it will give you the most access to. The ATV/motorcycle jack lifts from the center of the ATV which means that all four tires will be elevated at the same time. An ATV/lawn mower jack lifts the ATV from tires. This means that either the front or back tires will be elevated while leaving the other tires on the ground. Obviously, this is great if you are hoping to have access to the undercarriage, but it wouldn’t be great if you are planning to work a lot with the tires.
When looking at these types of jacks, you want to make sure they are rated to carry 1.5x the weight of your ATV to make sure that there is very little chance of it failing. If your ATV is 800 pounds, a jack rated to carry 1000 pounds leaves too little buffer for failure. Most likely it would work fine, but when the cost difference between the different jacks is so little, it is always wise to be safer. If you are a casual rider, then you should be able to invest $100-$200 dollars and purchase an ATV jack that will do everything you need it to do. If you are looking for more bells and whistles, such as an electric lifting device, you will expect to pay a bit more. One feature you want to make sure your lift has is a way to strap your ATV to the jack, securing it in case something did happen. Our personal favorite is a really good hydraulic jack that comes with an affordable price tag. See the current price on Amazon here.
When using these jacks, you will really need to follow the instructions provided in the manual as to how they are lifted properly, but I will provide a basic overview on what to expect.
Typically, with an ATV/Motorcycle jack, you will position the jack at the side of the ATV and slide it completely under the ATV. There will be two smaller “feet” or one large plate that will extend to both sides of the frame. From there, you will begin lifting the ATV, either manually or with an air compressor. This is also a great way to store your ATV if you are trying to save the suspension on your ATV during the times you are not riding it. As mentioned above, our favorite ATV jack fits this class, and is a really great value.
An ATV/lawn mower jack will be positioned at either the front or rear of the ATV with the two feet on the ground in front of the wheels. You will then roll the ATV on the space provided on the feet. Once the wheels are fully on (or in) the feet, you will lift the ATV until it is the height you need. This is a great way to get a good look at what is happening underneath your ATV or to do some cleaning after a particularly muddy ride.
If you are going to go this route, we recommend getting the highest capacity you can find, like this lift that can do 550 pounds.
Using a lift table is really only for those who are getting serious about taking care of their ATV. A lift table is a large plate in which the ATV basically sits on an elevated floor. These are not necessarily cost effect for the casual rider, but they can be very convenient for those people who are invested in consistently improving, upgrading and taking care of their ATV. A lift table is used by rolling the ATV onto the lift plate and then raising it into the air. For the best combination of quality and value, we recommend this lift table, which will work for all but the biggest ATVS. For those riding bigger quads, you will need something like this lift table.
Have you ever strapped something down on a truck using the straps that you ratchet to tighten and provide a secure load? Since you have an ATV, my guess is that yes, you have. One lifting idea I found while scouring the web was using these straps to lift your ATV. It is not something we have ever tried, but it was quite intriguing. The creator of this idea added hooks to the ceiling of his garage, looped the straps through the hooks and then used one strap on the front of the frame and a second strap on the back of the ATV frame. He then ratcheted the straps until the ATV was about 24 inches off the ground hanging from the ceiling. This allowed him access to the full undercarriage and tires of the ATV all at the same time.
I thought this idea was so ingenious I had to share it. I would not recommend trying this method haphazardly because it could end up causing damage to your ATV and garage if you do it incorrectly. Firstly, if the hooks you install in your ceiling are not properly weighted to carry the weight of an ATV or if the beam you put the hooks into is not able to carry the weight of a nearly 1000 pound machine. Finally, you need to be absolutely sure that the straps are properly secured on your ATV so that you are not at risk of having it fall. This is a lot of risk but for such an affordable, convenient and accessible way of lifting your ATV, I had to include it. If this method seems to add the most useful way of working on your ATV, it is worth examining the way to do it safely and securely in your home.
Lifting your ATV can be a little intimidating until you have tried it. Regardless of what method you decide to use, you will want to make sure safety for you and safety for your ATV are always your first priorities. When you are trying to save a little money by doing the repairs, maintenance or cleaning on your own, risking a costly accident to the ATV or yourself just isn’t worth it. Let us know what other lifting methods have worked for you!
Any work you do on your ATV, beyond routine maintenance, will require you to lift the ATV. In this article I’ll show you the most useful and most common ways to jack up an ATV. Including where to place the jack, and some useful safety tips when lifting an ATV.
There are tons of reasons to lift an ATV and tons of ways to go about doing it. Use this as a guide to give you some ideas on how you could do it yourself. You don’t always need expensive equipment to lift an ATV either.
The best way to lift up an ATV is to use an ATV lift. They’re specifically designed to jack the ATV up for maintenance and it’s one of the safest ways to do it. Jack stands or blocks is another safe alternative.
Of course you would want to lift the ATV on flat sturdy ground, but you also need to know where to position the jack on the ATV as to not damage the machine. This is mostly needed information if you plan on using a car jack, jack stands, or cement blocks. If you use an ATV jack or a scissor lift, the jack points are much less of a concern.
Lets start by telling you where to avoid lifting the ATV from. Definitely do not lift the ATV from the A-Arms, the rotors, the rear sprocket, or the bottom of the engine. Using any of those as ATV lift points could result in damaging the machine.
Try to get the jack or jack stand onto the frame, really anywhere on the frame itself will work but you also want the ATV to be securely balanced while up on the jacks. I like to use the frame right under the front bumper and the frame or axle near the rear tires.
Here are some pictures of different ATVs and their lift points to give you a better idea of where to jack up your ATV.
ATV Lift PointsTo make it easier, you could always run a 2×4 under the ATV and jack up the 2×4 from the sides of the machine. If you notice the bottoms of these quads near the centers all have some type of frame. Lay the 2×4 across the frame and jack up that way.
If your ATV is light enough, you could just lift the front and then the rear up onto cement blocks or jack stands, just be careful of these jack points and do not set the ATV onto parts that could be damaged.
If you don’t want to deal with ATV lift points or where to position the jack to lift an ATV, you could always get a scissor lift, an ATV jack, or use ramps.
These can get quite pricey but are by far the easiest and safest way to lift an ATV. They will also require a bit of space in your garage to own one. We’re talking around $1000 or more for a decent table lift.
If you’re looking for one of these, I recommend you check out this APlusLift MT1500 1,500LB Air Operated 24″ Width ATV Motorcycle Lift Table. They offer a 2 year warranty and have some of the highest ratings of any ATV scissor lift found online.
This is the most practical option in my opinion. Maybe that’s because I also have a motorcycle I use this lift to work on. But for around 100 bucks, this has been the best purchase for working on my machines.
I like the GoPlus Motorcycle ATV Hydraulic Scissor Lift Jack Stand on Amazon because it has wheels and a handle that allow you to roll it around and under the machine pretty easily. It’s also hydraulic so you don’t have to worry about needing an air compressor or any other special tools to use it.
I don’t like using ramps because if I ever need to get the ATV off the ground to work on it, I will most likely need to remove the wheels. When the quad is on ramps, you can’t do that. But they are nice to give you a little space when doing oil changes and things like that.
Here’s a link to the RhinoGear 11909ABMI RhinoRamps Vehicle Ramp from Amazon. These are actually made for cars and trucks, but will work for an ATV as well. I use these to give me some extra space when changing the oil in my truck, I hardly ever use them for the quad (I use the ATV Scissor Jack), but you definitely could if you wanted too.
If you’re going to be working on your ATV, check out the maintenance tools I use in the Recommended Gear Section of this site.
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The suspension is considered to be one of the most important functional components of motorcycle equipment, since it is it that is responsible for the rider's comfort in the process of movement, and also provides a soft passage through problem areas of the terrain. The sale of ATVs implies a special attitude to this unit and detailed advice on the procedure for its adjustment and maintenance.
There are dependent and independent types of suspension. The second type is most often found among modern ATV models. Each motorist can adjust it in accordance with his own preferences, as well as operating conditions.
Among the advantages of ATV dependent suspension it is worth noting:
Such attractive performance of this suspension is due to the extreme simplicity of its design.
Regardless of the type of ATV suspension, there are some regularities in its structure. There are front and rear suspension types. In order for 125cc ATVs to boast a high level of ride comfort, the front suspension is usually made independent. Often it is supplemented with elements such as a pair of wishbones and telescopic shock absorbers. As for the rear suspension, it can be dependent, independent or semi-independent, and can also be equipped with pendulums and shock absorption devices.
Suspension of any ATV is a set of spare parts, assemblies and assemblies located between the motor vehicle body and the track. It consists of the following components:
ATV suspension also performs many important functions, namely:
Based on this, the suspension, despite the relative simplicity of its device, plays a significant role in the design of any vehicle.
If your vehicle's suspension is not working properly or has failed, you may need to replace some of its components with new ones.
The following ATV suspension components most often fail:
To repair the suspension of an ATV without outside help, it will be enough just to find the failed elements of motorcycle equipment and replace them.
By adjusting the ATV's suspension for yourself, the rider will be able to get maximum pleasure and comfort in the process of driving. It is especially important to correctly configure this aspect in sports models of motorcycles. The fact that it is time to adjust the ATV suspension is indicated primarily by uneven tire wear, as well as the presence of problems and discomfort when driving a motorbike.
Adjust the suspension of a motor vehicle as follows:
Before starting to adjust the ATV's suspension, it is recommended to write down all the initial values so that if you do not like the result, you can easily return the motorcycle to its previous state.
In the absence of experience in the repair and maintenance of motorcycles, it is strongly recommended that if you find any problems with the suspension, contact the specialists at the service center. The sooner you decide to repair an ATV, the better, because driving it with a broken suspension is not only inconvenient, but also quite dangerous.
05/29/2021 2099
From time to time the quad is acting up and not behaving as you would like. Nothing beautiful lasts forever, right?
One of the most common faults you may encounter is the ATV suddenly pulling to the left or right.
If you're lucky, your problem might have a simple solution)
Let's take a look at some of the most common causes of ATV pulling to the side, and of course, here's how to get rid of these problems.
The most common problem that causes the ATV to pull to one side is the difference in rolling resistance due to different tire pressures. Also, the problem may be associated with natural wear or damage to various components of the chassis of the ATV and, as a result, a violation of the angle of the wheels.
So how do you determine what is causing problems when riding an ATV?
As you probably already understood, there can be several reasons.
To understand why an ATV wants to pull off the road and dive into a ditch when you really don't want to, you need to do a number of checks.
Although I don't have exact statistics to tell you which malfunction occurs most often, I still recommend that you start with what is easiest to check and fix before spending time and money on more unusual and potentially more complex searches.
In my experience, the most common cause, and by far the easiest problem to check and fix, is uneven ATV tire pressures.
Let's look at what happens when ATV tires have different pressures.
A flat tire has a larger area of contact with the road surface than a normally inflated wheel, as a result of which the friction force, and hence the rolling resistance force, applied to such a wheel will be higher. The wheel will roll more slowly. The opposite wheel will run ahead and try to turn the ATV around the slow wheel. That is, if the ATV pulls, for example, to the left side, most likely, the fact is that the left wheel is lowered.
To solve this problem, you need to equalize the air pressure in the ATV tires. It is best to refer to the operating instructions, which must indicate the required air pressure in the wheels recommended by the manufacturer. The pressure in the wheels installed on the same axle of the ATV must be the same.
At the same time, you should be aware that due to the design features and weight distribution of the ATV, the tire pressure on the front and rear axles may differ. MOTAX and YACOTA have such sensors in the standard tool kit. If there is no such device in your kit, I recommend that you definitely purchase it. A very slight difference in air pressure in the tires may well be the reason that the ATV pulls to the side when driving in a straight line.
The air pressure should be checked in both the front and rear tires. True, uneven pressure in the rear tires, most likely, will not be the reason for the withdrawal of the ATV from a straight path. Different pressure in the rear tires can provoke another malfunction - premature wear of the rear differential, due to the increased load on it. But this is a story for a separate review.
I always keep this inexpensive instrument in my tool kit, its accuracy is good enough to use.
Also make sure that the maximum tire pressure is not exceeded.
Over time, ATV wheels can wear differently, resulting in the diameter of one wheel being different from the diameter of another wheel. This can also cause the ATV to pull to the side.
To check if the front wheel diameters are the same, you can do a simple check: place the ATV on a level surface and use chalk to make a mark on the sidewall of each front tire at the lowest point.
Wheels must be pointing straight ahead, gear lever in neutral position. Roll the ATV forward until one of the wheels has made two or three revolutions and the mark you just made is back to the very bottom, to its original position. Look at the mark on the opposite tire. Ideally, it should also be at the very bottom. If this is not the case, the wheel circumferences do not match.
If the reason for the ATV pulling to the side lies in the difference in wheel circumference, then when driving to the right, the right tire should have a smaller circumference, and when driving to the left, the left one.
The circumference of the wheels can differ not only due to uneven wear, but also due to the difference in air pressure in the tires.
The wheel is like a balloon, the higher the pressure, the larger its diameter and vice versa.
For this operation, you need to lift the ATV, put it on stands so that all wheels are in a suspended state.
It is very convenient to use a motorcycle stand to lift the ATV. If you do not have them yet, and you plan to service the ATV yourself, I recommend purchasing them. They are relatively inexpensive. Tackles will greatly simplify the ATV maintenance process.
Check that there is no excessive play in the ATV suspension and steering joints. Start with the tie rods and steering rack. This operation is more convenient to carry out with an assistant. Have an assistant move the ATV handlebars to the right and left, often and with a small range of motion. And you, in turn, keep your hand on the swivel, which are subject to verification. Check the steering tips and tie rods one by one. You will feel the excess play in the hinge with your hand. If the ATV steering wheel has excessive play, but the tie rod and steering tip are in order, then the steering rack itself or the steering shaft bushing may have play, which can also be checked by hand. The steering column bushing usually wears out over time. The same goes for the ball joints on the tie rods.
Tighten any loose bolts and replace worn parts. Worn parts can break soon, so replacing them won't be a waste of money, even if their wear isn't the reason your ATV pulls to the side.
In addition, the wheel bearings must be checked for excessive play.
To do this, have a helper grab the top and bottom of the wheel and shake it while you check for play in the ball joints and wheel bearings.
Check how easy the wheels turn. The wheels should rotate freely, without noise and crackling. The presence of noise indicates wear on the hub bearing. And the tight running of the wheel is about bearing wear or souring of the brake pads. As we said, if one of the ATV's wheels is spinning at a slower speed than the other wheel, the ATV will pull towards the slow wheel.
If necessary, replace the bearings and service the front brake calipers. Sometimes the caliper is easy enough to clean, and sometimes you can’t do without replacing the brake cylinders or the caliper bracket itself.
Finish with suspension lubrication. The chassis of ATVs of the brands YACOTA , MOTAX , AVANTIS is equipped with special grease fittings through which you can easily lubricate the desired suspension unit. We have already told, in one of the reviews, using the example of a gasoline 125 cc ATV MOTAX T-REX , about the features of maintenance of the ATV suspension. Regular maintenance of your ATV will definitely prolong its life.
Control check three: checking the running gear for geometry violations.
If you use the ATV for active riding or sports, then it is possible that you have bent some part of the suspension on the next jump. ATV front suspension A-arms are especially prone to damage if you hit a stump or rock while riding. "Fast-growing" trees suddenly appearing in front of the ATV as you drive, a common story!)
A-arms are designed to absorb heavy suspension shocks and, through their integrity, retain more expensive and hard-to-find ATV parts that are more difficult, more expensive or even impossible to repair, for example, an ATV frame. It is not always easy to see if the suspension arm is bent or not. It happens that the levers do not have a symmetrical shape, because the ATV suspension was originally designed this way by the manufacturer.
Compare the distance between the axles of the front and rear wheels of the ATV on the right and left sides. If there is a difference, then one of the suspension arms is most likely damaged.
