Light at the end

I do believe we are near the end of the tunnel when it comes to snow. Of course I will post this and 2 days later get hit with a massive snow storm- but I think that is covered by the lion clause.
As far as I can tell the bad weather (bad meaning feet of snow falling) has come to an end. This is pleasant news since I have just purchased a new (to me) ATV. After much research and worry I decided on a 2008 Suzuki King Quad. More on that in a minute.
For those who understand little about the ATV market I will explain. First it is fun as hell playing with powersports. Little regard for public laws such as speed limits, right turn lanes, stop lights and so forth. Of course safety is a concern so I wear gear to protect myself- but beyond those rules there is an overwhelming sense of freedom. Imagine riding a beast of a machine through the woods over boulders, trees, mud, and whatever else you happen upon. Imagine hanging out with your friends who like to do the same thing. Imagine stretching your mind to figure out the best way up a rock covered mountain. All these things are what equal fun to me.
I know, it is not for everyone- but it is for me. Now- Why did I not buy American? I hate to say it but this country has moved from an engineering country to a services country. We started simply with manufacturing in the early 1900's and have moved totally away from it. This means that products in this country are a little sub par. We can talk about the high end computing part of the world later- (which is NOT the same as most other things) but for now cars as well as ATV's come better from Japan.
I know- what about Toyota recalls? I own a Toyolexus and I do not care. My floor mat was included in the recall. it has not moved- it will not move and it is fine. Idiots are the reason for a majority of the recalls. Since I am not one I will continue on.
I checked all major brands of ATV- this is what I was looking for...
Power- more power than my old one had since I always seemed a little short in trying to keep up.
IRS (independent rear suspension) this is important in keeping planted- since my old ATV fell off a cliff this was important to me.
Diff lock- for those that do not know diff lock means TRUE 4 wheel drive- not 3 wheel like what my Honda had.
Comfort- my older Honda hurt my ass.
reliability- I do not want to work on an ATV every other week so I can ride it once a month.
Other nice features that come along for the ride are a digital dash readout, nice wheels, tires and a winch (not a wench).

The best choice for reliability came down to a couple Jap models. The way I cam to this conclusion was RESEARCH. Instead of taking name brand into account I researched ALL ATV brands. I included location of dealerships to me into the mix so the only brand not included was Arctic Cat- there are just no close dealerships and no way to get parts if something does happen to break.
So- CanAm- junk- so many issues I cannot list them all here- research the chat boars and find many things that suck- also no true locker for the front diff and the cost is unusually high for a machine without a true diff lock.
Honda- lacking most features above- the lowest power of all Big Bore machines (BTW- I wanted a big bore for the power)- also reliability issues in the tranny on earlier models
Kawasaki- Japanese but still poor construction- bad Radiator placement means overheating all the time
Poloaris- horrible diff design, horrible electronics design (meaning open electronics to the weather), bad record for overheating as well
Suzuki - earlier models had battery drain issues for bad wiring- but later models fixed this- more to come
Yamaha- Gas boiling, vapor lock or whatever you want to call it is a massive problem. No one can agree if it is truly gas boiling or vapor lock. Either way it is a reliability concern and ultimately
No name brand = not enough info to buy- also limited options and parts availability

I chose the Suzuki- but was only shopping for a 2008 or newer based on the battery drain issue. I hope it holds up and gives me the reliability that it promises. It has everything else I want and seems nice.

So I started down this path because it seems the weather for next weekend (SAT) looks like 50 and sunny. This means I may get to ride my new ATV for the first time! WOOHOO. Cannot wait.