Buying an Odyssey - Any Advice?

DunaticSuzyQ · Post by **DunaticSuzyQ** » Fri Oct 20, 2006 7:46 pm

Looked at buying an Odyssey 350 today. Looks to be in really great shape for age. Starts right up, etc. etc. We currently ride quads (Raptor and Banshee) but are looking for another toy for at the dunes.

Can anyone offer any insights, what to look fors, what to do/not to do, weight specs., tech tips. . .

Would love to hear any opinions.

Thanks guys!

Post by **Vincent J Brunasso** » Fri Oct 20, 2006 10:29 pm

Can anyone offer any insights, what to look fors, what to do/not to do, weight specs., tech tips. . .

Buy a Pilot instead.

DunaticSuzyQ · Post by **DunaticSuzyQ** » Sat Oct 21, 2006 8:27 am

Ok . . . . why?

Post by **Vincent J Brunasso** » Sat Oct 21, 2006 10:59 am

DunaticSuzyQ wrote:Ok . . . . why?

There's a lot of reasons. The 2 main ones are the Pilot has a larger water-cooled engine that is incredibly reliable. Overheating is somewhat of a problem on the Oddy's - especially on a hot day in sand dunes. Suspension is far superior - that makes for a better ride and better handling.

The Pilot was last manufactured in 1990, so its newer then the Oddy will be and has many of the latest improvements that were not on the Oddy's. Some are subtle and others are huge; all of them contribute to make the Pilot a more sturdy machine than the Oddy was.

At around $7500 its one of the cheapest "cars" you can buy. We've had members of our group buy both - those that bought the Oddy's and then rode a Pilot quickly sold the Oddy's and replaced them with Pilots.

Here's a couple of web sites that are dedicated to the Oddy and Pilots.

http://members.aol.com/dunepilot/index.html

http://www.pilot-odyssey.com/8525687400 ... 0?OpenForm

Sloppyduner · Post by **Sloppyduner** » Sat Oct 21, 2006 12:57 pm

Yes I admit I would like a REDLINE Or a Pilot. But have a blast on my 350

Does it go everywhere I want it to go? No. Can I get there eventually HECK YA.

If you've never driven one you won't get too far they are a totally different beast than quads. 350's weigh in at 602lbs DRY. They take up a lot more room than a quad when loading. A real PITA to load if you already have a tight space. You'd have to have the space of AT LEAST 3 quads loaded sideways to take the room of a 350. They are 2 strokes so there's mixing, and you gotta add another tank or keep a close eye on your gas when your out in the dunes. I got the cleanest 350 I've ever seen just two Summers ago. Had THE best dune ride I've EVER had in this clean 350. Never got stuck once. But then I screwed up and raced it at Anaheim on a super-lite track. Punched a hole in the gearbox (stay out of the gas when your landing on hard packed jumping 12 ft gaps) I admit it was abuse but the repair cost me $1600. Parts are a HUGE pain in the butt to find and you pay dearly for them. You gotta learn how to work on them yourself too because no one will touch them.

Now you just read ALL that above? Having said and lived it myself I still don't see paying more for a Pilot or Redline. You can have just as much fun in a 350. MOST of the problems above, weight, parts, 2 stroke, hard to find parts, also go with the Pilot. The Redline is newer but cost $15000. Like I said these "pilots" (there are 250, 350 and the 400 all fall in the FL series) are totally different beasts. No sense spending $7K on a pilot and figuring out these aren't for you. You can get a REAL nice 350 for half that and if taken care of right will last many seasons. They not only hold their value but go up in price so keep it in good shape. Pilots will always be the about twice the 350 no matter how much they go up in price.

Here's a picture taken at a rest stop on that ride mentioned above. There were Banshees, 250R's, Zuki 400, a Raptor, and a 400ex. And look I'm right there with the rest of them.

It beat the heck out of me. I don't think it hurt my Ody at all. and I think best of all NOT one person has asked me to NOT go on a ride because they din't want to wait for me. But I have had some expereance with them. I think that's 80% of being able to dune these things. It not "point and gas it" like Pilots Or Drakarts. It's picking lines and taking short cuts to keep up. When your in the power ban shoot for the high side of the bowl. The bigger the running start the better and hope you don't hit any whoops.

We all want the best of what ever type of vehicle we use in the dunes from tow vehicles to rails, But if you can't have fun on a 350 you just can't have fun.

Feel free to PM me with any more questions. I plan on being out for Thanksgiving (wash 40) and New years, (wash 16) and I LOVE to see the looks on peoples faces after a five minute ride in my odyssey. Or you can go with me on a ride and see where I can take mine.

Did I mention I HIGHLY recomend a neck brace? (but for the same reasons people should wear them in $60K rails)

OOPS need to add an edit. What is it that made you look at an Odyssey? What type of riding did you want to do with it? Was/is it to replace a quad? If you want it to replace a quad like a Raptor or a Banshee you'll be disapointed in the power, there for if you have $7K to spend get yourself a Pilot. If you have $15K get a Redline. If you have $22K get a Darkart. If you want to have fun and go back to the days of the dunes being a challange then pick up an Odyssey. They ARE a 350cc 2 stroke BUT they weight 3 times more than a Banshee so don't expect to go shooting up Olds. But once you figure out how to get to the West side of Olds in the big stuff Hang the heck on and nail it. You'll have a blast

DunaticSuzyQ · Post by **DunaticSuzyQ** » Sun Oct 22, 2006 9:09 pm

Thanks for the insights and pointing me to the other websites. Well, we did buy the Ody. Pretty decent shape (I guess for a 20 year old toy!) -- just needs some cleaning-up. Been sitting in someone's storage for a while. The price was cheap enough ($2500 and they put a new battery in) Start's right up. Sounds a little rat-tat-taty to me . . .

We have had a variety toys, the current ones being the Raptor, Banshee and Scrambler 90. I gave up my Scrambler 500 and a Honda 400 ex when my nephew started riding with us and needed a place for his YFZ450 and stuff in our toyhauler. Well, he has left the state and he doesn't ride with us anymore, so I have a space back in the trailer . . .

I was content to ride the Banshee or Raptor or 450, but now I won't be able to get back into dune riding for another year or so because I had to have two discs removed and a fusion plate put in my neck after President's Day weekend (one too many times over the handle bars, topped of by a nasty fall

) My last trip to ISDRA (October 7-8-9) was kinda boring because I was "camp wench" soooooo we were looking for something for me to putt around in on the flats until I can get back in the dunes.

I hoped with the Ody I could keep my 9 year busy (she could follow the leader me). She's a pretty good rider already and she is chomping at the bit to get in the Ody. We will have to see about that -- can you govern the speed or anything?

I will get a riding neck brace - thanks for the heads up. Any recommendations on brands/types? I had to spend sometime in a medical neck brace after surgery and don't won't to go back there

I will probably pm you SloppyDuner over the course of the season. I'm looking for a repair manual now -- or somewhere I can download it off the internet if you know of any links. We might need to buy a new rear wheel/tire too -- it has a slow leak. Paddles eventually, but not until I can get back in the dunes -- too much temptation

Thanks again! Well be at ISDRA for Thanksgiving probably, but hopefully at least once before that.

Post by **LoBuck** » Sun Oct 22, 2006 11:23 pm

Congrats on the new toy Suzy. $\:D/$

I hope I'm reading this wrong and the Oddy is not for you. I'm no expert with them, but based on what riding I've done and what I've seen, the Oddy will be a very rough ride if you're still having back trouble.

Sloppyduner · Post by **Sloppyduner** » Sun Oct 22, 2006 11:41 pm

CONGRATS ON THE ADDOPTION OF THE FL350 =D>

They DO <ting> I got my Simpson neck brace from Summit racing. It makes a world of differance.

What's wrong with the wheel? Tires are easy to find for the FL & not too much more expensive then quad tires.

PM me anytime you want for anything. If I don't have the answer I know the best guy in the country for advice.

And YES they CAN get bumpy. LOTS of upgrades are available for them that smooth them out. But take it slow until you get further out in the dunes.

And IF you go over the bars in this your belts aren't on tight enough

DunaticSuzyQ · Post by **DunaticSuzyQ** » Mon Oct 23, 2006 7:48 am

Well - hopefully no more back (neck) trouble now that I have had the bad discs taken out and a stabilizing plate put in . . . the Ody is probably for everyone to use -- just something to have fun on and mix it up a bit.

I don't see me going for the full out, get beat up, ride too much more these days, but once in a while I feel the need . . . Probably just slow riding for now. The Scrambler 500 was the smoothest (and heaviest) quad I ever rode. In fact, right now, I think the Raptor is pretty darn bumpy IMO. It's all good though. I figured if the Ody isn't a good fit for us, I can sell it for at least near what I paid for it

hoser · Post by **hoser** » Sun Jun 17, 2007 6:52 pm

Their is tons of Pilot Odyssey info, help, links, pictures, owners at my website.

http://pilotodyssey.com

Odyknuck · Post by **Odyknuck** » Wed Nov 28, 2007 2:01 pm

You can lesson the beating you get a lot with the Oddyssey by Installing Works shocks on all 4 courners. A bit pricey however they make a world of difference over the Junk ( and I mean real Junk) stock shocks. Once you ride it with them the price will be imedialy forgotton. Save your back and Go Works!