I used to own two of those 250s, but the first 4-wheeler I ever owned was the 1984 Fourtrax 200 with 10 gears, 5 low and 5 high. The 200 looked almost identical to the 250, there wasn't much difference in the body style. Then, I had a '85 Fourtrax 250 and a '87 Fourtrax 250, which was the last year they made the 250 in the US. I agree with Shadetree, those 250s were as tough as the 300s were, maybe tougher, because I never had a problem with the rear end in either one of the 250s.