There are definitely performance increases when you switch to an aftermarket exhaust. Whether the Xcellerator is any better than the other ones out there is hard to say. I personally don't think the slight increase in performance is worth the extra noise when you're riding. I actually like to keep my exhausts stock.

Spark plug technology isn't that complicated, the materials they use to produce them is where the difference lies. A spark plug has a metal threaded shell which is electrically isolated from a central electrode by a section of porcelain called the insulator.

The center electrode, on some plugs, may contain a resistor as well. The input to the spark plug is connected by a heavily insulated "spark plug wire". The output of the spark plug is internal to the  engine where the spark jumps from the central electrode to ground igniting your fuel/air mixture in the cylinder.

Spark plugs don't get popular by accident. Stick with the name brands and you will be fine. I think Champion and NGK are great spark plugs. There are probably other popular names you can add here too.

I look at brake pad like I look at tires, you get what you pay for... So aftermarket brake pads can be better than OEM pads as long you go out and buy from a respected brand. Save your packaging and write the date on them when you buy, that will give you a record of how long they lasted.

There should be tire specs in your manual. Tire sizes would be listed there.

There are numerous cable lubricating sprays out there. It's a small investment and a can of cable lube will last you for years. Buy the cable lube and avoid motor oil which can actually become a dust collector in my opinion.

Aside from selling you an ATV or motorcycle or whatever, they can also profit from the dealer financing. So most of the ATV dealerships will push you to their financing, I think the interest is a total of bank interest plus profit interest for dealership. That's the way I always understood it.

This isn't from Dirt Bike magazine but here's a good article about dirt bike evolution. It was written by someone here at BTAQ.

The evolution of off-road motorcycles, commonly called dirt bikes, is a long and complicated story. The first motorcycles were actually nothing more than modified bicycles with attached gasoline engines. These powered bicycles were amazing inventions in their day. Unreliable, but amazing methods of transportation, these motorcycles began captivating people across the globe.

Since paved streets were not quite the norm at the time, motorcycles generally could be considered dirt bikes right from the start. No single person or company has been credited with the invention of the dirt bike. Off-road motorcycling is really an evolution of many years, with better tires, better suspension and seats, stronger frames, and better control features being credited to many individuals who were essentially modifying their own bikes for better off-road use. Triumph motorcycles did however design a motorcycle specifically built for dirt riding in 1914, although this model is not actually credited with being the first dirt bike.

Motocross racing seems to have had it origins in Europe, very possibly France with these early motorcycles being raced through wooded trails or racing to the top of a mountainous road for publicity. Many of these early races were not races of speed but races against time where riders simply competed against each other on an individual basis. Racing expanded as did the production of motorcycles to include scrambles and cross country events which excited and entertained spectators. Incidentally, the word motocross was derived from the words motorcycle and cross-country.

The races would eventually be moved to a shorter, closed track for easier viewing by the spectators and better monitoring of the racers themselves. With the world at war and the Great Depression, off-road motorcycles may not have been a priority concept with people for many years but the interest in dirt racing wasn't about to go away. Then Soichiro Honda came along in 1946 with his idea to produce cheap transportation for people after the second world war. Honda became the most predominant name in motorcycles and dirt bikes in particular, undoubtedly due to the fact that they are the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world.

They were joined by other manufacturers over the years who would eventually become household names as well. Suzuki produced their first motorcycle in 1954, Yamaha in 1955, and Kawasaki in 1960. Although dirt bikes were still far in the future for the big four, this was the beginning of the onslaught of a motorsport unlike any other. Dirt bikes and dirt bike racing would eventually become one of the most popular motorsports in the world.

After a mix of both two stroke and four stroke motors in various models through the years, Honda finally designs and builds a competitive two stroke motocross motor in 1972. It reached the USA in 1973 and is called the Elsinore CR250. It immediately becomes the fastest production off-road race bike in its class and placed Honda alone at the top of the heap in regard to motocross racing.

In the 1970's, motocross racing would finally do what motorcycle manufacturers hoped it would. Off-road motorcycling would become a recreational activity not unlike bicycling with its popularity exploding among the general public. The big four Japanese manufacturers would eventually produce a full product line of dirt bikes in a variety of sizes for various racing classes and ages.

Children's dirt bikes would become available for those early starters and dual-use motorcycles would also become available with dirt tires and suspension along with street-legal features. Other manufacturers also joined the specialized dirt bike market including Maico, Gas Gas, and KTM.

To this day, dirt bikes continue their evolution with almost constant improvement in weight reduction, suspension, engine reliability, and overall performance. They are used as weekend recreational vehicles by millions of people around the world.

The world of motocross racing has become more popular than ever before thanks to dirt bike riding basically evolving into an art form. Freestyle riding and stunt riding are captivating more young riders every year and the manufacturers continue to respond by producing high quality, cutting edge dirt bikes.

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