its not that one has less maint. then another, its the type of riding, and the way its taken care of. if you have a young kid that is putting around the yard or in the trails, and his dad is anal about everything being to spec, it should be problem free for a while. on the other hand, if you have a supermini rider, that is going to be on the rev limiter 24/7, and never changes the oil, rarely changes the air filter, yea, its going to have a ton of problems and be a headache. its a 2 part relationship (type of rider, type of maint) BUT, in theory, the little motor is smaller and makes good power overall, one would think that with proper maintenance it shouldnt be any more work then a 250f. i think there are just too many variables to set in stone "YES" or "NO'.