TTR90....thoughts and opinions

I was going to pick up one of these for my 7, soon to be 8-yr old son for x-mas. This will be his first bike, hence the reason I like the TTR so much, because of it's 3-spd auto tranny. I figured he could start off on this, and if he gets into riding, then we can upgrade from there. :)

Will this bike be good for an 8-yr old beginner? And also, are the TTR's pretty reliable, well-built?

Thanks,

Brian