I just bought this for a great price, it's in great shape, never beat on, runs great, 901 miles.... regularly serviced.

I read before buying during many hours of research that these have problems with the ESP. Can someone give me some tips how to avoid this (i.e. always park in neutral, never power wash, etc).

I haven't had problems yet but after driving across a creek my wheeler wouldn't shift (I then removed my glove, I thought it was that and it shifted fine). Do these things really suck riding across water (it was up to the running boards, splashing onto the engine a bit).

I am going to take it in for servicing soon to make sure the ESP is working correctly. My main concern would be the worst case scenario;

-what would it be and what would the cost be (ballpark of course) if say the shift fork needs to be replaced.

-For people with this machine, what have been your problems with the ESP?

-Regarding using dielectric grease on all wire couplings, what would be the best procedure? (I.e. removing hot wire from battery, etc).

-Would the ESP have to be reset after removing the wire connections, greasing and reconnecting?

Thanks for anyone who can help me. This is the BEST forum regarding help that's why I decided to post here.

My main fear is that I got a good deal on this because the bad ESP unit. He claimed that it never gave him problems to date, but who knows?

 

I have a 2004 honda foreman and love it ! last winter while riding on wet and slushy snow mine would not down shift from high gear..( had to shut the bike off and then restart ) The problem turned out to be the angle senser (I think that was the correct name) It is a connecting plug at the front and near the bottom of the motor.I unpluged it and let it dry over night and then cleaned the metal prongs with a very small file and then put dielectric grease on it and never had the problem again so far !! Good luck

 

Thanks, I will keep that in mind regarding wet/slushy conditions.

When that was unplugged the ESP box did not have to be reset?

 

The esp brain resets everytime the key is cycled to off and back on.
If its working now, then most likely itll keep working for years. Many thousands of these were bought, and very few have issues. Its a honda.
The biggest issue on the older ones, is when the battery is a bit discharged, or is on its last legs, the shifting can have issues. Keep the battery connections clean and shiney, where they contact the battery posts. If you ever have a shifting issue....check battery voltage first.
The other issue, is the clutch adjustment not being done often enough. I do mine once a year, after the oil change. If you have shifting issues, check this second( after confirming a good battery and correct voltage)
If you havent gotten the clymer or honda service manual, you should. Both go into very good detail, on how to troubleshoot the system, if it fails.
As long as the emergency shifter is in the box, you wont get stranded. The one on my 03 hasnt been used, other than for me to make sure it fit.
Dont worry about disconnecting the cables or battery...it wont loose anything. Just make sure the key is to off, when disconnecting anything electrical, and itll be just fine.

 

Thanks for that bit of information. It's good to know that if my machine hasn't had the problems, chances are it won't. I am going to get the Clymer manual, they are on eBay for 30 bucks. I have the Clymers for all of my other machines and they have been very handy over the years.

Thanks for answering my question. My main problem was sort of "computer" nerdy. I know working on computers removing some wires and not others, or not in a proper sequence, or with electricity still going through the circuits will fry them. That was my main concern while removing wires and reconnecting them.

 

My 00' Foreman has had simular problems, I have yet to take any dielectric grease around the angle sensor but after 6,000 miles it's still the original and I have only had problems when sumerged for more than a few minutes. (Stalled while sumerged; totally different story). I woulkd agree about cleaning it up and greasing her, she will do ya fine.

 

If I were you I'd take apart all electrical connectors you can get at and clean the terminals (if they are dirty) and apply dielectric grease to both sides. I use an old toothbrush to work it in where it needs to go. Apply this also to the 2 wires going to the coil and to the spark plug boot to help prevent stalling when wet. Most of the electrical connectors are on the left side under the gas tank. They are easier to get at with the plastics off and the tank off if your looking for a project.

I did mine when it was new in 1998, and did them all again this year.

 

Thanks again for the info, I will definitely do that this Sunday.

 

my 99 foreman 450 keeps having shifting problems too.... what is this dielectric grease and where can i find it... i find if im in a high gear for a while i have to turn the key on and off and then it will downshift and if my rpms are too high going from third to fourth the screen reads -- and i cant do anything unless i turn the key on and off and then downshift about 50 times... it does have over 13 000 kms on it so i hope its not anything else..... anyone who has anything new they can let me know thatd be great

 

Dielecric grease is a grease for electical connecions that permits the flow of electricity without interferance. Normal grease sometimes interferes with elecrical connections. Using dielectric restricts the buildup of corrosion caused by mud/water on electrical connections.

You can ask for it at any auto parts store.