I am having some problems with it
this has happened twice now i will be playing in the mud and all of the sudden it starts idling really fast... so i take off the air filter cover off and there is oil in the bottom of it and oil all over the filter...i know there is not too much oil in it because i check it everyday.
any suggestions what could be happening?
thanks,

 

Bring it to your dealer have them check with honda at my last seminar I think I remember them saying something about a pinched o-ring or something that could cause oil in the air box I cant remeber exactly but you shouldn't be getting excessive oil so I would have it checked

 

I had a simular problem with mine and wrote the following in the forum,

The dip stick should not be screwed in to get the correct level as the manual states. I had a problem with a new 2x4
2001 Rancher, the first 100 miles I rode I noticed that there was oil being pumped out of an over flow hose onto the
exhaust pipe and head. The dealer I bought it from cleaned it off and checked it over and found nothing. When I got it
back home I decided to change the oil ,so I looked in the the 2001 owners manual and it said add 2.7 qts. per change
w/filter. I did this and the dip stick read over full. Just for kicks I checked my 2000 Rancher's owners manual and it said
to only use 2.1 qts.I drained out .5-.6 qts and the stick read the correct level. The 2001 owners manual must be
miss-printed where is states to add 2.7 qts. I called the dealer and informed him my finding the manuals being different.
He said that the 2000 and 2001 are the same as far as he knows and also said my oil leak problem was probably just
over filled at the dealer when it was checked out. Any way I have not had a problem since.
You might check how much oil you have in your rig. Hope this is of some help.

 

I JUST CHANGED THE OIL ON MY 2001 4X2 AND ADDED 2.7 QUARTS. IT ALSO SHOWS OVER FULL. WHERE DID YOU SEE THAT IT SHOULD ONLY HOLD 2.1????? IN THE REAR OF MY MANUAL FOR CAPACITIES IT SAID 2.7.

 

I've got a 2001 4x4 ES rancher and it takes 2.1 quarts to fill it, the 2.7 quarts is a misprint.

 

I have a 2001 350ES bought 2/01 and in the back of the man. it states 2.6qt, this is wrong. However, in the changing the oil and filter section it states 2.1qt this is correct. 2.1qt was dead on when I changed the oil & filter in mine.

TRUEBLUE300

 

In reviewing my shop/service manual, it does indicate 2.6 quarts of oil as the capacity, but this is only relevant after disassembly of the motor. For fluid/filter changes, it indicates 2.1 quarts; half a quart stays in there somewhere. Hope this helps explain the two values.

 

Are you guys checking the oil in the Rancher the correct way ??? Remember this is a dry sump motor!! The owners manual says to start machine and let warm up for 5 to 10 minutes and then shut off and let sit for a couple of minutes and then unscrew dipstick and wipe clean and DO NOT screw back in,just until threads touch and stop against fill hole and pull out annd read.It should be between lines.Machine must also be level.

 

I just changed the oil in my 2001 Rancher and added 2 quarts. It indicates full on the stick. I had some oil in the breather when it was new and thought I would add just two quarts as .1 quart is difficult to measure. I have had no oil in the breather since the change.