I have a 1999 450 es that the trans goes to a - on the indicator. At this time it will not do anything. You have to manually reset it to nuetral and turn off the machine. Then restart it. and it ussually works , this does this freak-wently. Honda says it never heard of it. I don't believe this.
Any Help:
lubricity@hotmail.com
rich

 

I don't know that I've heard of it in paticular, the '-' basically indicates it's not fully seated in a gear. The dead basics are of course, charge the battery[The ES needs a hearty amount of charge], adjust the clutch, and make sure the tranny shifts properly with the tool. If that's all go, then it'd be a problem in the electronics, when the ES does detect a problem it completely shuts down, so that may indeed be the problem.[the computer has no output diagnostic to tell what is wrong though!]
I have the diagnostic flow charts they're slow and dreadfull, perhaps I could scan them and put them into an anonymous web page...

 

It has a new battery, and shifts fine most of the time. But plowing snow, or pulling something, it just goes into a stupper.
Thanks

 

I sell wheelers on the side up here,through a honda dealership and own them myself. I will not waste my money on ES models for that reason ,they seem worst for that about 35 degrees and below . The only advantage i can see over the S MODEL IS YOUR FEET STAY DRY IN DEEP WATER . Other than that , i think they suck, and again for that reason alone ,i do not recommend them to my customers and friends and most appreciate the honesty . You can try just about everything that anyone suggests, but if there is a for sure fix then i am unaware and i am at the dealership EVERY day checking on customers and following up contacts. Hope my info helps..........
.................................................. ...............

2001 HONDA RANCHER S MODEL W/ WARN #2000 WINCH AND C.C PLOW

 

My Bud's 450 ES does the same thing, all the time. He's gotten so he turns the key off and back on while he's still moving, rebooting the computer without stopping. He's got the manuals, and is very handy, but can't fix it. The Dealer doesn't have a clue and Honda never admits there is a problem! The new Foreman S with switchable 2wd/4wd is the only big Honda worth a crap till the Rincon comes out.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-cool.gif[/img]

 

Gotta nod to HONRAN, my 450 S is strong and reliable, and it stays in whatever gear my foot tells it to.

 

I had the exact same problem with mine that turned out to be a dead cell in the battery. I changed the battery and it now works perfect. Also, I added a light and in the process blew a few fuses. That really threw the ES for a loop until I figured out what fuses were blowing and disconnected the light. Anyway, it now works flawlessly and I'm really pleased with it.

 

I don't know if this is the same with the Foreman as it is with the Rancher, but my neighbor's '01 Rancher 4x4 ES will occasionally do this, and he just rocks the machine back and forth, and it clicks right into a gear. He's never had to break out the shifter tool, he just jumps on it back and forth, and "click!" and he's going again.

Dunno if that's any help or not...

 

There's a lot of bad mouthing of the ole ES in this thread! I have a 2000 Rancher 4x4 ES and have had the shifting problem only after playing in deep water for extended periods. The fix was easy and has never happened again. I took the sensor on the front of the engine out, dried it and disconnected it from the wiring harness. I then cleaned the connection between the wiring harness and sensor. Then I put the dielectical grease in the connection and hooked everything back up. No problems since. I'm not sure if this is the same problem as your Foreman but It wouldn't hurt to try! Good luck

02 Prairie 650
00 Rancher 4x4 ES
02 Sport Trax 90

 

the ES system is totally reliable. Only thing i have had happen was the downshift buttons stick.......I wouldn't waste my money on the S version. but that is my opinion and a biased on at that.