I am looking to buy a used Kodiak. i just don't have the bucks to buy new. How many miles per year would you consider too much when evaluating the ATV? There is a 2000 Kodiak with 2000 miles on it, which seems quite high to me. A lot of you seem to have only new ATV toys. When and why do you sell them? Is there a certain year of production I should avoid, or vice versa, is there a great feature that is only available after a certain year? I am looking for a smaller automatic that you don't have to grease/repair constantly. A used Kodiak seems to be the only thing fitting my needs. Is there another small full auto available? Thanks for your expertise and opinions, but please don't recommend something over $4000 out the door. Dusty

 

i've read articles bout honda foremans w/8 and 9 thousand miles on them w/few problems. i bought my 00 rancher used in 01 w/bout 1000 or so miles on it and have only 1200 on it now. guess i don't ride as much as i should! i always recommend hondas to someone not wanting to do maintenance and who wants high reliability. the best ur gonna do in ur price range though will be a honda rancher or foreman w/electric shift if u can deal w/that. they will both be air cooled and require little maintenance including no radiator or thermostat to worry bout....depends on u. if u buy a quad w/high miles just make sure ur getting it at a reduced price due to the miles.
the 2000 2001 kawasaki prairies may be an option to as they came in 300 and 400 cc's both with CVT trannies....there's a lot out there. also, if u get an auto tranny just be aware if it came w/engine braking or not....that may be something u'd want to consider, too.
good luck.
i keep all my old mags and am looking at an article on the 01 kodiak from a dirt wheels nov. 2000 issue. it got a good review but they did not like the limited slip front dif. they said there were times when one of the front wheels was off the ground it happened to be the one spinning...in essence...still 2wd in some cases. other than that it was good, sporty and nimble w/plenty of juice. cost was 5999 new and it did have engine braking. remember though, an 03 kodiak 4x4 has been dropped to 5499 and a 2wd is 4599.
hope all this helps.

 

Since my old '87 Honda Fourtrax hasn't got an odometer, I have no idea how many actual miles are on it, but it's served me since 1988, and has never left me stranded once! In fact, other than having to have the carb rebuilt (I didn't drain it through the winter...with no use, and it gummed up) this Honda certainly could not have given me any better service! I'm truly convinced that for longevity, Honda is tops for me, and it's hauled loads that anyone seeing it would be astounded.
It seems like the harder I work it, the harder it pulls, so don't discount any of the Honda 4X4 ATV's as they will produce alot more than you would think before calling it quits. The shifting on mine has worked excellent from day one...what more can I say? I would think you could pick up an older Honda 350 Fourtrax for a pretty good deal, and it will give you years of great riding.

Perhaps I should mention, other than my local riding, annually I have taken it way up the Alaska highway, and then into the wilderness some 50 - 100 miles off the road from there on my annual hunting trips, with loads so heavy it's taken two guys to lift the trailer tongue onto the hitch, and the ol' Honda's never missed a beat. If she stops, the winch pulls her through...and on I go. Runs as good today as it did back in '88 when I bought it brand new! [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

Dale...

 

Thanks Honda guys, I have no doubt that a rancher ES would meet my needs, except for the shifting. Is the thunb? shifting intuitive enough to keep a neophite [think of someone's perhaps your own mother] on a rocky grade from getting in trouble? Pundits hammer the Honda's comfort, but they lay low when it comes to reliability and resale. Do you think a recon es 2x4 would take a grown man up rocky but not muddy grades? I have lsft my name/number with Honda dealer should a rancher show up. most folks are selling there used stuff themselves, but the best deal in the paper over xmas was a foreman beyond my budget.

 

I would not look so much at the miles, I would check the condition of the rims, the underside, rust in the tank and on the frame welds. Look to see how badly the owner beat it. I also have a 1986 Honda TRX350. I owned it since new and rode it hard. You can easily see how hard I ran it over the last 17 years. You would not even consider buying my ATV. But then again I wouldn't concider selling either.

 

Sorry forgot the second part of your question. I would not think twice about going for the 4X4. It makes it so much easier to negotiate minor obstacles, and makes climbing slow speed hills so much more reasuring.

 

Thanks, Sniper. It looks like Honda is doing a major revamp of their entire product line. What do you think that might do to previous year Honda ATV resale value/ parts avaiability? Maybe waiting until "hondamatic" and "integral GPS" makes the old technology Hondas more affordable. Have a warm weekend.

 

Two years ago. On a cold day I started up my '86 TRX350 and left it alone at idle. Well I forgot to turn the gas on. The bike died out and, ran backwards for a second. This snapped a tooth off the starter reduction gear. I was bummed that I killed my bike and figured by the looks of this gear. I would never find another one. I called up a few online Honda parts dealers. They all had it in stock. Price varied by a few dollars. Honda has not built one in 14 years, and had a production run of 4 years. Honda will have parts for whichever quad you choose. Don't worry.
You want the resale value to go down. There are no good deals to be found on the latest and greatest designs. If you buy a left over, or a used like new ATV. Expect the seller to take alot less then a new one. Otherwise you would be buying new anyway.
I have friends who have to buy a new ATV just because the new one has a slight improvement over the last year. Look for these people. They will drop thousands from a like new machine, so they can have a half inch more suspension travel. You can really rip them off and come out smelling like a rose.