Hi, just looking for a little input/ advice on my new atv. I've been riding Honda 300's since 1988 (still have 2 '88's and a '96) I live in western Colorado where there is a very wide variety of terrain

Even thogh I don't do work with my quads I need a 4x4 with racks to haul gear and supplies for fishing trips into a lot of areas , the rest of the use (approx 60-70%) is just as a pleasure trail machine.

My riding is done from about 4500' to a little over 10500' so F.I. would be nice. I ride terrain from fairly flat open high desert to tight twisty mountain trails. Some areas are fairy rocky , quite a few small stream crossings.

I want to stay in the 400-500cc range. The big bores along with being too expensive are too heavy and I don't need the extra power. Most all of the places I go your speed is limited by the terrain not by having more hp then then the machines I'm looking at. If it matters I'm 5-10 180.


The atv's that I have narrowed my choices down to are;
1.) Honda 420 AT with p.s.
2.) Honda 420 FPM foot shift with power steering , I don't want anything to do with the button shifting model. My father in law bought a 350 rancher es and everytime I ride it it drives me nuts(after 21 years of foot shift atv's and 10 years of foot shift dirt bikes before that.
3.) Yamaha 450 grizzly a friend of mine has a 2002 400 Kodiak (basically the same bike excpt the new ones have IRS instead of SRA) I've ridden it a few times, it had much smoother riding then my 300's, snappier acceleration and better then expected engine breaking. I still found myself phantom shifting with my left foot. It always felt a little tippy though. With the SRA you could ride it like a sport quad with nice controllable rear end slides in 2wd. Not a bad machine at all. But the new ones have IRS, how much does this take the sport quad type ride away?

4.) Yamaha 450 Wolverine but I would have to put some racks on it.
I'd also have to get used to the sport bike styling of it.

I'm not considering any of the Polaris. I've known too many people that have had quite a few problems with these machines, but more important then that is I don't think I could work with the local dealer. Several of the Polaris owners complain about it.

The only Suzuki that did interest me (500 Vinson manual shift, SRA) is no longer made. It was pushing the limits of being too heavy anyway.

I'm not to big on cvt belt drives and just about anything Polaris or Suk makes Yamaha makes something just as good or better , IMO.

Thanks in advance for any input you have and if you think I'm missing "the perfect machine" from my list

 

Yes the Rancher 420's (any of them) will work wonders another nice quad for its size is a Grizz 550. I would take this over a 450 for the simple reason that the 550 does have EFI and Power Steering allong with twice the cargo capacity of the 420!
2010 Yamaha Grizzly 550 FI Auto. 4x4 EPS ATVs
2010 Yamaha Grizzly 550 FI Auto 4x4 EPS Reviews, Prices, and Specs

I personally find that my Grizz 700 to be perfect for Co and our type of riding terrain.

 

To me, it makes no sense to get the Wolv "hybrid" which tries to split the difference between a sport and utility, then try to turn it back into a ute with racks, etc. It is not geared low nor does it have a lot of ground clearance, so if you are a pure utility kind of guy (who has to get use to the sport styling!) I would pass this one up.

 

Well you certainly seem to know what you want - this is good.

However, you seem to have ruled out the Suzuki line - the King Quad 450 is a great machine but it has been upgraded to the KQ 500 with EPS (Electric Power Steering). Basically they put the Vinson's engine into the KQ frame - a great combination!

For the Job and standards that you have been talking - you may want to look closer at this line. It is a mid sized Utility ATV that has the FI, power, IRS and EPS that you are looking for. Sorry it's fully automatic - but thumb controlled Diff lock and 4 wheel drive.

If there is a dealer in your area - it is worth the trip to have a look - IMHO.

 

The Rancher 420 4x4 is exactly what you want.

Do yourself a favor and go test ride one.

It was bred for what you want to do.

 

I had a 2004 Rancher AT (hence my board name) a few years ago. Great styling, good racks, enough power. But....I found the transmission shifting to be sort of 'slushy' and not real fast on the gear changes. Smooth to be sure...yet not a solid feel to it. Not a true 4x4 either but I never was a serious rock climber/mudder so it was fine. The ECM chip needed replacement (I think that's what it was...it's been a while) but it never did give the tranny the feel I wanted. Test drove a Suzuki Eiger 400 (2003, new at the time) and liked it much better.
Perhaps the newer Honda Rancher is improved over what I had.

 

The current Rancher AT has a real 5 speed dual clutch automotive style automatic transmission. I wish it was available in Canada and came with a locker, then it would be the perfect all around atv.

 

My only complaint about the current Ranchers is that they gained considerable weight over the old 350 (which was spot-on for a mid-size), and the new AT is much worse being up there with the Foremans at over 600 pounds.

One of the magazines reviewed the Ranchers (October DirtWheels). In their tests the IRS Rancher 420AT didn't show any decided advantages over the SRA Rancher. I will be looking to replace my old 350 in the future and was thinking AT, but now I just may save myself $1,000 and stick with the standard model. The standard Rancher 420 is as closer to handling like a sport quad, then the typical utility!

 

Don,t always go by motor size, a full frame 550,660,700 grizzly 750 KQ weigh less or the same as a 420AT.2009 Honda FourTrax® Rancher® AT Power Steering (TRX®420FPA) ATVs

 

the honda is a great choice no doubt. Hondas are well known for running forever. My problem is there lack of features other brands have now. For instance, the racks seem smaller than the others,lower ground clearance,smaller fuel tanks than some of the others,they have enough power,but not the power compared to the others in its class, no diff. lock, and a couple other things im not a fan of but aren't important. i do like how they dont have belts,but ive never heard of anyone have a problem with a belt driven bike as long as it was ridden correctly. Im talkin about using low when its nessasary,sure high will pull you throgh some mud,but you will burn your belt up. use low. mine has 28" tires and is belt driven and ive never had a problem. if your worried about water getting in the belt housing then consider your self stuck with or without belt drive because the air intake is in the same location as the belt intake. so you would drown the bike either way. plus there is a plug, just pull it and water drains out. im not bashing,i just want you to buy an atv for your needs. Dont just go buy one because everyone says its the best. you may end up buying one then realizing you could have had something better and thats with any brand. im not gonna say what i have cause im not trying to steer you towards it but it had everything i wanted in an atv except one thing,and it wasnt a nessecity. good luck with your purchase.