So times come to replace the wife’s Polaris sportsman as wife’s not riding it much and I’m going. Away from off roading on two wheels and would like something a bit peppier but mostly more reliable and with powersteering.


I have narrowed it down to the Honda Rubicon 520 DTC EPS or a Yamaha Kodiak 700 EPS


The honda offers a lot that I like but similar power to the sportsman presently have. But I like the idea of a real transmission. The slightly larger frame. The back up pull start. The lighter weight. And I think it looks great.

The Yamaha on the other hand has a bit more power. The best cvt out there (have it on my Bruin 350 and it’s way above the sportsman’s). A bigger fuel capacity

 

Honda has a real transmission however, look at repair costs. They are very costly to make repairs to, where a cvt is a simple belt replacement. Honda has a good reputation except for the transmission. In my area, the auto trannies are stalling resale values. Every brand has their quirks, I would go with the nodel and brand that fits you best....comfort is everything!

 

Nether id go can am. In the same size class they have more hp I see your 2 options do not even list their hp ratings on the website. They are a rock solid machine i hang out at our local dealer and usually the repairs are wear and tear parts nothing major. They have the best warranty in out their right now especially with their promo you can get up to a 5 year warranty. This will be my next choice after im done with my cat... I am very active in our local riding community and honestly we see non of those 2 machines on the trail..

 

So after more research I now deciding against the DCT Honda in favour of the foot shift. As again it’s simple and reliable and being as I coming from a duel sport motorcycle won’t be that big a deal.

As for the Can Ams. I agree there nice machines and I have ridden a friends 1000 XmR. But it’s more machine than I want and much more than I want to pay for. There BIG HEAVY and Have a lot of tech that can go wrong.

Still torn between Honda and Yamaha but I think the deciding factor now like mentioned will just be which feels better and which dealer I like better. The Honda dealers a couple mins from my home where Yamaha is about a 30min. Drive. The Honda dealer is also a smaller family run shop that I have felt with in the past for a motorcycle and always had good luck with them. The Yamaha dealer is a big multi line dealer (also a Honda dealer for that matter) and I have felt with them when I had a victory motorcycle. No real complaints there but still the small shop I liked better.

 

Ya the xmr is a beast but thats their big mud play toy and is the biggest machine in their line up.. the 550-650 size that you are looking at in the other makes is much smaller lighter machine with not much more tech than the machines your looking at... Im not a huge honda fan in their atv line up.. They relied to long on their name and did not really upgrade anything until the last few years. The only honda i seen on the trail was not that old and spend more time tied to our tow rope then under his own power... The machine was just not capable getting stuck from low ground clearance and narrow stance. Probably pretty embracing for him getting tugged through spots behind my 500 Arctic cat...LOL.. What ever you choose happy riding... Make sure you take all the machines out for a test run maby even go try one of the smaller can ams.. All dealers have a demo for this purpose

 

Always try before I buy.

I am aware and have ridden atvs for for a couple years having both a Yamaha Bruin 350 and sportsman 450/570. and despite the sportsman having way more ground clearance it’s constantly getting stuck when the surface gets soft. Compared to the Bruin as it’s so much lighter.

in fact that little Bruin managed to hang with the Can Ams in the mud. Getting winched our a few times for sure but also winching our the Can Ams too. It’s short coming is it just don’t have the power to turn the 26” tires in the sticky stuff especially with no low range.

 

one thing i forgot to mention is don't base your buying choose on a pull start.. Unlike on the carb machines they are useless on a efi machine if its your battery causing the issue and that is usually 80% of a efi non start issue.

 

Hmm just noticed for 2020 Yamaha is offering a new SE package for the kodiak 450 that includes diff lock and a winch. Not a bad deal at all as it’s $700 less than the Honda and the Honda has steel wheels and needs a winch addded. And the Yamaha likely has similar power to the Honda.

So now it’s between a rubicon 520 foot shift and Yamahas 450 se.

Today i I spent the day on my little Bruin 350. I had a blast. But it just lacks a bit of power and in some situations do to lack of power it needs a low range. That being said I’m amazed where I can get it. The Polaris sure does it more comfy but I don’t know many places if any the Yamaha can’t go that the Polaris can.

 

With a low range and efi, your gonna see a big difference in the power of the 450 over your Bruin!
I would bet the Yammie 450 will outrun that Honda as well. I like the cvt over the Honda mechanical trans. Cvt belts are much cheaper to replace than any kind of rebuild on that mechanical transmission!

 

Well thanks all for the help. The 700 kodiak won and today I brought home a 2019 Yamaha Kodiak 700 SE

Much preferred the feel of the machine on board and riding it felt much more like the Bruin I loved.